I am an Assistant Professor in the Department of Public Administration and Policy at Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy at the University at Albany, State University of New York (SUNY).

My research focuses broadly on the intersection of public and nonprofit management, science and technology policy, and social equity. I am interested in understanding and improving the ways that public and nonprofit organizations use data and evidence, design thinking, and technology to solve problems and engage diverse communities.

Some of my current research examines digital citizen-state interactions through a user experience (UX) design lens. My goal is to understand the ways that citizens interact with government agencies in digital environments (e.g., websites, open data portals, social media, chatbots, and virtual assistants, etc.) and the role of UX design principles in enhancing those interactions in ways that increase citizen engagement, reduce administrative burdens, and improve social equity. Similarly, I am also interested in exploring the “dark side” of user-centered design across different public service domains (i.e., datafication of citizens, commodification of citizens as data, algorithmic reductionism, etc.) and have recently begun to explore some of the design conflicts and design paradoxes that may exist in these contexts, including the inevitable tradeoffs they result in.

I am also currently working on a handful of projects related to the adoption and implementation of AI and algorithmic decision-making systems in the public sector. Topics include transparency and explainability of AI and algorithmic decision-making systems, contestability of untrustworthy decisions, pathways to accountability, and the role of public procurement in AI adoption and implementation in the public sector.

See my published research here: Google Scholar Page

Submit to our Symposium on “Ethical, Responsible, and Value-Oriented Use of Artificial Intelligence in Public Organizations”: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/pb-assets/assets/14679299/cfp/CFP-AI-in-Public-Organizations-1709336916043.pdf

Selected Past Research Talks

  • Open Data and Usability

    I presented descriptive results from my study on open government data portals and usability attributes at the International Conference on Open Data (November 30, 2022).

    Slides Here

  • Guest Lecture: AI in the Public Sector

    Guest lecture for undergraduate public administration students at Zeppelin University (Germany) on algorithmic decision-making tools in the public sector.

    Slides Here

  • November 17: Digital Governance Research Colloquium at the Centre for Digital Governance

    Invited talk at the Hertie School (Berlin, Germany) on my ongoing research on communication, information design, and public engagement.