Hey! I’m Cass.

cls663 @ nyu dot edu ~ (they/she) ~ CV

I am an artist, designer, educator, and PhD student at NYU Steinhardt studying Educational Communication and Technology. My research interests are very interdisciplinary, living at the intersection of art, design, computing, education, psychology, and critical studies. I’m curious about the cognitive and affective dimensions of creative computing tools, media, and praxes, and what implications these dimensions have on my quest to queer computing education and technological identity through design.

To that end, I aim to take a design-based and participatory approach to my work, co-creating research projects and tools with community members and studying how identity and creative practice are affected by using them. With the help of youth, educators, artists, and queer folks, my dissertation is focused on the design and study of self-expression through physical computing.

My background is in Interdisciplinary Art & Media Studies and Human-Computer Interaction. Beyond my studies at NYU, I work as an educator at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Recent Logs

Research Projects

Ongoing


touchBase

a tangible programming language

2024 - present

RQ: How can crossmodal and sociocultural design elements enhance the learning outcomes of tangible programming languages?

Keywords: tangible interfaces, computer science education, creative expression, visual representation, culturally-sustaining pedagogy

Immersive Art Protection Plan

a body of art-based research

2022 - present

RQs: How can we prevent immersive art from being psychologically weaponized? Is it possible to do so without limiting creative freedom?

Keywords: virtual reality, immersive art, futurism, fascism, dark patterns

NeuraFutures

an installation about brain-computer interfaces

2020 - present

RQs: What can science fiction help us understand about brain-computer interfaces? How can public art spaces be useful for scientific communication?

Keywords: brain-computer interfaces, science fiction, exhibit design, informal learning, ethics of technology

Previous


DynaTags

dynamic AR markers for enhanced tangible interactions

2021 - 2022

RQs: Can fiducial markers be dynamic? How would this extend the modalities of tangible experiences?

Keywords: tangible interaction, paper interfaces, shape changing, augmented reality, computer vision