Alexandra To
Assistant Professor
Biography
Alexandra To is an assistant professor in the Khoury College of Computer Sciences and the College of Arts, Media and Design at Northeastern University, based in Boston.
To focuses on human–computer interaction, particularly on centering and uplifting marginalized people through computing and tech. She is interested not just in inclusion, but in how marginalized people can flourish and use tech to access joy, play, and justice. This research requires plenty of collaboration and ongoing learning, which keeps To engaged and on her toes. To has received a host of awards and recognitions for this work, including the Best Paper Award at ACM’s CHI, UIST, DIS, and CSCW conferences, plus a CSCW Recognition for Contribution to Diversity and Inclusion.
At Khoury College, where she has researched and taught since 2020, To teaches foundational courses in human–computer interaction. Students often take her courses after a long series of deeply technical classes, and she enjoys guiding them in their reflections about who their technology is for and why. To particularly loves to pursue a disparate collection of research projects, both those born of her own passions and those put forth by her student collaborators.
In her free time, To enjoys tabletop roleplaying games, fantasy video games, cooking, and tarot.
Recent publications
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[TEST-FEB13]-Queer TTRPGs’ Visibility, Safety, and Allegory as Resistance
Citation: Jailyn Zabala, Josie Zvelebilova, Alexandra To. (2024). Queer TTRPGs' Visibility, Safety, and Allegory as Resistance FDG, 30. https://doi.org/10.1145/3649921.3650022 -
[TEST-FEB13]-An Exploration of Learned Values Through Lived Experiences to Design for BIPOC Students’ Flourishing
Citation: Laveda Chan, Dilruba Showkat, Alexandra To. (2024). An Exploration of Learned Values Through Lived Experiences to Design for BIPOC Students' Flourishing CHI Extended Abstracts, 43:1-43:7. https://doi.org/10.1145/3613905.3650899 -
[TEST-FEB13]-Envisioning New Futures of Positive Social Technology: Beyond Paradigms of Fixing, Protecting, and Preventing
Citation: JaeWon Kim, Lindsay Popowski, Anna Fang, Cassidy Pyle, Guo Freeman, Ryan M. Kelly , Angela Y. Lee, Fannie Liu, Angela D. R. Smith, Alexandra To, Amy X. Zhang. (2024). Envisioning New Futures of Positive Social Technology: Beyond Paradigms of Fixing, Protecting, and Preventing CSCW Companion, 701-704. https://doi.org/10.1145/3678884.3681833
