03/06/2026
Last Friday Feb. 27th, the iSchool invited scholars and visitors into a hive of research energy, as doors opened on the annual Research Showcase event at the Texas Union on UT Campus. For those in attendance, three hours was scarcely enough time take in the dizzying depth and breadth of all the research projects on display. Still, a unifying narrative emerged: The iSchool’s researchers are forward-looking, collaborative, and focused not just on substantive findings but also on effective communication of what their work means and why it matters.
The morning faculty research panel in the Quadrangle Room, “Computational Social Science and Critical Perspectives on Technology and AI,” moderated by Dr. Matthew Lease and featuring professors Hanlin Li, Angela D.R. Smith, and Nathan DeBlunthuis, set a tone of serious inquiry into emerging problems and topics.
After the early panel, the Santa Rita Suite exhibition hall next door opened for poster presentations and demonstrations. Projects presented ran the gamut of the various specialties under the iSchool umbrella, including user experience and design, cybersecurity, library and archives, health informatics, and accessibility in technology. Several took on key hot-button issues of our day.
To finish up the Showcase, the crowd headed back into the Quadrangle Room to hear from another trio of iSchool professors – Brian McInnis, Earl Huff, Jr. and Steven Slota – along with moderator Ying Ding, for the panel “Civic Discourse and AI for Access, Education, and Memory.” Once again, the rapid adoption of AI was a top concern for those onstage.
Overall, the Showcase was an awesome success and a fantastic opportunity to bring together students, researchers, faculty, alumni, and friends alike from the iSchool and across campus.
You can read more iSchool Research Showcase 2026 highlights here: https://lnkd.in/gdzKjwfy
Huge thank you to everyone who made this such a successful event!
