Assistant Professor Emily Knox has been invited to participate in a Nation of Makers meeting at the White House on August 24 as a representative of Makerspace Urbana. The meeting brings together individuals who run, support, and/or are involved with makerspaces around the country.
Makerspaces offer community members the space, tools, and technology to turn their ideas into reality. The mission of Makerspace Urbana is "to provide an open community lab where people of diverse backgrounds can learn, teach, tinker, collaborate, share, innovate, socialize, and create."
Since the first-ever Maker Faire in 2014, the White House has continued to support STEM education through making, expand available resources for maker entrepreneurs, and foster the development of advanced manufacturing in the U.S.
"I'm excited to represent both Makerspace Urbana and the iSchool at this meeting of makers from across the country,” Knox said. “I hope to both gain some insight and offer some expertise on creating and maintaining inclusive spaces for making."
Knox joined the iSchool faculty in 2012. She received her PhD from the School of Communication and Information at Rutgers University and her master's in library and information science from Illinois. She also holds a BA in religious studies from Smith College and an AM in the same field from The University of Chicago Divinity School. Her research interests include intellectual freedom and censorship, the intersection of print culture and reading practices, and information ethics and policy. Recognized for excellence in teaching and research, Knox was honored in 2015 with the Illinois Library Association Intellectual Freedom Award and the WISE Instructor of the Year award.