Teenagers use generative artificial intelligence for many purposes, including emotional support and social interactions. A study by University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign researchers found that parents have little understanding of GAI, how their children use it and its potential risks, and that GAI platforms offer insufficient protection to ensure children’s safety.

Little did doctoral candidate Kainen Bell know in 2013 when he was an undergraduate studying abroad in Brazil that the country would play a major role in his future dissertation research. Since his first trip, he has returned to Brazil multiple times, even completing a Fulbright study and working for a community-based organization in the country. Now, Bell is preparing to return again, this time to spend ten months conducting research as a recipient of the prestigious Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad (DDRA) Fellowship.

With his Choctaw and Muscogee Creek heritage, PhD student David Eby has a personal connection to his research, which seeks to blend Indigenous knowledge with quantitative data practices. Eby, who is a member of Native American House at University of Illinois, is also interested in analyzing online community identity and representation. 

Twelve iSchool master’s students were named 2024-2025 Spectrum Scholars by the American Library Association (ALA) Office for Diversity, Literacy, and Outreach Services. This "Spectrum Scholar Spotlight" series highlights the School's scholars. MSLIS student Mateo Caballero graduated from Northeastern University with a BA in communications and media and screen studies.

Members of Associate Professor Jodi Schneider’s group will present their research at the Association for Information Science and Technology (ASIS&T) Workshop on Informetric, Scientometric, and Scientific and Technical Information Research, which will be held virtually on November 6 and 13. The MET-STI 2024 Workshop is collaboratively hosted by the Special Interest Group for Metrics (SIG-MET) and Special Interest Group for Scientific and Technical Information (SIG-STI) of ASIS&T.

BSIS + DS student Jenny Mai discusses her study abroad experience in Melbourne, Australia, a country filled with energy, culture, and a laid-back but driven attitude. According to Mai, "living in Melbourne has been more transformative" than she expected!

MSLIS student Evan Allgood's volunteer work showed him that a career in information science would bring all his interests together in one field: accessibility, literature, history, technology, databases, and community building.

iSchool faculty and students will present their research at the 26th International Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) Special Interest Group (SIG) ACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2024), which will be held on October 28-30 in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. The conference is the premier forum for presenting research on design, evaluation, use, and education related to computing for people with disabilities and older adults.

A team including MSIM students Kritika Singh and Jainam Rajput won the Chicago hackathon of the NASA Space Apps Challenge, which was held in over 450 locations worldwide on October 5-6. The students partnered with computer science master's students Shraddhaa Mohan, Jinang Gandhi, and Sai Krishna Rohith and engineering in autonomy and robotics master's student Jugal Upadhyay to form Team Cuberts.

Twelve iSchool master's students were named 2024-2025 Spectrum Scholars by the American Library Association (ALA) Office for Diversity, Literacy, and Outreach Services. This "Spectrum Scholar Spotlight" series highlights the School's scholars. MSLIS student Armaan Singh Kalkat graduated from the University of Florida with a BA in linguistics and BS in psychology (with an emphasis on neuroscience).