Sharifa Sultana

About Me

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I am a human-computer interaction (HCI) researcher. I connect computing, justice, faith, and access together to support the empowerment of communities worldwide. I have expertise in HCI, design theory, South Asian feminism, and science and technology studies (STS). I have been working with rural communities in Bangladesh and Iranian immigrants in Canada for the last eight years. I use both quantitative and qualitative (ethnographic) techniques and ethics frameworks to study and design computational tools and systems. My research has brought novel perspectives into decoloniality, feminism, access, and polyvocality in HCI and information and communication technology for development (ICTD). 

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I am an Assistant Professor in Computer Science at UIUC. I completed my Ph.D. in Information Science at Cornell University in 2023. I was advised by Dr. Susan R. Fussell. Dr. Steven J. Jackson, Dr. Jeffrey M. Rzeszotarski, and Dr. Syed Ishtiaque Ahmed were also on my PhD committee. I have remained a Facebook/Meta Fellow, and my research has been supported by Facebook/Meta Fellowship and grants. 

 

Before Cornell, I was a Lecturer of Computer Science (CS) at the Independent University, Bangladesh. Previously I was also a Lecturer of Computer Science and Engineering (CSE) at the University of South Asia, Bangladesh. Before that, I worked for PrimeSilicon Technologies (Bangladesh), as a Placement and Routing (PnR) Engineer. I obtained my undergraduate degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering (EEE) from Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), majoring in Telecommunication Engineering and Digital Signal Processing.

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My areas of interest are:

HCI4D, AI for All, HCI-Design, Visualization, Ethics in AI;

Empowerment, Rural Computing, Decoloniality. 

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Fill in the Google Form if you are looking to work with me.

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Recent and Upcoming Events​​​​​

• Jan 27, 2025: Paper got accepted at CHI 2025.

  • Talking About the Assumption in the Room.

• Dec 25, 2024: Paper got accepted at iConference 2025.

  • ​Analysis of the integration of e-commerce and rural lives in China​

• Oct 4, 2024: Paper got accepted at ACM GROUP 2025.​

  • "My very subjective human interpretation": domain expert perspectives on navigating the text analysis loop for topic models.

• Sept 12, 2024: Paper got accepted at ICTD 2024.​

  • The Ancient Elephant in the Room: Stigma, Gender Norms, and Cultural Barriers in Reproductive Care in Bangladesh.

• I am serving the ICTD 2024 organizing team as the Notes Chair.​​​