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A headshot of Manali smiling outdoors with green trees in the background. They are brown with short black hair, wearing glasses and a grey and white plaid button-down shirt.

Manali Desai

Lecturer I in Information, School of Information and Lecturer I in Art and Design, Penny W Stamps School of Art and Design Email: [email protected] Phone: 000/000-0000
Office: Stamps School of Art & Design/2000 Bonisteel Blvd Faculty Role: Faculty

Biography

Manali is a Lecturer at UMSI, where they support courses spanning the BSI and MSI programs and serve as the coordinator for the new UMSI Maker Lab. They bring over 7 years of experience working in digital fabrication at the Stamps School of Art and Design, as they build out the Maker Labs educational programming.

As an UMSI alum, they’ve used what they learned to foster their interdisciplinary design practice, creating everything from wood tables and e-textiles to spreadsheet automations and dinner parties. Drawing from work spanning digital fabrication, ubiquitous computing, queer design practice, and user research — they’re here to support students in designing and prototyping interactions beyond the screen and for larger systems.

If you ever want to talk about making, workshops, or how the UMSI Maker Lab can support your work or course, feel free to reach out or visit them at the Maker Lab during Open Hours.

Pronouns

they/she/he

Areas of interest

user research, digital fabrication, prototyping, ubiquitous computing, embodied design, trans technology, citizen interaction design, community oriented design, accessibility 

Honors & Awards

Impact in DEI award

Education

BSI at the School of Information (Data Analysis) 
MSI at the School of Information (UX Research & Design)