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Biography
My name is Katherine (Kate) Deibel. When not saving the world from inclement evil, I am currently a PhD candidate in the Computer Science and Engineering department here at the University of Washington. I originally hail from Pewee Valley, Kentucky (yes, that is it's name!), and I attended Butler University in Indianapolis for my undergraduate work. If you don't know what state Indianapolis is in, assume it's in Uzbekistan. You know, it's that state right between Paraguay and Andorra. While there, I earned my B.S. in computer science and mathematics (despite my initial attempts at being a literature major).
Although my doctoral work is in computer science, my real passion is education research, particularly in the areas of alternative and digital literacies, educational technology, reading, and accessibility. My thesis work is about understanding and supporting the adoption process of assistive technologies for adults with reading disabilities. It is an amazing subject to study, and it enables me to engage in truly interdisciplinary research. I am co-advised by Alan Borning and John Bransford.
I am also a graduate research assistant at the Center for Engineering Learning and Teaching (CELT). I act as the technology support person and as a statistical / methodology consultant for the engineering education research there. A good deal of my work has involved designing information visualizations for our various ongoing studies on how engineers approach design.