Meet Ben Lee, MS–Social Impact track, 2020

Creative Technologist

Photo of Ben Lee
With a background in psychology and an academic focus on the social psychology of disability, Ben Lee joined the Social Impact track of the MS CTD program to be "part of the change that no longer treats universal design as an afterthought." Specifically, he sought experience in UX/UI of accessible technology.

Backstory

As an undergraduate, Ben was a social activist working to destigmatize mental illness, developmental/physical disabilities and eating disorders. Towards the end of college, he discovered the field of usability design and its importance in a world with an ever-changing and technologically complex future. After graduating from Oregon State University with a BS in psychology, Ben worked for a remote IT help desk and as a business office manager. As a volunteer, he worked as an event photographer for the National Association of the Blind, as a sighted workout partner for Achilles International as well as served meals to those struggling to make ends meet in the Stone Soup Kitchen in Corvallis, Oregon.

Coursework

Core:

  • Global Development
  • ICTD Case Studies
  • Fieldwork Methods
  • ICTD Laboratory

Electives:

  • Creative Technologies
  • User-Centered Design & Development 1
  • User-Centered Design
  • ATLAS Master's Independent Study
  • Input Interaction Access
  • Science Programming and Data Lab 

Projects

:  Providing an reverse online job fair experience that is completely accessible for those with visual impairments through the use of screen readers.

Ben's culminating Social Impact Thesis project used screen readers Job Access with Speech (JAWS) and Meghalaya Basin Development Authority (MBDA) and was developed in conjunction with the National Federation for the Blind, Boulder chapter, the Achilles Boulder chapter and the Audio Information Network of Colorado. In this online reverse job fair, employers visit booths set up by potential employees with visual impairments to give the potential employees greater control over their introductions and presentations and maintain the job fair goal of allowing employers to identify the people most relevant to their job listings. Ben created the project to have total screen reader accessibility, to improve an experience that was already available for people with vision impairments and sighted employers and to offer a platform that allowed people with vision impairments to give context to their professional history and skills. 

Career Goals

To make sure future technologies are accessible to all.