Shaundra Bryant Daily (born May 29, 1979) is an American professor and author known for her work in the field of human-centered computing and broadening participation in STEM. She is a

professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who professes". Professors ...

in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Computer Science at Duke University.

Early life and education

Growing up, Daily was interested in math and science and loved to dance and do gymnastics. Daily received her

B.S. A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University ...

Engineering Engineering is the use of scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad range of more speciali ...

from Florida State University in 2001, her M.S. from Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University in 2003, and her S.M. (2005) and

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...

(2010) from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Media Lab. At the Media Lab, she worked with the

Affective Computing Affective computing is the study and development of systems and devices that can recognize, interpret, process, and simulate human affects. It is an interdisciplinary field spanning computer science, psychology, and cognitive science. While some ...

and Future of Learning Groups.

Career

After graduating from the Media Lab, Daily joined Clemson University's School of Computing in the Human-Centered Computing Division as an

assistant professor Assistant Professor is an academic rank just below the rank of an associate professor used in universities or colleges, mainly in the United States and Canada. Overview This position is generally taken after earning a doctoral degree A docto ...

. There she was promoted to associate professor and served as co-chair of the division. In 2012, Daily was involved in a controversial project to measure

galvanic skin response Electrodermal activity (EDA) is the property of the human body that causes continuous variation in the electrical characteristics of the skin. Historically, EDA has also been known as skin conductance, galvanic skin response (GSR), electrodermal ...

in classrooms using bracelets from startup

Affectiva Affectiva is a software company that builds artificial intelligence. The company claims its AI understands human emotions, cognitive states, activities and the objects people use, by analyzing facial and vocal expressions. An offshoot of MIT Media ...

. The project was funded by the

Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), a merging of the William H. Gates Foundation and the Gates Learning Foundation, is an American private foundation founded by Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates. Based in Seattle, Washington, it was ...

and was criticized by

Diane Ravitch Diane Silvers Ravitch (born July 1, 1938) is a historian of education, an educational policy analyst, and a research professor at New York University's Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development. Previously, she was a U.S. ...

of New York University. Daily's work at Clemson focused on the use of dance to teach programming. Students used

block programming Block programming is the arrangement of programs on radio or television so that those of a particular genre, theme, or target audience are united. Overview Block programming involves scheduling a series of related shows which are likely to attra ...

to choreograph dances in a virtual environment. The aim of the research was to help bridge the gender gap in computer science and engineering. In 2015, she joined the Department of Computing and Information Sciences at the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...

as an associate professor, before moving to Duke University where she serves as an associate professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. As Faculty Director of Duke Technology Scholars Program
QuadEx lead Faculty Fellow
and faculty representative of the executive committee for the Pratt School of Engineering Diversity, Inclusion, Equity and Community Committee, Daily continues working for equity in education. Daily's accomplishments have been documented in articles, web series and podcasts. She was featured in news sources for her work fusing dance and a virtual environment to teach computer programming as well as

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

for her work exploring privacy and trust issues of

affective computing Affective computing is the study and development of systems and devices that can recognize, interpret, process, and simulate human affects. It is an interdisciplinary field spanning computer science, psychology, and cognitive science. While some ...

in the classroom. Daily was featured alongside

Neil deGrasse Tyson Neil deGrasse Tyson ( or ; born October 5, 1958) is an American astrophysicist, author, and science communicator. Tyson studied at Harvard University, the University of Texas at Austin, and Columbia University. From 1991 to 1994, he was a p ...

and

Mayim Bialik Mayim Chaya Bialik ( ; born December 12, 1975) is an American actress, game show host, and author. From 1991 to 1995, she played the title character of the NBC sitcom ''Blossom''. From 2010 to 2019, she played neuroscientist Amy Farrah Fowler on ...

on the PBS web series ''The Secret Life Of Scientists And Engineers''.

Honors and awards

* 202
Black STEM Leader
Governor Roy Cooper of North Carolina * 2020 Undergraduate Mentor of the Year, Duke University *2015 Technology, Instruction, Cognition and Learning Early Career Research Award given by the American Education Research Association. * 2015 Delta Alpha Pi, Extraordinary Educator Award for outstanding work which impacts students with disabilities. * 2013 BDPA Most Promising Technologist Epsilon Award * 2013 Diverse Issues and Higher Education, Emerging Scholar

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Daily, Shaundra 1979 births Living people American women computer scientists Duke University faculty Florida State University faculty Florida State University alumni Florida A&M University alumni Massachusetts Institute of Technology alumni Clemson University faculty Writers from Nashville, Tennessee Educators from Nashville, Tennessee African-American computer scientists American computer scientists African-American women scientists 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American people 20th-century African-American women 21st-century African-American women