Hey, I’m Aysha! I am a

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About Me

People and Things. Research and Writing.

I am currently a User Experience Researcher at LinkedIn. I am deeply passionate about people and things and work hard to better understand the relationships between the two. I enjoy discovering the ways in which people interact with, learn from, benefit from, and at times, are hindered by material objects and experiences. I am a storyteller by nature and a social scientist by training. My work aims to improve the experiences of people in everyday life through technology, arts, and culture.

Scholarship

Graduation Day 2018

 

I attribute much of my education to my worldly experiences through travel, museum exploration, and arts-based learning. As a native Washingtonian, I grew up in the Smithsonian Institution surrounded by the most fascinating objects and stories of everyday life. I love learning about people — the ways we are similar, different, our passions and drives — so I decided to become an anthropologist.

Doctor of Philosophy
Global and Sociocultural Studies (Anthropology)
Florida International University

Master of Arts
African and African Diaspora Studies
Florida International University

Bachelors of Arts
English / Government and Politics
St. John’s University, Queens

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Academic Research

My Research Toolkit

 

Material Girls: Consumption and the Making of Middle Class Identity in the Experiences of Black Single Mothers in the DC Metropolitan Area

I am obsessed with things. I like to buy things, save things, study things, and question things. It’s the reason I love museums’ vibrant collections, and why I decided to embark on a doctoral research project that focused on identity-making and things.

My research focuses on the single mothers in the black middle class and the ways in which they perform and craft their identities through both material and immaterial things. To gather my data, I employed a mix of qualitative and quantitative research methods. I conducted semi-structured 1:1 interviews, led focus groups, conducted surveys, and engaged in participant observation. I used technology to record and transmit the information gathered, and most importantly, to organize my findings. 

Over the course of one year, I interviewed 30 black middle class single mothers who lived and worked in the DC metropolitan area. I built friendships and connections with women who became comfortable enough with me to share their stories. I am building an online digital exhibition of my research findings to share with the public. I believe that knowledge should be easily accessible to individuals of all backgrounds -- not just those in the academy -- and this is one way I intend to educate outside of expensive and inaccessible scholarly databases.

Professional Experience

 

I’ve spent the last 10 years working in museums and academic institutions. I’ve also started my business, Blartsy (more on that later). In all of my positions, I worked to create a better user experience for people — visitors in museums, my research participants, students in my classes, to name a few. I am dedicated to sharing knowledge beyond academia and thrive in positions that allow me to apply my research skills to create something tangible and meaningful to diverse audiences. 

LinkedIn

Supported the LinkedIn Sales Solution (LinkedIn Sales Navigator) team as a User Experience Researcher, working with users, designers, program managers, and engineers to build the best product for our customers.

Google (via Tech-Pro)
Led Rapid Research program for Google Daydream by conducting qualitative research projects (including in-lab usability testing, in person and remote interviews, surveys, literature reviews, and more) and producing written and oral reports in a fast-paced environment.

Museum of Contemporary Art
Managed museum exhibitions, developed engaging public programming, and maintain museum collections.

Ford’s Theatre
Worked on the Education and Interpretive Resources team to develop high-quality web content in digital storytelling project and online exhibition.

Blartsy.com

An online resource connecting people with black artsy experiences.

Blartsy (which is a combination of black + artsy :) ) is my passion project, my entrepreneurial venture, my brainchild.

I love all things arts and culture, but found that it was ridiculously difficult to identify programs and events geared towards black artists, scholars, and creatives. I recognized a need to make these programs — which exists in museums, restaurants, underground poetry clubs, and more — more accessible to interested parties. I conducted interviews and observed participants to understand how to best address this issue.

Blartsy was created with the users in mind as a resource to locate, promote, and identify arts-minded events in the black communities. It is a continuous, iterative venture but I am so excited for its future!

Call me, beep me.