Abstract of the Project
The FIT project Instructional Technology for Human-Centered AI: A Multidisciplinary Collaboration aims at fostering AI literacy and providing a foundation for critical engagement with AI-driven tools and their broader implications. Along with partners in other SUNY campuses at Old Westbury, Buffalo, and Monroe CC. the collaborative team will develop case studies on AI-assisted collections management initiatives for arts and cultural organizations, The proposed year-long collaboration brings together scientists and theorists of Responsible and Inclusive Technologies Research, alongside historians, philosophers, and anthropologists who have studied the cultural and historical dimension of art and technology. Faculty involved in the project will document semester-long discussions with students and student-led research on AI’s societal impact, using an AI system developed by the project team. These conversations will be shared with broader educational communities to contribute to a new field of research and civic discourse on AI within and beyond each campus. The project centers on AI-assisted collections management initiatives for arts and cultural organizations. Building on ongoing multi-campus project work across SUNY, the project focuses expanding educational pathways and interdisciplinary engagement at the intersection of arts and technology. Through a collaborative network of faculty, researchers, creative practitioners, and academic support professionals, it seeks to create inclusive, experiential learning opportunities. By sharing resources and co-creating programs across campuses, the project will empower non-STEM students to engage emerging technologies critically and creatively, developing ethically grounded, socially responsible mindsets.
People
Kyunghee Pyun, Project Director, History of Art, Fashion Institute of Technology
Homepage | Faculty Page
Kyunghee Pyun, Project Director, is Professor of Art History with extensive grants and fellowship experience. She is assistant chair of the department of History of Art from 2026 to 2029. She has served as a facilitator of programs and provided academic leadership in creating the contents for several grant-funded projects. As an experienced online content developer, she created the Bamboo Canvas: Diverse Techniques of Asian Arts and Crafts, funded by the State University of New York’s “Innovative Instructional Technology Grant” [IITG] for two years in 2016-2018. A recipient of the SUNY Chancellor’s “Award for Excellence in Scholarship and Creative Activities,” she has written numerous books on visual culture and art history. Her involvement with cultural organizations will benefit a larger community, with lingering impact on related disciplines.
Junghyun Ahn, Co-Project Director, Science and Mathematics, Fashion Institute of Technology
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Junghyun Ahn, Co-Project Director, is an Assistant Professor of Computer Science at FIT, specializing in educational technology, data science, and learning sciences to advance AI and computational literacy among non-STEM learners.
Chloé M. Martin, Social Sciences, Fashion Institute of Technology
FIT Authors Profile
Chloé M. Martin is an Assistant Professor of Psychology in the Social Sciences Department at Fashion Institute of Technology. Her research examines psychosocial factors involved in illness prevention and control among marginalized and underserved groups.
Christie Shin, Advertising and Digital Design, Fashion Institute of Technology
Faculty Page
Christie Shin is a professor at SUNY FIT with a three-decade career as an educator, creative consultant, and design director specializing in branding, UX/UI, digital product design, and typography. She serves as Curriculum Committee Chair and Co-coordinator of Creative Technology & Design, earning the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence (2023–24) and the Faculty Excellence Award (2017). A Pratt Institute alumna, Shin holds BFA, MS, and MFA degrees in design. As Partner and Design Director at Cynda Media Lab, she has earned over 60 national and international awards. In 2024, she launched the Design Portfolio Center and co-founded DSGN BY D., an eco-conscious lifestyle brand. Recognized globally, she lectures at institutions including RISD and Cornell, bridging academia and the creative industry through innovation and leadership.
Christina Heyon Lee, Global Education and International Services, Monroe Community
LinkedIn
Christina Heyon Lee is the Director of Global Education and International Services at Monroe Community College, with 20 years of experience in higher education teaching and administration. She is a 2025 SUNY AANHPI Leadership Institute fellow. Her recent dissertation project focused on enhancing a sense of belonging for Asian and Asian American students in community colleges. At MCC, she leads global education partnerships and curriculum development through a lens of diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, and social justice. In addition to her work at the college, she holds several leadership positions in her local community.
Eunseo Choi, University of Memphis
Eunseo Choi is a Professor at the Center for Earthquake Research and Information (CERI) at the University of Memphis. His work focuses on leveraging AI/ML to facilitate computational research on the formation and evolution of geological structures, including earthquake-generating fault zones, and seismic hazards.
Helen Lane, Gladys Marcus Library, Fashion Institute of Technology
Faculty Page
Helen Lane is an Assistant Professor–Librarian at the FIT Gladys Marcus Library and a core participant in the initiative. Her work focuses on digital learning resources, learning management system integration, and outreach for blended and online courses. She provides guidance on transforming lesson plans and classroom activities into Open Educational Resources (OER), and holds a BA in English Literature from Earlham College and an MLIS from Pratt Institute.
Hyewon Yi, SUNY Old Westbury
Hyewon Yi is Assistant Professor of Art History, Director and Curator of the Amelie A. Wallace Gallery at SUNY Old Westbury, and Director of Art Lab, the exhibition space of the Social and Environmental Justice Institute at Old Westbury. A specialist in the history of photography and Contemporary art, Yi’s research and curatorial practice seek to amplify the voices of underrepresented artists and communities, particularly through socially informed projects. A recipient of the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Professional Service, Yi has organized and curated numerous diverse exhibitions with artists, students, and community partners.
Jinjun Xiong, College of AI, Cyber and Computing, University of Texas at San Antonio
Dr. Jinjun Xiong is the Founding Dean of the College of AI, Cyber and Computing at the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA), where he holds the Microsoft President’s Endowed Professorship. He serves as Scientific Director for the $20M National AI Institute for Exceptional Education and as AI lead for the $10M IES Center for Early Literacy and Responsible AI. His research focuses on across-stack AI systems, spanning AI applications, algorithms, tooling, and computer architectures. He has published over 200 peer-reviewed papers in top AI and systems conferences, earning 9 Best Paper Awards and 10 Best Paper Nominations, along with top honors from international competitions including the 2020 IEEE GraphChallenge championship. Prior to UTSA, he held leadership roles at the University at Buffalo and IBM Thomas J. Watson Research Center, where he co-founded the IBM-Illinois C3SR, which grew into the $200M IBM-Illinois Discovery Accelerator Institute.
Joseph Anderson, Gladys Marcus Library, Fashion Institute of Technology
Joseph Anderson serves as the Digital Initiatives Librarian at the Gladys Marcus Library at FIT. During his time at FIT, he has developed a number of exciting digital initiatives, including the Fashion Calendar Research Database, Archive on Demand, the FIT Institutional Repository and SPARC Digital.
Meeta Roy, Fashion Business Management, Fashion Institute of Technology
Faculty Page
Meeta Roy is an educator, researcher, and consultant with over 20 years of experience in the fashion, retail, and luxury sectors. Her work focuses on integrating emerging technologies into marketing and business strategy. At FIT, she has received multiple awards and grants, including the Center for Innovation Research Grant, IFFTI Mobility Initiative Grant, Release Time for Research Award, and a Research Development Grant.
Maria Hwang, Science and Math, Fashion Institute of Technology
Website
Maria Hwang is an associate professor of Computer Science in the Science and Math department at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT). Her prior research focused on delivering health, and wellness content through persuasive, personalized, and playful human-centered interfaces. Her current focus is on embedding computer science (CS) and AI components in courses that are intended for non-CS majors. She is hoping to create an AI minor at FIT through writing and developing more courses that are rigorous but also flexible for those coming in with no prior CS knowledge.
Molly Schoen, History of Art, Fashion Institute of Technology
Molly Schoen is the Visual Resources Curator at the Fashion Institute of Technology and a Visiting Assistant Professor at the Pratt Institute School of Information. She is an editor of the academic journal Art Documentation and has contributed to The Handbook of Art & Design Librarianship (2nd ed.), Multimodal Composing: Strategies for Twenty-First Century Writing Consultations, and numerous journal articles. Previously, she worked with the University of Michigan Visual Resources Collections and as Registrar of the Mott-Warsh Collection. She holds an MLIS from Wayne State University specializing in fine and performing arts librarianship.
Yanhong Zuo, English and Communication Studies, Fashion Institute of Technology
Yanhong Zuo is an assistant professor of English and teaches courses in
developmental English and ESL. Before joining FIT, she was the Assistant Director of
the Writing Center and Brown Teacher-Scholar Fellow at Stetson University, Florida.
She earned PhD in Teaching and Curriculum from Warner Graduate School of
Education, University of Rochester in 2023. Prior to her doctoral study, she taught
English in China for over a decade.
Zhaohui Li, National AI Institute for Exceptional Education, University at Buffalo
Zhaohui Li is a postdoctoral fellow at the National AI Institute for Exceptional Education at University at Buffalo. His research focuses on multimodal large language models (LLMs) for educational tools that transform thinking, learning, teaching, and assessment. He has published in and reviewed for top AI and education venues, including EMNLP, AAAI, and AIED.
NirVana Rizvi, Art History and Museum Professions, Fashion Institute of Technology
NirVana Rizvi is an undergraduate of FIT in the Art History and Museum Professions program. NirVana is a curator of an exhibition entitled Objects Travel on view at the second floor of the New Academic Building from August 15, 2025 to May 30, 2026. NirVana has a BFA from the City College, City University of New York.
Dancheng Liu, Computer Science and Engineering, University at Buffalo
Dancheng Liu is a Ph.D. candidate in Computer Science and Engineering at the University at Buffalo. He is also a member of the National AI Institute for Exceptional Education. He earned both his M.S. and B.S. degrees from the University of California, San Diego. Dancheng’s work centers on speech recognition for the education of children. He also researches foundational deep learning models for speech and text, as well as the optimization of those models for resource-constrained edge platforms.
Xin Chen
Naiquan Li