Jay Cunningham, a PhD student in the Department of Human Centered Design & Engineering, has been appointed by Washington Governor Jay Inslee to serve on the University of Washington's Board of Regents. His one-year term begins July 1, 2023.

Jay Cunningham is a fifth-year PhD candidate in HCDE who works to advance public interest technology, responsible AI, and AI innovation as tools of liberation and justice for underrepresented users and marginalized communities. He is also a passionate servant leader with a lifelong interest in community building and activism.

As a doctoral student in HCDE, Cunningham has served on several student organizations, while working to identify gaps and build new initiatives. He serves as a PhD ombudsperson on the departmental DEI Committee and has worked with the Graduate Student Association to form department affinity groups for racial minorities and other marginalized groups. He also initiated a Sustained Dialogue program for the department, which brings students, faculty, and staff together to do deep work of connecting across differences to take action on shared community concerns.

Outside of the department, Cunningham serves as an officer for the UW’s Black Graduate Student Association, a graduate student mentor for organizations like National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE), AVELA, the Brotherhood Initiative, and is a chapter adviser for the UW chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.

"As a student, I have been the beneficiary of countless opportunities and resources provided by the University. I believe it is my duty to give back to the community that has given so much to me," said Cunningham. "To me, this work building community is about bringing everyone's voices together to solve a problem, and leaving the University better than it was when we came here."

Cunningham has been a community builder and public servant since he was young. Growing up in rural Mississippi, he said he witnessed first-hand the injustices faced by Black communities and regularly accompanied his family and friends to peaceful protests and demonstrations. As a high school student, Cunningham started a student council and served on various youth leadership boards. At the University of Alabama, where he studied computer science with a minor in civic engagement and leadership, he further honed his leadership skills and served as the President of the National Society of Black Engineers and inaugural Student Government Association VP of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. 

Cunningham has dedicated his doctoral research to understanding and addressing technology's role in racial equity and works to incorporate community-based research methods to promote responsibility and fairness in AI and Machine Learning systems, inclusive algorithmic design, and human-centered data science. He is particularly interested in addressing the challenges posed by the intersection of intelligent systems and machines, such as AI-automated decision-making, natural language processing, and computer vision. His contributions to the field have been recognized by prestigious organizations such as the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship, the GEM National Consortium Engineering PhD Fellowship, the Gates Millennium Scholars Program, and the Social Science Research Council Just Tech Fellowship. 

The UW Board of Regents consists of eleven citizens appointed by the Washington State Governor. The Regents govern the University and select and evaluate its President. As guardians of the public trust, the Regents set institutional missions, establish policies, and ensure the University's financial stability and academic quality. The Student Regent brings the perspective of students past, present, and future to difficult decisions that may involve balancing the interests of current and future students, faculty and staff.

To the Board of Regents, Cunningham is bringing the unique perspective of being a UW student before, during, and since the COVID-19 pandemic. "As a student, mentor, and teaching assistant, I have seen how students are feeling more isolated than ever before on our campus. The pandemic has strained critical health and well-being resources, leaving students to feel underserved by our community," he said. Cunningham hopes to address gaps in cultural and ethnic-based counseling and resources and work toward equitable access across the UW's three campuses in Seattle, Tacoma, and Bothell. He hopes to bring his skills gained from the Sustained Dialogue program to this work, developing dialogue workshops for the communities across the three campuses that are tailored to their specific needs. 

Another issue Cunningham is passionate about is the recruitment and retention of faculty of color. "It's hard to be your best, academically or professionally, if you don't have a community or if you can't find the resources you need. When I moved to Seattle from the South, where there was a lot more racial and ethnic representation for communities of color, it was a startling experience for me. So, I'm thinking about how we can support faculty and students through things like programming and orienting," he said. "We want everyone to feel supported here, met with the resources they need, and proud to be part of the Husky family." 

Julie Kientz, Professor and Chair in HCDE and Cunningham's co-PhD advisor with Daniela Rosner, said she couldn’t think of any student better poised to represent the University and has no doubt Cunningham will be a highly effective Student Regent. “Over the nearly four years I've had the pleasure of working with Jay, he has demonstrated the most exceptional ability at networking, leadership, and advocacy as any student I have ever met. He is a tireless advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion, and is a passionate, creative scholar who wants to use computer science to make the world more equitable, fair, and accountable to people from every background."