Portfolio

Alexandra Visconti human centered designer

alexandra.visconti@gmail.com 201.788.2561 Winter 2012

This design process is of more interest to me than the final outcome.

Learning about people, their interactions and daily lives leads to empathy. I use insight and my ability to see patterns in data where others often see complexity. Through asking “what if� I am able to decipher this complexity and identirfy a way to navigate through it.

The following portfolio is an illustration of the projects and visualizations that I have designed.

Table of Contents Projects

04 YouthBuild 14 Penn Medicine 24 Community Modeling Visualizations 26 28

Education Timeline Visual Biography

YouthBuild Student Engagement and Attendance Qualitative + Quantitative

Making sense of research

Adding constraints Rapidly prototyping

Working on a team with one collegue, we were able to establish a relationship with YouthBuild Charter School. We discovered that the students had low attendance dispite their motivation while at school. We used design methods and processes to uncover different stakehold perspectives and explore the breadth of reasons why students were not attending school. Those reasons and barriers seemed to be out of the school’s control. With a strong mentorship program and engaging teaching methods, we suggested ways to allow the positive student experience to follow the student after they leave the building and go back to their lives at home.

Who: 18-20 year old high school drop outs What: low attendance When: January - May 2012 Where: North Philadelphia Why: Self-directed studio project

4

OBSERVATIONS

creative assignments

motivational words

individual attention

STAFF INTERVIEWS

Dependency

Balance

Connection

Motivation

“Most of the time it is outside

“Intimidated by older men in the

barriers why they don’t come to

shelter, lots of drugs or mental health

”

school[…]day care and housing.

Basic Needs

Barriers

issues. They would rather run the streets at night and sleep during

”

the day.

Charla | Case Manager | #

Charla | Case Manager | #

““

Intimidated by olderin men thebut There are shelters thein city, shelter, lots of drugs or mental health very few geared towards their age issues.

They would rather group[…] sometimes thererun is athe month

“Playing the system for years, they know how to juggle it to get what they need. For many of them it is a way of

Sorting the quote cards enabled us to make connections and see streets at night and sleep survival, and many of these kids are a ” during wait list. differing opions to produce insights about “what might be”.

”

the day.

product of that.

Charla | Case Manager |# |# Charla | Case Manager

“Playing for around, years, they “They the are system bouncing they

th

”

Charla | Case Manager | #

“They say, ‘well dag, you’re so busy calling

know how to juggle to get what they don’t have their ituniform clothes[…]

the other students, I’m right here, can’t I

need.

For many of them it isbook a way of is don’t know where their bag

get 10 minutes of your time.’ The pressure

” product of that.”

survival, and many of these kids are a located.

Charla | Case Manager |# |# Charla | Case Manager

barriers why they don’t come to

”

who aren’t in school.

”

Charla | Case Manager | #

Cha

“There are shelters in the city, but

]

the other students, I’m right here, can’t I

very few geared towards their age

s

get 10 minutes of your time.’ The pressure

group[…] sometimes there is a month

is on to get back some of the students who aren’t in school.

6

Charla | Case Manager | #

”

sh

school[…]day care and housing.

is on to get back some of the students

Charla | Case Manager | #

“They say, ‘well dag, you’re so busy calling

“Most of the time it is outside

”

wait list.

Charla | Case Manager | #

k

s

Cha

STUDENT GROUP INTERVIEWS

Designing a visual way for students to represent how close they felt to various stakeholders at YouthBuild allowed us to make connections between the types of people that students felt close with to enable a stronger connection to the outside world.

UNDERSTANDING

OBSERVATION

QUOTE

Students are better at mediating altercations and motivating each other because of their ability to empathize with each other. They are very open and comfortable sharing everything.

“I encourage them to connect with someone who is positive–connect a negative with a positive person.”

MOTIVATION

Misalignment OPPORTUNITY

A better facilitation and understanding of the value of peer-to-peer relationships and student support network at YouthBuild would lead to more effective motivation initiatives.

This tool was designed to create empathy for both the staff and student perspectives on the major themes that were discovered in the staff and student interviews. This comparison revealed a design opportunity.

8

MAPPING RELATIONSHIPS

This map shows the relationship between the student and his/her mentor and case manager.

The lines indicate what type of relationship it is and what direction the information flows.

Student

Co Ac nnec ta t s t ion is he co asig Bala or din ned nce ato /de of P r o pen are fo de nt/ ut sid nt on Chil dR em r oti ecei elat v va i tio ing s onsh n( er v ip ie. alu ices mn i)

cas em an ag er

Case Case Manager Manager

go es to

m en

blems c pro emi cad d/a uil hB ut Yo

Studen t go es t o

s lem b o pr ic

al tur /na ry nic a ga nd ip al/or seco sh on tion post o ati rel l/em Build a h tor n en rso Yout o d/M r/pe dt e en ep Fri cte de nne of o ce on is nc i lan Ba nect vatio n ti Co l m o a Go

wi th

m te ys

Stu de nt

ith rw to

s

Student

Mentor Mentor ion Motivat

ion Connect

Motiv ation Conne ction

MOBILE APPLICATION PROTOTYPE

As outsiders, we see a large part of the problem of low attendance being that students have a hard time accessing the motivation and connection aspects of what they learn and feel at YouthBuild outside of the building.

After researching and understanding, a mobile application was an appropriate choice for a potential solution because it allows students to access the parts of YouthBuild that inspire and motivate them from a remote location. Those connections can extend beyond the YouthBuild buidling into their individual lives outside of school.

10

MOBILE APPLICATION PROTOTYPE

BRICKS

GOALS

This function allows students to post on a walllike screen that allows them to access inspiration and motivation outside of school.

Goals allows students to set a goal with their mentor and then chart and watch his/her progress.

SHOUT

SQUAD

Shout is a way to digitize a common practice of “shout outs� in community meetings at YouthBuild so students can access motivation outside of school.

The Squad screen is a visual reminder of those peers, mentors and alumni in their squad support group.

It serves as a contacts page for easy texting or calling.

MOBILE APPLICATION PROTOTYPE

Using a simple paper prototype and video we demonstrated the functionality of the application.

This scenario explains how and when the application may be set up at the beginning of the year.

Day 1 Mental Toughness Squad 22

YBridge

Squad 22 Contacts

YB

Joe 555-555-5555 Mary 555-555-5556

Day 14 Mental Toughness Squad 22

YB

12

What was the best/worst part of the app? How can you use for the rest of the year?

STAFF RETREAT PROTOTYPE

INTRODUCTION

BRAINSTORM CURRENT MENTOR EFFORTS

SORT AND CATEGORIZE THEMES

IDENTIFY DISCONNECTS & AREAS OF OPPORTUNITY

The prototype of a workshop for the staff retreat was in an effort to come to a cocreated solution for implementation the following school year. It was created for the staff to address the low attendance problem through mentoring. The workshop is designed to walk the staff through a design process of understanding how they are currently operating and produce new ways to to approach the problem of low attendance.

BRAINSTORM SOLUTIONS

SHARE & DEBRIEF

Learning in a Health Care Organization Exploring Internal Innovation and Collaboration

RESEARCH

SYNTHESIS

PROTOTYPE

ITERATE

This project was a partnership with the Penn Medicine Healthcare System. The team of seven designers were asked to explore learning and communication within the health care system. This focus allowed the team to conduct design research and synthesis to produce a prototype workshop to model different ways of learning through a new method of solving problems in the staff’s daily Who: Healthcare system staff What: Understanding learning and innovation in health care When: September - December 2011 Where: Philadelphia Why: Contracted by the Library

14

CONTEXTUAL INTERVIEWS

Tools of Interviewing camera

questions

The team conducted about forty contextual interviews in pairs. One person led the interview flow while the other recorded, took photos and notes.

recorder

notebook

PROFILE DOCUMENTS

Interview Documentation understanding the user Typical Work Day

Use of The Square Pilot

Description: This is not a typical day.

Computer Access

Not Pilot

Feedback/Description of Use:

On most days she attends various meetings for various groups. She is a liaison for research analysts.

“I heard about The Square at an IT session.”

Knowledge Link

No Access

Minimal Access

Moderate Access

Full Access

Feedback/Description of Use:

Details:

Strongly dislikes it. She expressed much frustration with Knowledge Link. She even mentioned there was a joke about people

She has access to the internet almost always, has a desktop in her office, a blackberry, and a laptop that she can take around with her.

“going Knowledge Link (like going postal).”

Interviewee 00 Learning Style Interview Location:

General Observations:

Collaborative Work Yes

No

Description:

Prefers visual or hands-on learning. She enjoys the SIMS center and HR courses which facilitate hands-on learning.

Description:

Uses various tools including e-mail, iPoems, Shared-Point sites, a nursing website, and a nursing blog.

Use of Social Media Yes

No

Description of Use:

She has a LinkedIn and Facebook account but she rarely uses them.

Interview Synthesis

Profiles were designed as a way to capture the infomation collected in interviews into a comparable form. Each team member presented the profile of the employee they interviewed.

16

Ideas and Needs

Sometimes Details:

“I believe you need to tell people something ten different times in ten different ways.”

She mentioned several times the difficulty in introducing new technologies into the system. She acknowledges there needs to be recognition of the different types of technological skill-sets within a health care system.

QUOTE CARDS

OPPORTUNITY

learning

collaboration

culture

LMS

the square

“the square would help as a forum and exchange of ideas”

O B S TA C L E S

learning

collaboration

culture

LMS

the square

“when you have to get collaboration externally... thats the challenge”

NEEDS/IDEAS

learning

collaboration

culture

LMS

the square

“if they offered certain degree tracks or programs for employees, that are geared to our needs”

Quote Cards were used to capture the exact words of the employees for qualitative research. The use of modular cards allowed the grouping of quotes into themes to gain an understanding of the collective voice and produce insights about the employee experience.

Flash Button Hold until light blinks

18 Remaining Shots

someone I respect. what I’m proud of. what frustrates me. what will never change.

Look Here

places I frequent most (3 shots) place I’d like to go to more (3 shots) what I want to improve (3 shots)

my workspace. what I use most. what I wish I had. what I’m grateful to have.

Take a picture and number each of the following. Feel free to use the additional shots for whatever you would like to show us and provide all details in YOUR booklet.

Flash Indicator

CULTURAL PROBES

Disposable camera skins were designed to ask employees to photograph things around their workspace. A small workbook was also created to provide employees with a space for drawing and explaining their best and worst experience.

EMERGING THEMES

Culture

Communication

Time

Learning

These themes were the building blocks for creating our prototype of a way of working. We combined all the information from the interviews, probes, and quote cards to map the current feelings about those themes. Then we were able to select a few to address in our prototype.

INFORMING A WORKSHOP WORKSHOP A workshop was designed as a way to address employee concerns through a design process and method in a structured, in person format. Using our research, the employees were walked through a process to explore and develop prototypes as potential solutions to problems they face around learning and communication.

20

IMPLEMENTING A WORKSHOP

22

DOCUMENTATION

Community Modeling This project is a model for a series of community spaces that compliment each other. My role was to lead a team of four undergraduate students. The system encourages community members to interact with each other and take pride in where they live.

Who: A neighborhood What: Meaningful Community Action When: October 2011 Where: Philadelphia Why: Short Design Project Charrette

24

PROTOTYPING

With a healthy discussion about meaningful actions to take within the constraints of products, systems, services, and graphics, we focused on creating a modular system for community development. We constructed a physical model as a prototype for each element of the community center blocks.

Education Timeline This project was completed as one in a series of timelines exploring how historic events impacted different world issues. My group explored educational history through the lens of cultural, technological and legislative acts. Behind the timeline there is a line graph of different enrollment rates by race and gender in both primary and secondary schools. My responsibilities involved designing the mini explanations about each event and creating the copy for those moments in history.

An Exploration of Education in America Between 1900 and 2010

Enrollment in Higher Education by Gender

Kelly Babcock, Tian Cai, Alex Visconti | GRID 604 Methods I | Project 3: Social/Economic Milestones

1900

Compulsory School Attendance Laws 1905

1910

1920

Education Funding in the South 1912

By 1900, thirty-four states had compulsory schooling laws, four of which were in the South. Thirty states with compulsory schooling laws required attendance until age 14 (or higher). As a result, by 1910, 72 percent of American children attended school.

African American

Culture and Society

Total

Total

Technology

1922

The “separate but equal” doctrine insured separation but not equality in education: the average expenditure of states and municipalities for the education of white students was far more than that for black students, and blacks were in essence prevented, through much of the country, from preparing themselves for certain occupations readily available to whites.

In 1912, the Southern States made of 34 percent of the United States’ population but received only 3% of the education funding.

By 1900 more than 30,000 black teachers had been trained and put to work in the South, and the literacy rate had climbed to more than 50%, a major achievement in little more than a generation.

Post-literacy Schooling

1930

Separate but Equal

1919

1900

Theme

White

Female

Women Granted Suffrage

African American Teachers

Enrollment in Primary and Secondary Education by Ethnicity

Male

Regulation and Legislation

1940

Segregation 1930s

Millions of veterans needed to be reintegrated into civilian life following the war, so Congress passed the Serviceman’s Readjustment Act to give servicemen training and education as well as loans to buy homes and start businesses.

By the time the original G.I. Bill ended in July 1956, 7.8 million WWII veterans had participated in an education or training program and 2.4 million veterans had home loans.

World War I Baby Boom

Women granted suffrage paved the way for the children of future generations by creating greater career opportunities for girls and women; as women gained a stronger voice, girls became more involved in the workforce and education and prepared for roles outside of the home.

UNESCO

1922

1945 The post-World War I baby boom led to dramatic increases in the numbers of students attending school and a marked rise in the demand for teachers.

UNESCO, an “international agency for education to promote understanding and cooperation among the peoples of the world as a guarantee of peace,” was created to promote global harmony by encouraging dialogue among scientists, educators, and students. By 1945 American universities began to offer systematic instruction to foreign cultures, setting the cultural agenda of the United States and world.

Internationalization of Higher Education

1900

1920 By 1900 educators argued that the post-literacy schooling of the masses at the secondary and higher levels, would improve citizenship, develop higher-order traits, and produce the managerial and professional leadership needed for rapid economic modernization. The commitment to expanded education past age 14 set the U.S. apart from Europe for much of the 20th century.

Progressive Education

Following World War I, there were strong government movements toward peace and anti-war sentiments and the need to avoid further wars. On method was to focus on internationalization of higher education. For example, in 1920, the Belgian American Educational Foundation instituted a program with over 700 students, in which American students went to study in Belgium and viceversa.

1920

Progressive education has been used to describe ideas and practices that aim to make schools more effective agencies of a democratic society. Although there are numerous differences of style and emphasis among progressive educators, they share the conviction that democracy means active participation by all citizens in social, political and economic decisions that will affect their lives.

Instructional Media

1

G.I. Bill 1944

The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People had begun a program to challenge segregation in the schools in the 1930’s. In the 1040’s they continued their efforts, seeking a court ruling invalidating segregated schools. NAACP cases such as Sweatt v. Painter (1949) set legal precedents that would culminate in the 1954 Brown v. Board of Topeka, Kansas decision invalidating segregation.

ETS Testing 1947 The Education Testing Service sets the foundation for standardized testing as the basis for admission to higher educationfavoring academic learning over progressive goals. This non-profit organization was formed to take over the testing activities of its founders, whose organizations were not well suited to running operational assessment programs, and to pursue research intended to advance educational measurement.

1910

The first catalog of instruction films appeared in 1910 and in 1913, Thomas Edison proclaimed that, due to the invention of film, “Our school system will be completely changed in the next ten years.” This dramatic change didn’t occur, but instructional media were introduced into many classrooms by 1920 in the form of slides and motion pictures.

1 2

1

WWI

World War I was a major war centred in Europe that began on July 28, 1914 and lasted until November 11, 1918. It involved all the world’s great powers, which were assembled in two opposing alliances: the Allies and the

26

2

1914–1918

Central Powers. A post-World War I baby boom combined with the Compulsory School Attendance Law influenced an increase in primary and secondary school enrollment in the United States.

Great Depression

3

1929

The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until

the late 1930s or early 1940s. The Great Depression led to a slowing of enrollment for children attending primary and secondary schools as families were unable to afford the costs associated with sending their children to school.

Public spending on education also declined sharply, causing many schools to open understaffed or close due to lack of funds.

WWII 1939–1945

World War II, or the Second World War (often abbreviated as WWII or WW2), was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world’s nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing

military alliances: the Allies and the Axis. It was the most widespread war in history, with more than 100 million military personnel mobilised.

VISUALIZING

Apple Macintosh with Mouse

6

Immigration 2001–2011

1984

Apple developed the mouse with Hovey-Kelley Design (later known as IDEO). The Macintosh was designed to “achieve adequate graphics performance” and excelled where its competitors lacked. This computer made technology accessible to the public at a price and interface that was

1950

1960

Brown v. Board of Education 1954

1970

National Organization for Women 1966

Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, was a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court that declared state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students unconstitutional. The decision overturned the Plessy v.

Ferguson decision of 1896 which allowed state-sponsored segregation.

Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 1972

The National Organization for Women (NOW) was founded by women who wanted their voices to be heard, and one of their top priorities was education. They fought against the injustices of sexual discrimination throughout America. NOW’s activist agenda called for equal opportunities in all fields of education, including women’s roles in higher education.

The National Defense Education Act

Youth Art Month

1958

1961

1986

1989

to pursue that higher education.

1994

NAFTA was signed by the US, Mexico and Canada to form a trilateral trade bloc. By signing this agreement, the countries agreed to eliminate certain tariffs on imports and exports. NAFTA is argued to have economic benefits as well as detriments. The agreement has raised awareness by all parties to address the facets of higher education as a force to investigate business practices and free trade.

No Child Left Behind Act 2001

2010

No Child Left Behind Act was created on the belief that setting high standards and measurable goals and can improve individual outcomes in education. The controversy surrounding this Act revolves around funding, “teaching to the test” practices and inconsideration of students with disabilities.

Bullying in US Schools 2010

The awareness of bullying’s impact on the education system was felt in 2010 as a series of suicides and internet based incidents revealed that the issue needs to be addressed. The public placed more of an emphasis on the school’s role in controlling bullying.

Federal Government Shut Down The Berlin Wall that separated communist East Germany and democratic West Germany, was the barrier between two wolds.

In 1989 it was announced that citizens of East Germany were allowed to travel freely but the wall was not officially removed. For the next couple moths after the announcement, citizens hammered and chiseled to physically remove it.

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is a United States federal law that governs how states and public agencies provide early intervention, special education, and related services to children with disabilities. It addresses the educational needs of children with disabilities from birth to age 18 or 21, in cases that involve 14 specified categories of disability.

school, and complete two years of a higher education ob

2000

NAFTA

Fall of the Berlin Wall

1975

1995-1996

The government shut down of 1995 - 1996 was caused by disputes between democratic present Bill Clinton and the republican Congress. The two parties could not reach an agreement about the spending on Medicare, education, the environment and public health issues. The shut down meant a furlough and suspension of nonessential services.

IBM Personal Computer

1964

1981

1950 Head Start was one of the most important programs of the Economic Opportunity Act, passed by Congress in 1964 as part of the effort against the War on Poverty.

Head Start was established so that children of the poor would have the opportunity to enter the educational system on equal terms with children from better economic backgrounds.

On April 16, Congress creates the National Science Foundation (NSF),which is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering.

1990

Challenger Space Shuttle

but also pushes those native populations of students into the private school atmosphere. Not only are more children being enrolled in public school, the DREAM Act allows immigrants who came to the US as minors, graduated high

The Challenger Space Shuttle made an effort to connect the general public with the space program. In order to do this, it was decided that a teacher would be part of the crew. Christa McAuliffe was chosen and taught lessons from space that were to be broadcasted on PBS. Unfortunately, due to a malfunction the shuttle exploded a few minutes after lift off.

Individuals with Disabilities Education Act

Head Start Program

National Science Foundation

1980

The first part of Title IX was passed in 1972, protecting women in education from discrimination. The law states that, “No person in the United States shall be on the basis of sex be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.” Title IX was a big step to creating equality in education.

Youth Art Month was established in 1961 by Deborah Fanning, Executive Vice President of the Council for Art Education, and The Art & Creative Materials Institute, Inc. (ACMI), a nonprofit organization associated with art material manufacturers. Youth Art Month is an educational program that promotes the value of a quality art education nationwide.

The National Defense Education Act, NDEA, is passed by Congress and heavily supported by President Dwight D. Eisenhower. The act called for schools to emphasize science and math in the hope that children with natural ability in these subjects would pursue careers that would eventually aid the United States National Defense and thus outmatch the Soviet Union’s military, technology and research.

States, a recent wave of immigrants has a dramatic, but different, effect on the education system. Public school

In the Summer of 1980, and IBM representative talked with Bill Gates about developing an operative system for a new personal computer. In 1981 the computer was released with amenities such as a new key board and floppy disk drive. That same year Time Magazine named the computer “man of the year”.

Apple Macintosh with Mouse 1984

Apple developed the mouse with Hovey-Kelley Design (later known as IDEO). The Macintosh was designed to “achieve adequate graphics performance” and excelled where its competitors lacked. This computer made technology accessible to the public at a price and interface that was easy to grasp.

6

3 4

5

4

American Civil Rights Movement

5

1955–1968

The American Civil Rights Movement was a biblically based movement that had significant social and political consequences for the United States. Black clergymen such as the Reverends Martin Luther King and numer-

ous others relied on religious faith strategically applied to solve America’s obstinate racial problems. The movement sought to address and rectify the generations-old injustices of racism by employing the method of nonviolent

resistance which they believed to be modeled after the life and sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

Feminism and Women’s Liberation in the Work Place

6

1980–Present

As women’s rolls in the work place changed so did the trends in higher education. The push for more maths and sciences in public elementary and secondary schools can be attributed in the attitude change in the general public.

Women were no longer confined to the home and seen as somewhat equal in the public sphere through demonstrating their value as human beings. Women became part of the white collar workers of the United States. By 1988

female enrollment in higher education surpassed that of their male counterparts.

Immigration 2001–2011

Just as the first wave of immigration swept the United States, a recent wave of immigrants has a dramatic, but different, effect on the education system. Public school enrollment increases with the influx of illegal immigrants

but also pushes those native populations of students into the private school atmosphere. Not only are more children being enrolled in public school, the DREAM Act allows immigrants who came to the US as minors, graduated high

school, and complete two years of a higher education obtain a six year citizenship and federal financial assistance to pursue that higher education.

Family Connectedness

Visual Biography

This project was completed as an individual exploration in visually representing complex information. I chose to represent my relationship to various family members throughout my life. The colors represent different family members and their proximity to the center represents the closeness I felt with them at that time in my life. The research for this project included take inventory and inventing a rating system for my relatives.

A graphic representation of the developement of familial connectedness over four stages of my life.

As people move in and out of my life, they move through the circles surrounding me. The farther away they are from my center cirlce, the less connected I feel to them.

Immediate Family Immediate Family

Grandparents Grandparents Cousins Cousins Uncles Uncles Aunts Aunts Cousins Once Removed Cousin Once Removed Alexandra Visconti Methods I Project 1: Visual Biography 10.7.11

ME 0 to 8

Trawinski

28

ME 8 to 14

Visconti

Trawinski

Visconti

VISUALIZING

Process sketches

ME 18 to 24

ME 14 to 18

Trawinski

Visconti

Trawinski

Visconti