Michelle Trim
Senior Teaching Faculty University of Massachusetts Amherst
- Amherst MA
Computing educator focused on computing ethics, responsible artificial intelligence and technology’s social effects.
University of Massachusetts Amherst
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Expertise
Biography
Trim has guided students contributing to public discussions of AI policy and helped develop university recommendations for responsible generative AI use. Her academic writing considers how computing education can address equity and social responsibility. She has served as co-chair of the Joint Task Force on Generative AI and as an elected associate delegate to the Board of Trustees.
Education
University of Massachusetts Amherst
M.S.
Data Analytics and Computational Social Science
Michigan Technological University
Ph.D.
Rhetoric and Technical Communication
Miami University
M.A.
Rhetoric and Composition
Purdue University
B.A.
Professional Writing and English; minor in Women's Studies
Links
Select Recent Media Coverage
UMass Amherst to offer scholarships to 40 students, boosting diversity in data science
EurekAlert! online
2021-12-14
The Manning College of Information & Computer Sciences (CICS) at the University of Massachusetts Amherst recently announced that it has received a $1.5 million grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to help expand access to high-quality data-science careers and research pathways for low-income, academically strong students. The program, Boosting Access to Data Science Scholars, which will run for six years and is led by Michelle Trim, associate director of the informatics program and senior teaching faculty at UMass Amherst, will fund 40 students for the duration of their UMass studies, significantly lowering the financial bar that blocks the path of too many.
Select Publications
Building a Kill Switch for the Terminator: A Case for Slow AI
ACM SIGCAS Computers and SocietyMichelle Trim
2023-04-01
AI tools for older adults should support their agency rather than restrict it, a point Trim develops through a classroom discussion of vulnerable populations and data. The piece considers how technology might help people remain at home and retain control over decisions as they age.
Faking it and Breaking it: Responsible AI is needed Now
ACM SIGCAS Computers and SocietyMichelle Trim
2022-12-01
Machine-generated images and text raise questions about how people distinguish authentic from fabricated material. Trim connects those concerns to computing’s reliance on seemingly neutral measures and the myth of objectivity.
Computing Must Pay Attention to Outcomes to Achieve Equity
ACM SIGCAS Computers and SocietyMichelle Trim
2022-08-01
Computing curricula can prepare students to recognize the values built into system design and assess how those designs affect different communities. Trim discusses a push for learning outcomes that address justice, equity, diversity and inclusion in computer science education.
Essentialism is the enemy of the good
ACM SIGCAS Computers and SocietyMichelle Trim
2021-01-22
Trim examines how essentialism links the myth of objectivity with racism in the context of ethics education for data science students. The discussion connects these ideas to computing’s role in areas such as facial recognition and criminal justice.
Computing's social obligation
ACM SIGCAS Computers and SocietyMichelle Trim
2020-02-13
As professional codes call for computing work to put the public good first, Trim considers whether ethics should be treated as a core part of software engineering and data science education, alongside technical skills.
