My Scholar of choice is Nichole Ellison from the University of Michigan. I chose her for a few reasons. First, I am a big Jim Harbaugh fan. I also think its incredibly cool that the school is sponsored by the Jordan brand, a subsidiary of Nike and the greatest logo in sportswear.
Dr. Ellison is a professor at the University of Michigan’s School of Information. She got her bachelors degree in english from Columbia University in 1991. She then moved on to the University of Southern California for her masters and doctoral studies. Both of which in Communications.
She has done research projects in a number of fields, but most of them revolve around computer mediated communication and how people use the internet. She worked on a project in 2013/2014 that was funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (very cool) about low income first generation college students. The study surveyed 500 kids from low income areas of Michigan. Using different factors such as family history, demographics, parental community involvement Ellison and her team were able to learn that kids with Facebook friends that are attending college are more likely to have confidence in having a positive college experience than their peers with no Facebook friends attending college.
I think this is an interesting outlook on how kids are using the internet, and processing the images and signals they are receiving on a daily basis. The study was successful and lead to the creation of the College Connect App, which connects college bound high school students with facebook friends attending college, and allows them to ask questions.
“I don’t have a quote for this box” – Tyler Theilken
Tyler's Communication Research Methods Blog 