Chinasa T. Okolo earned a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science from Pomona College in 2018 and a Master’s degree in Computer Science from Cornell University in 2021. She will complete her Ph.D. in Computer Science from Cornell University in Summer 2023. Her research leverages ethnographic methods to understand how frontline healthcare workers in rural India perceive and value AI. She also examines how explainability can be best leveraged in AI-enabled technologies deployed throughout the Global South, focusing on healthcare. Outside of her dissertation focus, Chinasa has researched factors impacting the effective adoption and successful implementation of AI in Africa and has worked with international organizations such as the African Union to expand digital inclusion and develop strategic AI policy measures. Her work has been supported by funding from The National GEM Consortium, Oracle, NANOG, the National Science Foundation, and Google and covered in venues like VICE, Bloomberg, and VentureBeat. Chinasa has received numerous awards from Cornell for her on-campus and global mentoring efforts. As a professor, Chinasa aims to develop and teach human-centered computing courses where students are encouraged to pursue interdisciplinary collaborations and engage in experiential learning opportunities.

Research Interests

Human-AI Interaction in the Global South