Student Spotlight: Shawn Janzen, PhD Candidate
As a passionate world traveler who has visited 45 states and 12 countries so far, researcher and organizational consultant Shawn Janzen didn’t realize that one of his biggest adventures was about to begin when he joined the UMD iSchool as an adjunct lecturer in Spring 2018. With a passion to learn more about how governments and leaders use information, he joined the Ph.D. program in Fall 2018 and is currently advised by Dr. Wayne Lutters. As a Ph.D. student, Shawn is exploring the types and sources of information used by government leaders for cybersecurity development and policy, as well as the roles and actions taken by global governments and organizations to advance or hinder the development of disruptive and emerging technologies, such as self-driving cars or nanotechnology. Within the iSchool, Shawn teaches undergraduate and graduate courses, serves as the PhD student representative to both the iSchool Faculty Assembly and iSchool Doctoral Program Committee, and is a Junior Fellow for CASCI. Shawn is currently part of two research groups: the Boston 311 group, which examines how civic technologies are used and how information inequalities manifest in a city, and the KNEXT group, which explores how libraries in Prince George’s County can integrate advances in data analytics to better empower local business communities. In his free time, Shawn enjoys walking his dog, exploring vegan recipes, and going down the rabbit hole of educational & pop culture videos on YouTube.