Zachary (Zak) Rubin, Ph.D. (they/them, she/her)

Preferred name: Zak

Assistant Teaching Professor

Zachary (Zak) Rubin, Ph.D. (they/them, she/her)

Preferred name: Zak

Assistant Teaching Professor

Dr. Zak Rubin received their Ph.D. from the University of California, Santa Cruz in 2017, working in the assistive technology, experiential design, and biotechnology engineering labs. Prior to joining UW, they directed a bachelor’s program in network engineering. Outside of academia, they worked in the entertainment industry with Columbia Records, Blizzard Entertainment, Insomniac Events, and other major media groups. They have worked with major music artists like Beyoncé, helped produce flagship music festivals such as Electric Daisy Carnival, and are credited in a number of AAA game titles including Starcraft, World of Warcraft and Diablo.

Education

  • University of California, Santa Cruz – Santa Cruz, CA
    • Ph.D. – Computer Engineering, Human-Computer Interaction
  • Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology – Terre Haute, IN
    • B.S. – Computer Engineering
    • Minors – Computer Science, Japanese

Courses

  • CSS 301 Technical Writing
  • CSS 350 Management Principles for Computing Professionals
  • CSS 360 Software Engineering
  • CSS 385 Introduction to Game Development

Teaching Interests

Writing, Soft Skills, Human Computer Interaction, Game Design, UX/UI, Cybersecurity, ML/AI

Research and Scholarship Interests

Dr. Rubin’s research interests include novel forms of interaction and engagement, serious games, assistive technology, and technology’s impact on humans. They are particularly interested in the design and development of technologies intended to benefit underrepresented and marginalized populations. Rubin specializes in prototyping and evaluation of technologies in applied environments.

Creative Interests

Dr. Rubin enjoys interactive and environmental art, and blending visual, auditory, and kinesthetic media into unique experiences.

② used to denote DEIJ activities

  • The Landscape of Career and Technical Education Faculty Data Use for Decision-Making and Program Improvement in National Science Foundation–Advanced Technical Education Programs in Washington State. ② E Meza, G Blume, Z Rubin, K Balhan, W Zumeta, K Hang, D Bragg. Career and Technical Education Research 46 (2), 42-58
  • Designing towards maximum motivation and engagement in an interactive speech therapy game. ② J Duval, Z Rubin, E Goldman, N Antrilli, Y Zhang, SH Wang, S Kurniawan. Proceedings of the 2017 Conference on Interaction Design and Children, 589-594
  • Developing a novel speech intervention ipad game for children with cleft palate: a pilot study. ② TY Hsieh, JL Funamura, C Roth, Z Rubin, S Kurniawan, TT Tollefson. JAMA facial plastic surgery 17 (4), 309-311
  • All the feels: designing a tool that reveals streamers’ biometrics to spectators. R Robinson, Z Rubin, EM Segura, K Isbister
  • What video games have to teach us about childbirth and childbirth support ② A Holloway, Z Rubin, S Kurniawan – Proceedings of the first workshop on design patterns