Ethics in AI: Exploring the Social and Economic Impacts of AI
Kalissa’s Journey to Computer Science
Having always been interested in STEM, Kalissa participated in the Robotics team at her school and completed as many computer science courses as she could throughout middle school and high school. She loved the challenge of building something new, and especially loved competing with her all-female team.
Kalissa first heard about Inspirit through an AI speaker series at her high school in the fall semester of her senior year . During winter break, Kalissa decided to participate in Inspirit’s AI Scholars program because of the program’s focus on Artificial Intelligence as well as the intersection of technology and ethics, something she had not quite been exposed to yet through previous courses.
Kalissa had been passionate about social impact since a young age, even writing about the integration of her school in Atlanta, so she was excited about the opportunity to apply her interest and experience in technology towards real-world problems as well. “I feel like computer science is similar to writing in terms of creating something new, and both are essentially learning different languages.”
Exploring AI + Ethics through Inspirit AI
“Completing a Criminal Justice project through Inspirit’s AI Scholars programs helped prepare me to study the social and economic impact of AI at Stanford.”
As part of the Criminal Justice project Kalissa worked on while at Inspirit, Kalissa and her peers learned about the effects of bias in algorithms in the justice system, which was incredibly eye opening. Specifically, students learned about how using a more representative dataset can result in more effective and equitable algorithms. “These are the issues that are going to be impacting us throughout our lifetime, so I wanted to learn more.” She enjoyed the opportunity to meet other students with similar interests and learn what they were interested in pursuing.
Now a Freshman at Stanford, Kalissa is taking a CS elective called Social and Economic Impact of AI, where she is building on the foundational concepts she was exposed to with Inspirit.
“I feel like I had a leg up having already been introduced to some of these concepts, which has been great.”
Kalissa plans to major in Computer Science with a minor in Political Science, combining her interests in technology and public policy. She’s joined the Stanford Daily to continue building her experience in journalism, and she hopes to apply to law school in order to continue her pursuit of making an impact on the justice system.
Kalissa’s Advice to Younger Students
“Find something that you’re passionate about and try to interact with the resources available to you both in and outside of your school. Colleges want to see what you’re passionate about, what makes you stand out and what you’re going to get involved with outside of the classroom.”