{"id":18081,"date":"2025-09-22T10:28:07","date_gmt":"2025-09-22T14:28:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cds-faculty\/?p=18081"},"modified":"2025-09-24T05:17:12","modified_gmt":"2025-09-24T09:17:12","slug":"cds-phd-students-recognized-for-research-in-ai-ethics-and-computing-pathways","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cds-faculty\/2025\/09\/22\/cds-phd-students-recognized-for-research-in-ai-ethics-and-computing-pathways\/","title":{"rendered":"CDS PhD Students Calabrese & Precel Recognized for Research in AI Ethics and Computing Pathways"},"content":{"rendered":"

Two doctoral students from Boston University\u2019s Faculty of Computing & Data Sciences (CDS)\u2014Tyler Calabrese<\/a> and Heila Precel<\/a>, advised by Assistant Professor Allison McDonald<\/a>\u2014have been awarded highly competitive fellowships from the National Science Foundation and Computing Research Association. Their selection underscores BU\u2019s growing leadership in computing and data sciences, supporting discoveries that shape the future of technology and society.<\/p>\n

\u201cHeila and Tyler exemplify the breadth of impact that data science can have\u2014from safeguarding individuals in the age of generative AI to broadening participation in computing research,\u201d said Azer Bestavros<\/a>, Associate Provost for Computing & Data Sciences. \u201cTheir recognition by the NSF not only affirms their extraordinary potential but also reflects CDS\u2019s commitment to nurturing scholars whose work connects deeply with society\u2019s most urgent challenges.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tyler Calabrese: Digital Privacy for At-Risk Groups<\/h3>\n
\"Headshot
Tyler Calabrese, PhD Student at BU CDS<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Calabrese was awarded the Computing Research Association\u2019s CSGrad4US fellowship<\/a>, which is funded by NSF. The fellowship provides three years of funding within a five-year PhD track, supporting individuals who may not have followed a traditional pathway into doctoral research. Calabrese, who is also part of the CDS PhD cohort for 2025, views the fellowship as a bridge into advanced study and research.<\/p>\n

\u201cAdvancing people\u2019s right to privacy is something I am passionate about and would have hoped to contribute to regardless of my career path. I am grateful to the CRA, NSF, and BU for allowing me to lean into this work full-time, and I am excited to begin my research career.\u201d<\/p>\n

Calabrese\u2019s research interests lie at the intersection of digital privacy and human-computer interaction. He is particularly interested in learning about how members of marginalized, criminalized, or otherwise at-risk groups protect their privacy and safety in an increasingly digital world. Calabrese will spend his first year supported through CDS\u2019s standard doctoral fellowship before moving into NSF funding in subsequent years. Learn more about Calabrese\u2019s work<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Heila Precel: Responsible AI and Preventing Digital Harms<\/h3>\n
\"Headshot
Heila Precel, PhD Student at BU CDS<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Precel was awarded an NSF fellowship through the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program<\/a> (GRFP), which recognizes outstanding graduate students in STEM fields and provides multi-year support to advance their training and research.<\/p>\n

Precel studies the intersection of data use, consent, and digital harms in generative AI systems. Her research focuses on preventing the nonconsensual use of intimate content in AI training models\u2014an area with profound ethical, social, and technological implications.<\/p>\n

\u201cBeyond the research support, the GRF serves as a powerful signal that both the research world and the general public are invested in my work. As a researcher, I\u2019m committed to working in the public interest, and the fellowship strengthens that mission.\u201d<\/p>\n

Precel\u2019s work builds on prior scholarship around AI\u2019s content and data ecosystems, bringing together conversations about data dispossession, intimate imagery, and publicly accessible and accountable technologies to expand how researchers and policymakers think about AI\u2019s societal impacts.<\/p>\n

Through the NSF fellowship, Precel plans to grow this research agenda while contributing to the wider conversation on responsible AI and data ethics. Learn more about Precel’s work<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

BU CDS PhD students Tyler Calabrese and Heila Precel earn NSF and CRA fellowships, advancing research in computing, data science, and technology.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25279,"featured_media":18269,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[244],"tags":[34,27,525,22,876,875,477,412,423,874],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cds-faculty\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18081"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cds-faculty\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cds-faculty\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cds-faculty\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/25279"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cds-faculty\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18081"}],"version-history":[{"count":20,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cds-faculty\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18081\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18194,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cds-faculty\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18081\/revisions\/18194"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cds-faculty\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/18269"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cds-faculty\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18081"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cds-faculty\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18081"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/cds-faculty\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18081"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}