Joshua Daymude

Outstanding Master's Mentor

Assistant Professor, School of Computing and Augmented Intelligence, Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering

Bio:

Joshua J. Daymude is an assistant professor in the School of Computing and Augmented Intelligence with a joint appointment in the Biodesign Center for Biocomputing, Security, and Society. He researches algorithmic theory for the efficient coordination and characterization of collective emergent behavior in biological, social, and engineered complex systems. Daymude completed his doctorate in 2021 at the School of Computing, Informatics, and Decision Systems Engineering (CIDSE) at Arizona State University. Prior to his professorship, he was a Mistletoe Research Fellow at the Momental Foundation, a three-time ARCS Foundation Johnston Endowment Scholar, and a CIDSE Dean's Fellow.

Mentoring statement: 

Diversity, equity, and inclusion are paramount to a thriving academic community, especially in science. If STEM fields are to succeed in making discoveries that better all of humanity, it is imperative that we have all of humanity represented in our scientific community. Despite marginal advancements in recent years, we have much work to do as an academic community — especially within Computer Science — to create a more welcoming and inclusive environment for every student and faculty member to reach their potential, especially those from marginalized and underrepresented backgrounds. The gender gap is particularly persistent within Computer Science: in Fall 2023, only 20.0% of Computer Science majors at ASU identified as female compared to 34.7% across all ASU undergraduates in STEM; the proportion at the graduate level is slightly higher (26.8%) but remains far from parity. As a faculty mentor and educator, I focus my efforts on these problems by (1) helping the full pipeline of students develop and build confidence in their own technical capabilities, (2) connecting mentees to opportunities within my lab and professional network, and (3) broadening a sense of belonging within my spheres of influence.

I aim to engage the full pipeline of students, from K-12 to postdoctoral scholars. The statistics above suggest that by the time underrepresented students enter undergraduate programs, many have already chosen out of Computer Science or STEM altogether. Difficult material, less than encouraging teachers, and isolating social experiences in STEM lead students to lose confidence in their abilities and stop imagining themselves as capable contributors to these fields.

At the K-8 level, I am beginning a partnership with 2nd grade elementary teachers at the Vista del Sur Accelerated Academy in the Laveen Elementary School District to design and facilitate creative, engaging activities centered on mathematical reasoning and algorithmic thinking. For high schoolers, I open my lab for interested students to do research experiences (e.g., over a summer or semester); one student I mentored is now doing their undergraduate at MIT in Computer Science, and another is now pursuing Computer Science at ASU and doing research from day one.

Within my first two years as faculty at ASU, I’ve strived to plug into a diverse spread of mentoring opportunities. I am advising the PhDs of two Fulton Fellows, advised and graduated two MS thesis students, directed two Barrett undergraduate honors theses and three FURI / MORE undergraduate and MS research projects, and coached one ICPC programming competition team. My biggest development effort so far has been a large-scale, cohort-based undergraduate research experience for my Biodesign center called the Biocomputing Scholars Program. In just three semesters, we have mentored over 60 undergraduates across 8 majors and 15 interdisciplinary projects; my lab was/is responsible for 15 of those scholars. I am especially proud to say that this is a first research experience for the vast majority of our scholars and we have maintained gender parity in all cohorts so far. Beyond research, I have successfully coached several undergraduate and MS students through technical interviews for industry positions; one of my previous MS students is now at Meta in NYC while the other stayed with me to continue as a PhD student.

Finally, I work to instill a sense of belonging in my mentees and students, if not in our discipline at large, then at least within the research and classroom environments we co-create. I highly value my mentees’ agency and ownership over our common academic life and the connections they make with each other along the way, and have been gratified to see spontaneous, supportive friendships spring up around the lab. Academia was not an obvious career path for me, and I owe much to the generosity and understanding of my instructors, mentors, and collaborators — many of whom also understand what it is to feel like an outsider — for helping me reach my current position. My faith as a Christian forms my deep belief in the value and worthiness of all people, regardless of their identity or background,and I remain committed to incorporating practices of generosity, equity, and inclusion in my life as a faculty member.