Digital rituals and storykeeping

Sharleen Smith is interested in how technology can deepen human connection, preserve memory, and create meaningful shared experiences. Throughout her career, she has approached technology not as an end in itself, but as a material for communication, learning, participation, and creative expression.

A designer, product leader, educator, and creative technologist, Smith's career spans more than three decades across industry and academia. Before joining the NYU faculty, she held leadership positions at organizations including USA Networks, Oxygen Media, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, and MassMutual, where she led multidisciplinary teams in the design and development of consumer-facing digital products and guided organizations through periods of technological change.

An alumna of NYU's Interactive Telecommunications Program (ITP), Smith brings extensive industry experience into the classroom, helping students connect experimental ideas with real-world practice. Her teaching emphasizes human-centered design, iterative development, and the thoughtful application of technology in service of people and ideas.

Alongside her teaching, Smith maintains an independent creative practice exploring memory, identity, and participation through interactive and networked systems. Whether designing digital products or creating interactive experiences, her work is guided by a simple belief: technology is the material, not the purpose.