Jerone Dunbar is the perfect example of someone who has made the most of his opportunities, maximizing his potential both in the classroom and beyond. “At STAC, I was able to not only study Computer Science and play soccer but do way more than I ever imagined. STAC not only provided me with a positive and supportive community, it opened doors to so many different career opportunities which allowed me to meet some amazing people.”
Moving from Jamaica at 16 years old without his parents was no easy feat, but it was a journey he was ready to embark on. Coming to STAC’s campus shortly after, he fell in love with, “STAC’s ideal location, size, and community atmosphere.” Jerone’s time at STAC was very active, his passion for technology lead him to a successful academic career. Jerone served as Student Government Vice President, Campus Activities Board President, Culture Shock Club President, and Resident Assistant. Jerone also played Men’s Tennis and Club Soccer.
Despite being so involved, Jerone could still be a standout student thanks to, “the smaller class sizes which allowed for more focused learning and more attention to each student.”
His outstanding academic performance and persistence enabled Jerone to secure his first internship with Spectra Laboratories as a Hardware System Engineer. During his time there, he
conducted PC imaging and performed various Windows installations and updates, PC Transplants, and performed Network and Systems Administrative tasks. In the spring of that year, Jerone
secured another internship, this time with Pfizer Pharmaceuticals, in Alabama, as a Database Developer, where he was responsible for database development using MS Access for the
Procurement Department and the processing of crucial large files. During his senior year, Jerone interned with the Computing Research Association, based at Auburn University, where he researched electronic voting systems for the visually impaired and disabled.
“Ask the right questions, and always be open-minded. Do not be afraid to apply for anything you are truly interested in,” Jerone advises. “Never think you are not good enough. Work hard and work
smart.”
Upon graduating Summa Cum Laude from STAC with a degree in Computer Science, Jerone completed his MBA in Computer Science with a focus on interactive computing and HCI at Clemson University, where he was a graduate research assistant. There he was the project lead on electronic voting and verification system usability studies and in-vehicle infotainment systems/applications. After completing his MBA, Jerone then completed his Ph.D. at the University of Florida in Human-Centered Computing.
During Jerone’s career path, he held some amazing positions, many of which gave him the opportunity to travel across the United States. He first started at Intel Labs, part of Intel Corporation, as an Interaction and Experience Research Scientist. He did landscape research, user interviews, interaction design, visual design, prototype development, live presentation, and
user assessment. He then transitioned into a User Experience Performance Analyst researching role where he led qualitative speech data analysis for the workloads and experience task force. He also hosted many user experience and metrics-related workshops for the Platform Analysis Center within the Software Services Group and also for other groups across Intel.
After working at Intel in California, Jerone became a User Experience Researcher at Nielson Engineering in Florida. There he redesigned the way engineering provides tools and technologies
to customers, was responsible for problem analysis, interviews, card sorting, cognitive walkthroughs, think-aloud test, wireframes, mockups, prototypes, and usability testing.
Due to Jerone’s hard work and fearless persistence, he secured a job as a User Experience Researcher at Google. This was a work environment Jerone describes as, “nothing short of phenomenal with the ability and resources to impact millions or even billions of people through day-to-day operations.” His role there was focused on the search experience from the initial starting page to query formulation to search results and finishing with result filtering. He also evaluated the production experience for searches focused on sports. He was given the opportunity to travel to Australia with Google to work on user experience with Google Maps, a Senior User Experience Researcher research effort for in-home user interviews, and a usability study of concept designs.
Most recently, Jerone moved to Ohio to work for Honda R&D as a Senior User Experience Researcher. Obtaining this role was a huge deal for Jerone since it involved, “the two things I am most passionate about, cars and technology!” At Honda, he is the lead of future in-car technology UX research for both mainstream and luxury cars. Jerone’s current role is the User Experience Research Lead at Honda, where he spearheads design and conducts evaluative research for future vehicle infotainment systems. He also co-leads holistic generative research for in-vehicle
experiences and provides direction for a wide variety of infotainment UX research areas.
Jerone is quite a busy individual, but still finds the time to do the things he loves like playing soccer and watching his favorite movie: John Wick! He also dedicates a lot of his free time to volunteering, which is something that Jerone is very passionate about. He has worked with many organizations that benefit everyone from ailing children and low-income families to student
development and global causes. Some of the organizations Jerone has volunteered for include Design Code Build, Intel Involved, Habitat for Humanity, Nielsen Global Impact, GoogleServe, and Graduate Research Day, to name a few.
“Aim to be above excellent and when things are not necessarily perfect then be willing to just be excellent” – Dr. Jerone Dunbar