Biography / CV
Download my CV [PDF 133kB]
I grew up on a council estate in Newcastle Upon Tyne, in northeast England, home of the Geordie dialect. I obtained a Master of Engineering degree at Oxford University, with sponsorship from 3M. After graduating, I spent some time in Spain, developing appropriate technology at Sunseed Desert Technology, and then worked with several nonprofits in Manchester, back in the UK.
In 1994, I made the move to the USA after securing an internship at The Meta Network, one of the United States' earliest virtual communities, which was founded by Frank Burns. My role involved developing virtual conferencing interfaces and facilitating discussion forums for complex organizations during the period of transition from text-based (telnet) to graphical (WWW) interfaces. I also witnessed some of the negative consequences of "No Collar" work and developed my interest in technology and the labour process.
The internship led to a job at Hampshire College in Massachusetts where I worked with faculty to incorporate new media into their pedagogy. While there, I was involved with MassBike, a bicycling advocacy organization and, with my husband John, co-produced the Bonkworld Lecture Series and the ongoing Bonkworld website.
After moving to New York in 2001, I began to work toward a PhD exploring the potential of workblogging to create social change. I completed my PhD in 2008, shortly after the birth of my first child. I am currently Assistant Professor of Sociology at the City University of New York based at LaGuardia Community College, where my research focuses on the labour process and work-life boundaries, with an emphasis on ethnographic and visual/interactive methodology. I recently had a second child and, until September 2011, I will be based in the UK where I will undertake a study of allotment work.
My CV [133kB] is available here in PDF format. If you have any difficulty viewing it, please do not hesitate to contact me. A full list of academic and professional references, writing samples, teaching materials, and evaluations are also available upon request.
Abigail Schoneboom
aschoneboom@gc.cuny.edu