Tongxin Lily Li

Tongxin Lily Li

New Jersey Institute of Technology

Hi, I’m Tongxin Li (李童欣 in Chinese), and I also go by Lily — a name inspired by my love for Monet’s Water Lilies 🪷.

I’m currently a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Informatics at the Ying Wu College of Computing, New Jersey Institute of Technology ❤️, where I work with my advisor Dr. Donghee Yvette Wohn in the Social X Lab 🔍.

I hold a Bachelor’s degree in Media and Information and a Master’s degree in Digital Communication and Media from Michigan State University 💚.

I use mixed-method approaches, integrating quantitative and qualitative methods to understand how people perceive and engage with technology in complex, context-dependent ways.

🔥 News

  • 01/2026:  🔥 Our paper Understanding Educators’ Perceptions of AI-generated Non-consensual Intimate Imagery is accepted to CHI 2026! Can’t wait to see HCI scholars in Barcelona! One interesting story: during my sophomore year spring break, I had planned a trip to both Spain and Portugal, but I missed my flight to Barcelona and ended up visiting only Portugal. This time, I finally have another chance to go to Barcelona!
  • 09/2025:  🏆 Attended HopHacks 2025 in person at Johns Hopkins University, and our project “ReBloom”, that support postpartum moms in abdominal muscle recovery, won the 1st place in the AI + AR for Maternal Wellness track!
  • 06/2025:  🇧🇷 Attended IMX 2025 in person in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, where I presented our paper Understanding Fans’ Attitudes Toward AI-generated Fan Content About Their Favorite Musician! Excited for my first conference presentation!
  • 04/2025:  🌸 Attended CHI 2025 in person in Yokohama, Japan. (My first CHI! Looking forward to meet new people! Please say hi and connect!)
  • 04/2025:  🔥 Our paper Understanding Fans’ Attitudes Toward AI-generated Fan Content About Their Favorite Musician is accepted to IMX 2025!
  • 09/2024:  🎮 Attended TwitchCon San Diego 2024 with my advisor, where we collected data from over 200 participants for our research study — an incredible hands-on experience in in-person data collection, community engagement, and practicing conversations with strangers!
  • 05/2024,  🟪 Served as a student volunteer at the Social Media Moderation Summit 2024 @NJIT, where I participated in meaningful discussions on social media moderation and connected with amazing peers!
  • 01/2024:  ❤️ Started my Phd journey at New Jersey Institute of Technology! Go Highlanders!

📝 Posts

📄 Publications

👩🏻‍🏫 Teaching

  • Teaching Assistant for IS 375: Discovering User Needs for UX
    • Worked with Dr. Donghee Yvette Wohn and Professor Adam Spryszynski
    • Led a workshop on diary study analysis, guiding students through key user research methods such as affinity diagramming and journey mapping.
    • Assessed assignments and group projects—including diary study reports, interview study reports, contextual inquiry reports, and final projects—for 96 undergraduate students, providing detailed, constructive feedback aligned with course objectives.
    • Enhanced course materials by updating lecture slides and adding relevant articles and multimedia resources, including instructional YouTube videos.
  • Teaching Assistant for IS 247: Designing the User Experience
    • Worked with Dr. Alisha Pradhan and Professor Adam Spryszynski
    • Evaluated weekly assignments and milestone projects covering user research, journey mapping, ideation, prototyping, and design evaluation.
    • Provided constructive feedback and one-on-one support to enhance students’ understanding of User Experience Design.

🙋🏻‍♀️ Services

🎖 Honors and Awards

  • 11/2020, People’s Choice Winner, Global Spartans at Work, Global Focus, Michigan State University

  • 05/2020, Third Place Winner, 2020 Dean’s Choice Grant Competition – Spartans Inspire MI Success, Michigan State University

  • 03/2020, Larry Estlack Memorial Scholarship, Michigan State University

  • 02/2020, College of Communication Arts & Sciences Endowed Scholarship, Michigan State University

  • 02/2020, College of Social Science Study Abroad Grant for Spring Break 2020, Michigan State University

  • 02/2019, CAS 396: Media Sandbox L.A. Field Experience Scholarship, Michigan State University

📖 Educations

  • 01/2024 - Current, Pursuing my PhD, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Newark, New Jersey, USA ❤️
  • 08/2020 - 12/2022, Master, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, USA 🤍
  • 08/2017 - 08/2020, Undergraduate, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, USA 💚

💻 Internships

  • 06/2019 - 08/2019, Social Media Coordinator, Tencent, Beijing, China.
    • Participated in group activities of the innovative WeChat Mini Program: Fact Check 腾讯新闻较真 under Tencent News
    • Served as WeChat platform article typesetter (110 medical articles) and editor to maintain WeChat Mini Program daily updates, increased 2.6% the total number of social media followers
    • Average number of reviews of headline public article is 15,000+; the highest reading of the WeChat Mini Program card article 10,000+