Martin Wolske

Martin Wolske is a Teaching Associate Professor at the University of Illinois School of Information Sciences, where he has been working since 1995. He holds a PhD in Behavioral Neuroscience and Biopsychology from Rutgers University and uses he/they pronouns. His academic work spans teaching, research, and community engagement with a focus on person-centered approaches to technology and information systems.

Wolske's research interests include community informatics, engaged scholarship in information sciences, critical culturally sustaining pedagogies, and critical constructivist approaches to sociotechnical information systems. His work consistently emphasizes shifting from a 'thing-orientation' to a 'person-orientation' using problem-posing education and participatory research methods, with particular attention to community technology platforms that advance local social justice goals.

His scholarly output shows a clear trajectory toward community-centered technology design and digital literacy as social justice practice, with his 2023 second edition of 'A Person-Centered Guide to Demystifying Technology' representing a significant contribution to the field. His publications demonstrate consistent engagement with critical theory, Freirean pedagogy, and community technology applications.

• Regularly on the List of Teachers Ranked as Excellent by their Students, University of Illinois
• 2017 iSchool Alumni Association Distinguished Service Award
• 2013 University of Illinois Campus Award for Excellence in Public Engagement
• 2011 Library Journal Teacher of the Year Award
• Multiple community leadership awards from East St. Louis and Champaign organizations

Wolske has served as principal investigator on numerous grants related to digital inclusion funded by the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, American Library Association, and Institute of Museum and Library Services. He also serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Community Informatics and as conference committee member for the Community Informatics Research Network. His teaching approach integrates service-learning projects that connect classroom learning with community technology initiatives, particularly through installing computer labs in community centers.

As a boundary-spanning scholar, Wolske maintains active connections between academic work and community practice, functioning as both a critically-engaged scholar and urban farmer who applies his theoretical frameworks to practical community contexts.