Picture a researcher. Maybe you see someone in a white coat, hunched over lab equipment in a sterile room. But this image doesn’t come close to describing Caitlin Morris\u2014a person who fits as naturally in a community workshop as she does in the halls of MIT. Caitlin is a fellow at the MIT Morningside Academy for Design (MAD), blending her skills as an architect, artist, educator, and coder. Her passion isn\u2019t just about pushing the boundaries of technology; it\u2019s about building bridges between people, creativity, and digital learning.<\/p>\n
Caitlin\u2019s story starts in rural upstate New York. Her upbringing was rooted in hands-on creativity: family dinners made from scratch, afternoons working with tools, learning how things fit together. From sewing and cooking to building with her dad, making was a way of life. And it\u2019s that curiosity\u2014sparked early and encouraged every day\u2014that underpins her approach to research and learning today.<\/p>\n
Instead of letting learning mean just memorizing textbooks, Caitlin found her stride in project-based communities. She recalls the late-night hours spent teaching herself to code, often with the help of others across online forums and creative coding platforms. For her, this collaborative, messy, and experimental environment was a revelation. There was room not just to seek answers but also to share and create\u2014outside the walls of a traditional classroom.<\/p>\n
And she doesn\u2019t just keep this way of learning to herself. Caitlin\u2019s made it a mission to open those doors for others\u2014helping organize the MIT Media Lab\u2019s Festival of Learning, hosting creative meetups, contributing code to open-source communities. It\u2019s all about creating supportive, open spaces where anyone can jump in, experiment, and help someone else along the way.<\/p>\n
For Caitlin, art and design aren\u2019t separate from learning\u2014they\u2019re part of the same puzzle. Her years building and leading communities, both online and in-person, have shown the value of human connection in sparking curiosity and motivation. Now, her research is focused on reimagining how digital spaces can feel as welcoming and interactive as a real-world studio, making technology a tool for engagement, rather than isolation.<\/p>\n
But Caitlin\u2019s eyes are wide open about the realities of technology and its future. As a doctoral student at MIT Media Lab\u2019s Fluid Interfaces Group, she\u2019s deep into exploring how people learn\u2014physically, socially, and in spaces where human teachers work alongside AI. The goal isn\u2019t to choose between the warmth of in-person interaction or the reach of digital learning, but to find ways to get the best of both worlds and design experiences that actually work for real people.<\/p>\n
Looking ahead, Caitlin\u2019s already thinking about what comes next\u2014not just for her, but for education itself. As AI rapidly changes how we teach and learn, she wants to help communities adapt, navigating the blurred lines between \u201cphysical\u201d and \u201cvirtual\u201d space. \u201cWhat should we do with this \u2018physical space versus virtual space\u2019 divide?\u201d she asks. That big, open-ended question is the heartbeat of her work\u2014and the reason her journey from a carpenter\u2019s workshop in New York to MIT\u2019s design academy feels like a blueprint for the future of learning.<\/p>\n