Shakira Willoughby-Little is a creative technologist, instructional disruptor, and digital dream builder with more than 14 years of experience transforming how we teach, learn, and lead. She is the Assistant Director of Digital Learning and Innovation at Rutgers Business School, where she drives bold strategies in instructional design, AI integration, and faculty media development. Since 2016, she has been teaching at Rutgers School of Communication and Information, where her courses, such as Gender and Technology and Social Impacts of Video Gaming, explore identity, culture, and power through the lens of technology.
Her journey spans institutions like NYU and PBS Digital, where she has blended innovation with purpose to elevate learning experiences. She is also the founder of Technically Speaking Now and Beautiful Joi Enterprises, both rooted in her mission to bridge creativity, inclusion, and digital fluency. Whether she is coaching teams, building bold curriculum, or leading workshops infused with AI and poetry, Shakira moves with heart and intentionality. She believes, "There is nothing artificial about intention. When technology is built with heart, it moves differently; that is where the soul lives."