Erika Solis, PhD (they/them)

Surveillance technology has no place on college campuses and can be used to attack free expression and academic freedom.

That's why we signed a letter with over 30 rights groups calling on universities to dismantle these dangerous tools.

Read the letter: www.fightforthefuture.org/news/2025-08...

Andddd I'm done! After five long years, my time at Penn State has come to a close. Thanks to everyone who helped me get here.

Up next - Alfred State College!

Congrats to the PhD grads who participated in Commencement: Jiaqi (Agnes) Bao, @erikasolis.bsky.social , @yaseminbeykont.bsky.social, Lana Medina, @sydneyforde.bsky.social; & their advisors: @jessgallmyrick.bsky.social, Patrick Plaisance, @christopherali.bsky.social, @matthewpmcallister.bsky.social.

I got to see my office today!! It's a lot bigger than I expected it to be, and having a window is a game changer for me. Really looking forward to putting it together soon and getting settled in.

The US could see a 30-40% decline in new international student enrollment, resulting in nearly $7 billion in lost revenue and more than 60,000 fewer American jobs. https://www.nafsa.org/fall-2025-international-student-enrollment-outlook-and-economic-impact

Youth mental health? There’s an app — many apps — for that. But are they effective? A little bird helps Sarah Mann deal with her anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorder, but it isn’t a talkative parrot or a mockingbird. It's a virtual avatar on Finch, a self-care app Mann…

Better late than never, but wanted to share that I was interviewed for an article on youth mental health apps a few months ago. It's a great read (no bias I promise!), highly recommend checking out the article!

Blows my mind that I'm about to graduate soon. A year ago today I was really worried about finishing my dissertation, especially with some health issues that made typing really difficult.

I've done everything besides walk across the stage, and then maybe it'll feel real!

I am grieving the barbarism that is going to unfurl from all this. People are going to die. Livelihoods gone. All to feed a corrupt kleptocracy.

I see every day up close how different it is from the first time around. There are no guardrails. A disaster. I’m sorry we have to live through this.

AOC: They’re giving people crumbs and they are taking away the whole loaf.

FIFA urged to use ‘influence’ over President Trump’s ‘abusive’ immigration policy ahead of World Cup A letter to FIFA, signed by more than 90 civil society groups, expresses "deep concern" about Trump's immigration policies.

We sent a letter to FIFA expressing concern over their silence on President Trump's anti-immigrant policies.

FIFA must urge the Trump administration to protect the rights of foreign visitors and immigrants who already live, work, and contribute to the communities selected to host the World Cup.

I had a great time at #ICA25 this year. It was great to reconnect with a lot of people that I hadn't seen in a long time.

Hopefully I'll make it to #ICA26? We'll see!

For any #ica25 folks thinking about heading down to civic center park this afternoon (or worried), sounds like the vibe is street party and joy as resistance

I'm excited to kick off #ICA25 with some big news.

I’ll be starting at Alfred State College as an Assistant Professor in the Fall! 🎉 I'm grateful for my experience at Penn State and the support of my co-advisors (Christopher Ali and Matt McAllister), who helped prepare me for this next step.

American Higher Education is not the enemy - News Literacy Initiative Classic authoritarian scapegoat It’s hard to be in higher education these days. If you read the news, it’s easy to see why. The American higher education s

Penn State's News Literacy Initiative: American Higher Education is Not the Enemy. newsliteracy.psu.edu/news/america...

BREAKING: We're suing Quincy, Massachusetts to stop the city from installing two statues of Catholic saints on government property.

A Clean Energy Boom Was Just Starting. Now, a Republican Bill Aims to End It.

A clean energy boom was just starting. Now, a Republican bill aims to end it.

See where states would lose out on investments.

The First 100 Days | American Civil Liberties Union

From day one, we kept our promise to the Trump administration: If you come for our rights, you'll have to get through us.

Thank you so much!!

Hi, I'm Dr. Solis now. It was a long road to get here, but I'm so so excited to be done with this stage of the dissertation. And I couldn't have asked for a better committee!

I'm currently waiting for the bus to State College. Tomorrow, I defend my dissertation - aka the thing that's consumed my life since July 2024. Definitely feeling nervous, but also excited to get to this stage.

Wish me luck!

An island of trust: public broadcasting in the United States Abstract. This contribution aims to better understand the level of and reasons for the trust U.S. television viewers place in the Public Broadcasting Servi

It’s funny (not ha-ha funny) that Trump announced an executive order to gut funding for @pbs.org @npr.org because of bias, when our paper just came out this week showing how viewers TRUST PBS because of its non-biased news! We’ve got the data to show it too!

academic.oup.com/joc/advance-...

For the first time in over a month, I'm ahead in grading. Granted, I don't have many assignments left for my students and I've been grading in small batches as they come in, but still.

Which, I definitely need to be ahead considering I defend my dissertation next week(!!)

PhD Timeline xkcd.com/3081

Google Is a Monopolist in Online Advertising Tech, Judge Says The ruling was the second time in a year that a federal court had found that Google had acted illegally to maintain its dominance.

Breaking News: Google acted illegally to maintain a monopoly in some online advertising technology, a federal judge ruled.

BREAKING: An immigration court determined our client Mahmoud Khalil to be removable from the U.S. based solely on his political speech.

The fight isn't over — we'll keep fighting for Mahmoud's freedom and all of our First Amendment rights in federal court.

UPDATE: After public opposition, National Park Service restored the Underground Railroad page to include Harriet Tubman.

We have power through resistance.

I'm so exhausted from the semester that a part of me wants to dress as Tom Nook for my dissertation defense because it sounds fun.

Animal Crossing isn't even included in the dissertation but it is about video games and that's sort of close enough.

Just remember. When you're broke and sick. None of this harm was necessary.

Cory Booker has broken Strom Thurmond’s record. “I’m here despite his speech,” Booker said.

Everytime I talk about AI and relationships in one of my classes, my students lose their minds. They're always shocked, even when they have experience with it.