Influential Women spotlights Rebekah Gallop for human-centered UX and ethical AI work

Influential Women recognized Rebekah Gallop, a UX designer at Turnitin in Austin, for her work on accessible education technology, responsible AI, and instructor tools for the Clarity platform. Her path from Seattle Public Schools teacher to product designer highlights how classroom experience is shaping more trustworthy digital learning products.

Why it matters: - Rebekah Gallop’s career shows how educator experience can improve education technology products for teachers and students. - Her work centers on accessibility, transparency, and responsible AI at a time when schools are adopting more digital tools. - The recognition underscores the growing value of human-centered design in edtech.

What happened: - Influential Women recognized Rebekah Gallop for advancing human-centered UX design and ethical AI. - Gallop is a UX designer at Turnitin in Austin, Texas. - She designs the instructor experience for Turnitin’s Clarity platform. - The profile was published July 31, 2026.

The details: - Gallop creates digital experiences for education products used from early education through higher education and professional development. - Her background spans user experience design, product design, user research, interface design, information architecture, and accessibility. - At Turnitin, Gallop works on features that help educators understand student writing while supporting responsible uses of AI. - She has also contributed to company-wide responsible AI efforts and design system standardization. - Before moving into tech, Gallop worked as a humanities teacher with Seattle Public Schools. - She designed curriculum, led classroom instruction, and supported students with diverse learning needs. - The move to remote learning pushed her to rethink fragmented digital tools used by teachers and students. - She taught herself Figma and completed formal UX training to enter the field. - Her first design role was at SchooLinks, where she advanced through junior and mid-level product design positions. - At SchooLinks, she worked on both B2B and B2C products and contributed to user research, product strategy, design systems, and cross-functional work with engineering and product teams. - At Turnitin, she has helped develop AI customization features based on user research. - She has also helped standardize design systems and improve collaboration across design, engineering, and product teams. - Gallop says her years in the classroom became an advantage in UX because they help her understand how instructors think and what they need. - She is the only former teacher on Turnitin’s UX design team. - She describes her growth mindset as “failing forward,” using mistakes and feedback to improve her work. - Gallop encourages women changing careers to recognize transferable skills rather than starting from scratch. - She believes diverse perspectives, including those from former educators, lead to stronger products in a male-dominated tech industry. - She argues AI should enhance authentic learning, not replace core skills like writing, critical thinking, and communication. - She says platforms such as Clarity can help build trust by increasing transparency between instructors and students. - Gallop volunteers with Austin Pets Alive, where she fosters cats and kittens. - She is also helping build a stress management and wellness application with a close friend. - More information is available in Rebekah Gallop’s profile.

Between the lines: - Gallop’s story reflects a broader hiring shift in which nontraditional backgrounds can be an advantage in product design. - Her focus on responsible AI suggests edtech companies are under pressure to prove that AI tools support learning without weakening academic integrity. - The emphasis on empathy and usability signals that schools and software makers are looking for tools that fit real classroom workflows, not just technical capabilities.

What’s next: - Gallop is likely to continue shaping Turnitin’s Clarity experience and broader responsible AI practices. - Her side project on wellness technology points to continued interest in building products tied to practical human needs. - Her example may encourage other professionals, especially women, to move into UX and edtech from teaching or other fields.

The bottom line: - Gallop’s work shows how classroom experience, UX design, and ethical AI can combine to make education technology more useful and trustworthy.