BETSY VALU ROHNEY

User Experience Researcher

📱415-475-9086 PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY

✉️ brohney@gmail.com Strategic and data-driven leader with a background conducting product
🌉 San Francisco Bay Area, CA within an agile environment. Brings both analytic and creative
approaches to help understand client motivation and needs.
linkedin.com/betsyrohney

WORK EXPERIENCE
EDUCATION Qualitative User Researcher II, Tax Benefits Programs
Code for America, San Francisco, CA | Aug 2021 – September 2023
Interdisciplinary Studies Field,
Sociolinguistics emphasis, Tax benefits programs, such as GetYourRefund and GetCTC, help
Bachelors of Arts low-to-moderate income families claim tax credits with free, trustworthy
tax services.
University of California, Berkeley
June 2018 ● Research lead for GetYourRefund.org; Partnered with the Internal
Revenue Service (IRS) to develop a landscape analysis research
plan to digitize volunteer tax filing services in the U.S.
EXPERTISE
● Lead semi-structured interviews with users to collect and
Research Methods synthesize data, creating actionable insights to distribute in total
$374 million in flexible cash to families in the United States.
Interviews
● Moderated usability tests for tax payers using prototypes to record
Contextual Inquiry and discover insights about user behavior, attitude, and
perception of products.
Usability Testing

Survey Design Qualitative User Researcher I, GetCalFresh

Code for America, San Francisco, CA | Jan 2021 - Aug 2021
A/B Testing
GetCalFresh is a digital enrollment assistant helping Californians apply
Customer Feedback for SNAP food assistance benefits in all 58 counties.

● Contributed to GetCalFresh language inclusion research by

Leadership recruiting and interviewing experts from community-based
organizations, advocating for the inclusion of Vietnamese.
Workshop Facilitation
● Interviewed GetCalFresh clients in California to understand
Stakeholder Engagement renewal barriers, establishing a framework to build a benefits
renewal flow in the product.
Project Management

Cross-functional Collaboration ● Collaborated with designers and program specialists to create a

service map of the GetCalFresh interface.
CERTIFICATIONS
Certificate of Completion:
Ma'awe Pono, Engaging in
community research
EA Ecoversity, Mar 2023
Certificate of Completion of
Apprenticeship (UX Design and
Research)
The United States Department of
Labor, Dec 2020
Human Subjects Research
Training: Social and Behavioral
Research
CITI Program, Apr 2017
PUBLICATIONS
Leading the Field: A
Conversation with a Jr.
Qualitative
Researcher for GetCalFresh
by Betsy Valu Rohney
Building Tools to Meet Our
Clients’ Needs With GetCTC
by Anu Murthy, Betsy Valu
Rohney, & Nicole Rappin
How to Conduct Research on
Sensitive Topics (8 Experts
Weigh In)
by Code for America’s User
Research Team
WORK EXPERIENCE (CONTINUED)
Qualitative User Researcher Apprentice, MNBenefits
Code for America, San Francisco, CA | Apr 2020 - Dec 2020
MNBenefits is an integrated benefits application that allows clients to
apply for multiple safety net services such as SNAP, child care
assistance, housing support, and flexible cash.
● Code for America's first UX Research Apprentice; Helped mentors
iterate on educational content, creating the foundation of the UX
apprenticeship for future apprentices.
● Worked alongside senior researchers to develop interview
discussion guides and to recruit experts serving indigenous
communities in Minnesota.
● Created key deliverables to educate team members about various
Minnesota tribal groups and establish foundational research used
to build and launch MNBenefits.
Independent Field Researcher
University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA | Aug 2016 - Aug 2018
2020
UC Berkeley’s Interdisciplinary Studies program is a self-directed,
cross-disciplinary program focused on conducting original research and
completing a senior thesis.
● Designed a grant-funded research project exploring language
proficiency using an indigenous framework.
● Received Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval from UC
Berkeley's Committee for Protection of Human Subjects.
● Submitted a 50-page thesis with abstract, literature review,
methodology, and research findings.
Community Manager
Lioness Health (aka “Lioness”), Berkeley, CA | Jun 2015 - Jan 2017
Lioness Health is a wellness company dedicated to breaking the taboo
surrounding female pleasure. A funded venture from UC Berkeley’s
Skydeck start-up accelerator.
● Helped surpass $50,000 crowdfunding goal by 168% engaging with
followers via social media, online newsletter, and in-person.
● Collected and analyzed qualitative and quantitative data from
beta testers to make improvements to the final product.
● Researched existing products in the market to develop a
successful sales strategy.