Miami Dade College Starts Artificial Intelligence Speaker Series

Miami Dade College kicked off its Artificial Intelligence Speaker Series on Feb. 23 at The Idea Center at Wolfson Campus.

The series will include 11 events that will take place on a monthly basis through December at the Idea Center. Some events will also be hosted at the AI Center at North Campus when the facility is completed at the end of the spring semester.  

Featured speakers will include Jordan Morrow, the head of data skills at Pluralsight, and Beverly Wright, the chief analytics strategist for Axis Group. All the events are free and open to the public.

“It really is an honor and a privilege for us to be the host of the speaker series,” said Alejandro González, the executive director of The Idea Center, during the kickoff event on Feb. 23.

The initiative is part of a college-wide effort led by the School of Engineering Technology, the School of Continuing Education and the Department of Professional Development to invest a total of $15 million into developing AI learning. 

“We felt that we needed to do more, not just for our internal community but the external community in Miami,” said Antonio Delgado, the vice president of innovation and technology partnerships.

The series seeks to educate students, professionals and community members with a first-hand understanding of the newest AI trends and practices by bringing known AI professionals to share their experiences on how AI influences industries.

People interested in attending the events in person can pre-register online. The series will also be livestreamed and will be available on the MDC Livestream website. 

The first guest speaker in the series, Noelle Silver, talked about the impact AI is having in the workforce and how students can be part of the experience.
“AI is changing the world and we have an opportunity to change it for the better,” Silver said during the event. 

Silver became interested in AI when she saw the potential technology had to help her son who has down-syndrome and her father, who developed a cognitive memory deficiency following a car accident. 

She currently works as a partner executive in AI for IBM and specializes in conversational AI and voice technology, operationalizing data science and cloud-native app development in the hybrid cloud. Prior to her role at IBM, she worked with NPR, Microsoft and Amazon. 

“We pride ourselves on working with the industry to create these programs and create these opportunities for our students,” said Manny Perez, the dean of the School of Engineering, Technology and Design. 

The next event will be hosted by Wright on March 23 at the Idea Center at Wolfson Campus. For more information, contact the Idea Center at (305) 237-7809.