Dr. Ravi Pendse serves as an executive officer of the university and provides university-wide leadership and strategic direction for information technology.

Dr. Pendse has extensive experience as a successful and collaborative university leader, most recently as Brown University’s vice president for computing and information services and chief information officer. He has also been a professor, researcher, teacher and advisor to students. His successes include securing more than $21 million in external research grants, developing university courses, earning several teaching awards, and publishing numerous scholarly articles and papers co-authored by students.

Dr. Pendse holds a B.S. in electronics and communication engineering from Osmania University in Hyderabad, India. He received his M.S. and Ph.D. in electrical engineering from Wichita State University.

Dr. Tazin Daniels is an Associate Director at the Center for Research on Learning and Teaching, where she works with students, faculty, and staff to improve curriculum and teaching practices across campus. Dr. Daniels holds a Ph.D. in Medical Anthropology which gives her a unique understanding on the impact of COVID-19 on higher education culture, policy and practices - and in particular, the rapid shift to emergency remote teaching. She is an advocate for educational equity and has worked with organizations like the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation to help under resourced colleges and universities build stronger programs and practices to ensure all students can be successful. In 2022, she was named one of the top 30 Higher Ed IT professionals to follow by EdTech Magazine for her work in promoting digital equity in online education.

Presentation: Pedagogies of Care: Transforming Relationships in Physical and Digital Spaces

In this interactive session, Dr. Tazin Daniels will discuss the importance of establishing caring relationships with students and each other in order to improve educational outcomes. Through a series of individual and small group reflections, we will explore the challenges and opportunities that come with cultivating a "relationship-rich” environment across campus, along with strategies to replenish the resources required to do this challenging work. Come prepared to fully participate and contribute!

Bhargav Sri Prakash is the Founder & CEO of FriendsLearn - a life science and health technology startup headquartered in San Francisco, California & with an office in Chennai, India. He is an engineer, designer, inventor and serial entrepreneur, cited often among renowned deeptech pioneers on the world stage. He is the inventor of digital vaccines through neurocognitive computing. The USPTO recently granted him the world’s first Patent for a digital vaccine.

Carnegie Mellon University - the home of Artificial Intelligence - describes his invention as one of the top breakthrough in technology and featured it as the new frontier in disease prevention. He serves as the founding research translation and innovation partner at Carnegie Mellon University and was also on a scientific review advisory board at Stanford University School of Medicine. He holds four US and worldwide patents in advanced simulation technologies, immersive VR/AR/MR and AI technology. Recently, he was Co-chair of the 2021 NASSCOM Product Conclave for Healthcare and serves on the jury and board of mentors of NASSCOM DeepTech initiatives.

Bhargav Sri Prakash began his career in entrepreneurship as a graduate student at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor where he obtained a Masters in Automotive Engineering, specializing in computational fluid dynamics and thermodynamics, fueled by his interest in racing. He has a BE in Mechanical Engineering from the College of Engineering, Guindy at Anna University. He sold his first company in advanced simulation technologies to General Motors. His second company helped US Universities recruit students through VR and was sold to the University of Michigan. He then co-founded and ran a US based investment fund called Nirmana Investments. In 2011, he was invited to serve as a Fellow of the Kauffman Foundation when he started FriendsLearn, to pursue a vision to improve the health of children globally.

Presentation Topic

Digital Vaccines - Can an AI enabled metaverse save us from ourselves?