Dr. Guerra-López is Dean of the College of Education and Human Development at George Mason University, home to the largest and most comprehensive school of education, and the alma mater for more than a third of the teachers and administrators in Northern Virginia.  She has also served as Interim Dean of the College of Education, as well as Interim Dean of the Graduate school at Wayne State University.  She is also a Professor of Learning Systems Design and has served as Special Advisor for Digital Learning Strategy and Innovation.  Her work is characterized by a systems approach, multistakeholder engagement, and cross-collaboration with a focus on sustainable impact.

She has published 8 books, including the award winning Partner for Performance: Strategically Aligning Learning & Development (2017), as well as Association for Talent Development (ATD) bestseller Needs Assessment for Organization Success and the popular Performance Evaluation: Proven Approaches for Improving Programs and Organizational Performance. She has over 100 publications related to needs assessment, strategic alignment, performance measurement and evaluation, workforce development, human resource management, and evidenced-based decision-making. She has worked with students, leadership, and organizations in over 40 countries disseminating systems oriented and evidenced-based performance improvement practices.

She has held key leadership positions in prominent professional organizations, including the International Society for Performance Improvement (ISPI) Board of Directors, Editor-In-Chief of its research journal, Performance Improvement Quarterly, Chair of the ISPI Research Committee, and various other key committees and task forces charged with charting future directions for the human performance improvement field. In 2017, Dr. Guerra-López was awarded the ISPI Distinguished Service Award, one of ISPI’s most significant honors in recognition for her many contributions to ISPI and the field.  In 2014, she was recognized by the Florida State University’s Instructional Systems and Learning Technologies program, the top-ranked program in the field, for her scholarly contributions and received the distinguished Gagne/Briggs Outstanding Alumnus award in 2014.

Dr. Carley Fisher-Maltese is an associate professor at George Mason University. She teaches the early childhood education math and science methods courses in the College of Education and Human Development. She completed her PhD at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. Her research focuses on science learning and the link between learning in informal and formal settings. Prior to teaching in higher education, she taught elementary school in both private and public schools. She is a strong advocate of fostering environmentally literate citizens, experiential learning opportunities, and promoting the use of innovative technologies to make learning more meaningful and engaging.

Bethany Cieslowski is the Chief Innovation Officer for Immersive Technologies at the College of Public Health. She came to Mason with several years of experience and training in simulation and debrief. She has collaborated on several innovative teaching and research projects. Currently, working with faculty to understand the impact of virtual reality in education. In addition, she completed an integrative review to explore the state of the science on the prebrief required for high-quality VR/AR simulation. And finally, she and colleagues developed the “reverse approach” to use VR in the classroom to engage and accelerate student learning. Cieslowski considers herself an innovator and a disruptor – slowly pushing the walls of nursing to build a better future.

Dr. Sprague is an Associate Professor in the College of Education and Human Development at George Mason University. She is assigned to the Elementary Education Program and teaches courses that focus on technology integration. She also teaches courses in the Teaching and Teacher Education (TATE) PhD Program. Dr. Sprague’s research interests focus on technology infusion in preservice teacher education.  She also conducts research on emerging technologies. Dr. Sprague completed her PhD. in the Summer of 1995 from the University of New Mexico. Her area of study was technology integration in teacher education.

Mark Lambert is the founder of VArtisans, a Virginia based VR and 360 video production company and co-founder and COO of sister company Lighthouse XR which is applying eXtended Reality techniques in the field of healthcare.

After years in the feature film industry, Mark started VArtisans in 2015 to pursue the new world of 360 filmmaking and 6DOF open world VR.  The company has worked on projects from PBS documentaries to wildlife conservation series to large Location Based attractions in Dubai.  VArtisans’ teams have traveled to 26 countries worldwide filming both monoscopic and stereo 360 video. Destinations included the mountains of Uganda to the streets of Paris, Rome and Tokyo … from the oceans of Australia, to the very top of Dubai’s Burj Khalifa. Clients have included PBS, PWC, Toyota and AARP.

In 2019, Mark started a sister company, Lighthouse XR. This company is working to bring XR to healthcare with new approaches for patient education and therapy. Lighthouse provides production as well as consulting services for clients. The company is developing their own IP/content as well based around its “Retreat VR Platform”. The first project on this platform is a large Substance Use Disorder treatment project developed in collaboration with the Veterans Administration. The 10 session program, called TST-VR at The Retreat, is currently in its 18th month of clinical trials and has expanded to 4 VHA Medical Centers.

Before working in VR, Mark spent 15 years working on feature films as a CG/VFX Supervisor. At Sony Pictures, he was a CG/DFX Supervisor and the head of visual development for teams that created Harry Potter‘s first Quidditch field, the visual development of Polar Express and creatures and locations for the Narnia: the Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe. Additionally, he oversaw the title design for Men In Black 2, the lunar landscapes for HBO’s Earth to the Moon, the transformation of Kevin Bacon in Hollowman, and even Stuart Little’s clothes. In the game world, he created whole FMV sequences for Square USA’s Parasite Eve. From feature films to early work in the 90’s on digital humans, Mark has always been at the leading edge of visual based digital technology.

Early in his career, Mark was a senior online editor on thousands of commercials and several documentaries. His clients included National Geographic and Mercedes Benz. During this time, he wrote the graphics engine for a National Guard M1A1 tank simulator. Notably, he developed the first commercial software interface to Pixar’s RenderMan. He licensed this interface to Sony Pictures, Warner Brothers, and other studios.

Tyler is the General Manager of Brightline Interactive and the Chief Futurist of The Glimpse Group. He is a visionary for the applications of VR/AR technology for training, enterprise and branding solutions. His technological prowess in conjunction with his aptitude for behavioral psychology enables him to transform client needs into tangible concepts through the use of immersive technology. He has adapted Brightline’s award-winning, highly immersive and interactive technology to create unique solutions for customers ranging from government agencies to commercial brands. Tyler represents the voice of immersive technology by speaking globally on behalf of the VR/AR Association and hosting the Association’s “Everything VR & AR” podcast. Additionally, Tyler is an active member of the National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA) and the Academy of International Extended Reality (AIXR).

James Casey is the director of the Virginia Serious Games Institution which is the applied research, business incubation, and outreach arm of the Computer Game Design program at George Mason University. As associate director, James participates, engages, and mentors with all of the incubated companies at the VSGI and serves as principal investigator on applied research projects initiated at the VSGI. As an associate professor in the Computer Game Design program, James teaches and oversees the Senior Capstone Synthesis classes. Prior to joining George Mason University, James has over 12 years of experience developing video games. He has extensive knowledge in the production and live management of games working on titles from Mythic Entertainment, Bioware, EA, and EA Mobile. James worked in a number of roles including customer service, design, content lead, and producer. The majority of his tenure in the industry was in the producer role with production experience on Live and in-development titles. His portfolio of work includes such PC titles as Dark Age of Camelot, Ultima Online, Imperator Online, Warhammer Online: Age of Chaos, Warhammer Online: Wrath of Heroes as well as the mobile titles Ultima Forever and Dungeon Keeper. As well, James worked on a number of prototype projects and co-development titles for the studio and helped to lead the transition to mobile for the studio. He’s earned his Master and Bachelor degrees in Business Administration as well as a creative writing minor.

Dr. Kafi Hassan is a Technology Development Strategist in the advanced and emerging technologies at T-Mobile US where he has been working in research and development of new wireless network technologies since 2006. From 1995 to 2006, he worked as a Member of Technical Staff (MTS) at Bell Laboratories in Whippany, New Jersey, performing research and development in network wireless communication systems.

Dr. Hassan’s work contributed to the design, development, and deployment of 1G, 2G, 3G, 4G and 5G wireless network systems. His distinguished engineering achievements were recognized with many professional engineering awards including 2023 Engineer of the Year award by District of Columbia Council of Engineering and Architectural Societies (DCCEAS), Bell Labs Presidents Gold Award, Bell Labs Presidents Silver Award, Bell Labs Mobility Solutions President Recognition Award, and Sprint (now T-Mobile) Network Development and Engineering Leadership Award. He has authored/co-authored 18 USPTO issued patents in communications systems. Dr. Hassan has been an adjunct professor at the Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) department at George Mason University since 2007 teaching graduate and undergraduate courses.

Dr. Hassan is an IEEE communication society (COMSOC) Distinguished Lecturer (DL) and the chair of the IEEE communication society (COMSOC) Northern Virginia chapter. He serves in organizing committees of local and international COMSOC conferences.

Dr. Hassan’s education background includes a Ph.D. degree in electrical engineering from the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, New York City, and BS and MS degrees majoring in electrical engineering from University of North Carolina at Charlotte, North Carolina.

Dr. Dailey is an Assistant Professor in the College of Education and Human Development at George Mason University in Fairfax, VA. A licensed professional counselor in Virginia, Dr. Dailey specializes in disaster behavioral health, critical incident response and decision-making, and immersive simulation research methodologies. Her research is directed at better understanding community-based disasters of mass violence and appropriate mitigation, response, and recovery strategies for survivors, response personnel, and impacted communities. Her work at the federal level has included investigations of security procedures and protocols for active shooter events in K-12 schools, vulnerability mitigation for acts of mass violence, and strategies to support performance and decision-making during critical incident response. Focusing on trauma-prevention and resilience building, Dr. Dailey has developed evidence-based guidance for individuals, families, and communities following mass casualty events and co-led a federal program on disaster preparedness and response for lockdown. She is currently co-leading a national program to enable individual schools throughout the United States better address their continuing vulnerabilities to school shootings and developing a Full Dive Virtual Reality (FDVR) Tactical Combat Casualty Care (TCCC) Stress Inoculation Training (SIT) program for military medical providers.

Dr. Nathan Carr is an Adobe Fellow/VP helping lead the Adobe Research organization in the area of 3D computer graphics. His research organization focuses on imagining and inventing the next generation experiences for creative designers. These deep innovations have transformed Adobe’s leading creative suite of products which include Photoshop, Illustrator, Stager, AfterEffects, Fresco, Aero, among others.

Recently his team has focused on breakthrough science in generative imaging technology, forward and inverse 2D and 3D rendering, which includes the capture and understanding of shape, material, lighting, and animation. These technologies are unlocking the next generation of photographic editing workflows and expanding the palette of tools for creative designers. By combining forward and inverse techniques, new intelligent assistive systems can increase the velocity of the design process when working vectors, images, 3D, and video. These technologies are also paving the way for entirely new mediums of expression that include augmented and virtual reality.

Nathan’s personal research interests include forward and inverse geometric modeling and rendering. A driving goal behind this work is to uncover simpler representations that can accelerate and democratize working and designing in 3D. His work in 3D shape reconstruction has not only considered geometric form, but also the topology of spaces. He co-invented kCurves, the basis for a new Curvature Tool shipping in Illustrator and Photoshop (presented at SIGGRAPH 2017). Nathan also is enthusiastic about photorealistic 3D rendering and helped deliver and developing the global illumination renderer inside of Adobe Stager and Illustrator. He joined Adobe after completing his PhD. from the Department of Computer Science at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign under the guidance of John C. Hart.

A technology visionary and people-oriented leader with 20+ years of international experience. She is the CEO & Founder of “XR 2 LEAD”, a global defense aerospace company that provides cutting edge training & mission critical technology solutions. XR 2 LEAD’s expertise is designing AI based (Intelligent) Simulated Solutions for adaptive training, digital twins, and rapid decision-making tools. Its mission is to provide cutting edge immersive solutions to the military, to maximize the readiness of “The Warfighter of the Future”. Under her leadership, within 2 years of inception, XR 2 LEAD began to rapidly gain traction with successful contracts like winning a challenge for an AI adaptive training solution in VR and change management solutions for logistics command.

Marryam is very active in the defense and tech sector communities and is often asked to speak and deliver sessions and webinars on various AR VR AI related topics. She was nominated and served as a Judge for the 4th, 5th & 6th International VR Awards and holds the esteemed position as Deputy Chair on the “XR for Enterprise” committee at the Academy of International Extended Reality (AIXR). She is one of the founding members of DIN-The Defense Innovation Network, a member of defense committee at VRARA and an active member of DEF-Defense Entrepreneurs Forum. She also serves as a Subcommittee Member for the Interservice/Industry Training, Simulation and Education Conference (I/ITSEC), the world’s largest modeling, simulation, and training event.

Elizabeth Hyman is President and Chief Executive Officer of the XR Association (XRA), the trade association promoting the dynamic growth of the XR industry which includes virtual reality, augmented reality, mixed-reality, and immersive technologies yet to be invented. XRA is dedicated to the responsible development and thoughtful advancement of XR technologies across the globe.

Prior to joining XRA, Hyman served as Executive Vice President of Public Advocacy at the Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA), where she led the association’s outreach to members of Congress, the Executive Branch, and other international, federal, state, and local government institutions that shape public policies affecting the IT industry.

Hyman brings more than two decades of experience in the worlds of government, policy, and technology. She began her career in government, including positions at the U.S. Department of Justice, Executive Office of the President, and Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, and has experience in the private sector both in the practice of law and in business.

Hyman is a graduate of Tufts University, completed the General Course program at the London School of Economics, and holds a law degree from the Washington College of Law at American University.

A native of California, Mr. Grant earned an Associate’s degree in Intelligence Operations from Cochise College and a Bachelor’s degree in Liberal Studies from Excelsior College.

He joined the Army’s delayed entry program as a senior in high school and a year later in July 1986 began his active-duty status with the U.S. Army. He was assigned as a Field Artillery Cannon crewman to positions at Ft. Hood, TX and at Ray Barracks, Germany. In June 1990, he left active duty and spent eight months in the Oregon Army National Guard as an Infantry Tow Missile System Operator. In March 1991, he re-entered active duty to begin his career as an intelligence professional. He spent one year learning Persian-Farsi at the Defense Language Institute and then was trained as an Interrogator at Ft. Huachuca, AZ. Mr. Grant’s first assignment as an Interrogator was at Fort Bragg, NC with the 525th Military Intelligence Brigade.

In December 1995, he was assigned to DIA’s newly established Defense HUMINT Service and attended the Defense Strategic Debriefing Course (DSDC) at Fort Huachuca. He was subsequently assigned to positions with DIA for more than nine years and participated in operations that included deployments to the Balkans, Jordan, and Iraq. In 2004, he was assigned to the 3rd Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division, Ft. Benning, GA to prepare a newly established Military Intelligence Company for deployment to Iraq. In 2005, he was assigned as an instructor with the DSDC at Ft. Huachuca. In March 2007, he retired with 20 years military service. His military awards include the Purple Heart, Bronze Star, and the Defense Meritorious Service Medal.

In April 2007, he joined DIA as a contractor supporting DIA’s newly established Technology Division. A year later, he was hired as a DIA civilian employee working as the Technology Integration Liaison for DIA’s Joint Coordination Element. In March 2011, he was assigned to DIA’s training directorate with mission at the HUMINT Training – Joint Center of Excellence (HT-JCOE) as the Technology Innovation Program Manager. In 2014, he was additionally assigned to standup the J7-Advanced Concepts staff to establish a variety of training curriculum design and implementation standards at HT-JCOE. In 2015, Mr. Grant established, and has since coordinated, the quarterly Virtual Worlds Forum (VWF), a community of interest focused on extended reality (XR) capabilities within the U.S. Government which includes Academic and Industry partners. The VWF participants collaborate to explore, develop, test, assess, and integrate XR capabilities such as Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), and Mixed Reality (MR) to enhance various mission areas. In 2016, he was tasked to focus on the Technology Innovation Program (TIP) efforts and has since positioned the TIP as the focal point for Intelligence Community exploration of XR capabilities. He was awarded the 2018 Intelligence Community Learning Innovator of the Year by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

Through his management of the TIP and the VWF collaboration and activities, Mr. Grant has positioned himself as the defacto focal point in the U.S. Government for XR knowledge of common concern.

Dr. Brenda Bannan is a Professor in the Division of Learning Technologies and the Learning Technology Design Research Doctoral Program in the College of Education and Human Development at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia.

Dr. Bannan’s current work centers on leveraging emerging technologies, learning science, user experience design, design research and human-machine partnerships to inform both the human system and the smart technology system.  Her current research interests encompass instrumenting live simulation training and other instructional, virtual and physical contexts with intelligent, unobtrusive devices leveraging AI, IoT systems and multimodal learning analytics.

Zoe Ryan is a solutions architect at NVIDIA. She’s worked in embedded systems/simulations and GPU-accelerated high performance computing, specifically targeting higher education institutions and researchers to adopt and fully utilize GPU technology.

Simon Su (Ph.D., Houston, 2001) is Computer Scientist in the High-Performance Computing Visualization Group at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). His research efforts have focused on Immersive Visualization. He is responsible for research and development of data visualization and 3D interaction using advanced immersive and interactive technologies. Before joining NIST, he was a Computer Scientist at the CCDC Army Research Laboratory working on immersive visualization and analysis of data generated by users of Department of Defense Supercomputing Resource Center. He has been working in the VR field for 22 years now.

Chris Dede is a Senior Research Fellow at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and was for 22 years its Timothy E. Wirth Professor in Learning Technologies. His fields of scholarship include emerging technologies, policy, and leadership. From 2001-2004, he was Chair of the HGSE department of Teaching and Learning. In 2007, he was honored by Harvard University as an outstanding teacher, and in 2011 he was named a Fellow of the American Educational Research Association.

In 2020 Chris co-founded the Silver Lining for Learning initiative. He is currently a Member of the OECD 2030 Scientific Committee and an Advisor to the Alliance for the Future of Digital Learning, sponsored by the Mohammed bin Rashid Global Initiative (MBRGI). Also, Chris is a Co-Principal Investigator and Associate Director for Research of the NSF-funded National Artificial Intelligence Institute in Adult Learning and Online Education.

His most recent co-edited books include: Teacher Learning in the Digital Age: Online Professional Development in STEM Education; Virtual, Augmented, and Mixed Realities in Education; Learning engineering for online education: Theoretical contexts and design-based examples; and The 60-Year Curriculum: New Models for Lifelong Learning in the Digital Economy.

Kristyn Slater is an account executive at NVIDIA dedicated to expanding the use of NVIDIA’s AR/VR platform and leveraging GPUs to accelerate research initiatives within the Higher Education community.

Devin is the Simulation Operations Specialist for George Mason University’s School of Nursing in the College of Public Health. He spent nine years as a paramedic, including time on a critical care unit, in the emergency room, and ski patrol in the mountains of Colorado. He has a passion for supporting educational labs and helping others reach that “ah hah!” moment when everything finally clicks.

Neil Waters is the Senior Digital Artist at SimInsights Inc. where he leads content production, working closely with industry experts and learning engineers to design and develop VR/AR training modules for deployment across a variety of hardware platforms and learning objectives. Neil holds a BFA in Visual Effects and Technical Direction from the Savannah College of Art and Design.

As the current manager for the FAA’s Air Traffic Organization, Power Systems Team, Robert Enos is responsible for the coordination and funding of training, for new power systems equipment and procedures.  Through years of experience following classic training development, Robert developed a keen understanding of the opportunities VR/XR could offer in enhancements of proficiency, efficiency, cost and overall throughput for future training efforts.  He is also a key partner in the FAA’s program to bring virtual tower design and sighting efforts to fruition along with an effort to develop a network architecture for an Enterprise-Based Virtual Training Model designed to support all lines of business within the FAA.

Robert earned his Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering and Industrial Engineering from the University of Massachusetts – Lowell. He started his career at Raytheon as a field and design engineer working on construction of Air Traffic Control Towers, Radar Systems and Navigational Aids.  In 2000, he began his career within the FAA as a design engineer for the Navigational Aids group in the New England office, where he later held multiple positions within the region, including managing the Eastern Service Area Infrastructure Construction group.  In 2014 he began working in FAA Headquarters within the Power Services Group as part of Technical Operations within the FAA’s Air Traffic Organization where he has continued to develop a diverse understanding of the FAA through assignments to the field, other facilities groups within his parent organization, led contract development on multiple billion-dollar services contracts and special assignments for development of cost accounting software for the Tech Ops Organization.

Rich is Power Training Program manager, who is focused on leveraging multi-modal training delivery for the Federal Aviation Administrations, Technical Operations workforce.  Over the course of his 23 year career in the FAA, he has maintained an certified Communication, Navigation and Power systems critical to air traffic control services. He and his peers are actively working to make XR based training a regularly utilized training tool for the FAA workforce.

Dr. Megan Healy joined George Mason University in 2022 as Special Advisor to the President. Dr. Healy builds strategic partnerships between Mason and businesses to develop strong collaborations that support business growth, economic development, talent development and innovation. She strives to make sure all Virginians have access to Mason through small business development, transfer from community colleges, upskilling or reskilling through industry credentials and completion of one of Mason’s degree programs. As a liaison to many state and community leaders around the Commonwealth, Dr. Healy truly believes higher education is the strongest foundation to individual prosperity and community vitality.

Dr. Healy served on Governor Northam’s Cabinet as Virginia’s first Secretary of Labor which oversaw all issues affecting workers in the Commonwealth, including workplace safety, worker discrimination and rights, employment benefits, and licensing and occupational regulations. As the Commonwealth’s highest ranking workforce officer, she led a range of regional, state, and federal programs that connected Virginians to the skills, training, and opportunities they needed to thrive in the 21^st century economy as well as made education more affordable from early childhood to higher education.

Having started her career as a science professor at Patrick Henry Community College in Martinsville, Dr. Healy keenly appreciates how education can change lives and communities. Prior to joining the Northam administration, she served as Virginia’s first Director of STEM-H under Governor McDonnell and Governor McAuliffe before returning to the Virginia Community College System as Assistant Vice Chancellor for Academics and Employer Partnerships. Dr. Healy is a proud product of Virginia’s public schools, holding a bachelor’s degree from Virginia Tech, a master’s from Virginia Commonwealth University, and a doctorate from Old Dominion University.

Ms. Strand joined Leidos in February 2023 following a 35 year career at the intersection of technology and mission execution. She joined CIA as an imagery analyst in 1985 and worked across every mission area in the Directorate of Science and Technology (DST) as an analyst and manager of technical collection operations, capability development, and targeting. One of her proudest accomplishments was creation of the George Methlie School for Technical Intelligence Officers. This was the first DST enterprise dedicated to the recruitment, development, and retention of Technical Intelligence Officers.

Ms. Strand remains engaged with the National Security Community as an Advisory Board Member of the Cyber Security Forum Initiative, a Director on the Central Intelligence Retiree Association Board, and an Advisory Board Member for the George Washington University Cyber Security Strategy and Information Management Program. She holds a BS in Political Science from James Madison University and an MBA from The George Washington University. She is the recipient of the Presidential Rank Award – Meritorious, the CIA Director’s Award, and the Distinguished Career Intelligence Medal. She has three grown daughters and three ridiculously perfect grandchildren.

Ravi Garimella, PMP, has over 20 years of experience in programming, eLearning, and virtual reality. Mr. Garimella is well-versed in the latest technologies, including digital twins, the Metaverse, and AI. He has an M.A. in Educational Technology from Bloomsburg University and has completed certificate courses on RPA and Bots. In his current role, Mr. Garimella is involved in all aspects of program design, development, and production for digital twins, the Metaverse, VR, AR, and AI.

Dr. Paul Cummings, Chief Architect for Unity Government and Aerospace, has spent his 25-year career developing transformational technology solutions with an emphasis on simulation and training, metaverse, digital twins, Live, Virtual and Constructive (LVC) simulators, and distributed simulations. Dr. Cummings is a seasoned technical leader helping to support digital transformation internal to the organization as well as across multiple teams. Dr. Cummings has built and led teams of program managers, designers, engineers, subject matter experts, and educational content professionals toward the success of large and small businesses. He is a member of the Interservice/ Industry Training, Simulation, and Education Conference (IITSEC) emerging concepts committee and is a published author on topics including LVC, explainable AI, intelligent tutoring, computational data science, and training transformation. Dr. Cummings is also on the Presidential Advisory Board for the George Mason University Fuse Center, supporting high technology innovation through federal, commercial, and university collaboration.

Erika Bauer is Digital Service Expert and Lead Product Designer & Researcher who helps manage user research, product design and deliverables within Defense Digital Service (DDS) at the Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office (CDAO). At DDS she’s worked closely with her team to incorporate customer feedback, manage delivery, innovate and ship UX for DDS’s c-UAS program. She also co-lead product discovery, customer research and design collaboration with contractors, the military services and DCSA to deliver an MVP solution for Insider Threat. Currently she’s working with her team on product discovery and researching solutions to support the Combatant Commands.

Prior to DDS, Erika worked on supply chain e-commerce solutions at Boeing and collaborated on product design with business owners and airline customers. Erika was also a Senior Designer at Microsoft where she worked on product design experiences for an audio workstation app and new avatar UX for both Xbox and HoloLens Mixed Reality. At Amazon, Erika was a Lead Designer on core product teams, designing and launching multiple experiences on Amazon Fire products and the Kindle reader.

Erika has spent almost two decades working on product teams and helping launch innovative products for Fortune 500s in the Silicon Forest and in the Silicon Valley at companies including Boeing, Microsoft, Amazon, Sony, as well as the original devices team at Barnes & Noble. In Silicon Valley, she was on award winning Android design and development teams and had a reading experience trademarked; she was also included on a patent at Microsoft for music software.

Erika is interested in improving lives with products and technology, and she joined DDS since it’s a place where she can realize that goal, making a tangible difference to the warfighter and the Department of Defense.

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Alexis Bonnell is the Emerging Technology Evangelist for Public Sector and Strategic Business Executive at Google. She also serves as a Senior Visiting Fellow for the Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue.

Alexis was one of the founding members of the Internet’s original Trade Association, served as a Chief Profit Officer for companies transitioning to a digital existence, applied her communications, project management, innovation and technology application skills in over 20 warzones, global disasters, and major transformation projects for the United Nations. At USAID, Alexis was a public servant who led transformation and knowledge management in the Management Bureau, was the first Telework Executive and served as the Chief of Engagement for Education. She co-founded the U.S Global Development Lab of USAID, one of the premier Innovation Labs in government, she served as the Chief of Applied Innovation and Acceleration tackling the critical challenge of innovation adoption and institutionalization. She most recently served as USAID’s Chief Innovation Officer. Alexis has led more than a dozen large scale digital and organizational transformation initiatives and is an expert in organizational behavior and culture, and human centered design. Alexis has pioneered new leadership models around emerging technologies like Artificial Intelligence.

At Google, Alexis dedicates her time to helping public servants catalyze their missions with technology, solving the world's toughest challenges.

Dr. Gregory Bernard is the Director of the Center for Homeland Defense and Security (CHDS) at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, CA. Bernard is a CHDS alumnus and graduated in 2012 with a Master of Arts degree in Security Studies. His CHDS Master’s thesis was titled “Whistleblowing in a Wikileaks World: A Model for Responsible Disclosure in Homeland Security.” He was also a co-founder of the CHDS Homeland Security Experimental (HSx) program.

Before taking the helm at CHDS, Bernard worked for the National Security Innovation Network (NSIN), a component of the U.S. Department of Defense’s (DOD) Defense Innovation Unit (DIU), where he served as the Talent Portfolio Director. He also previously served as Acting Managing Director for the organization. As NSIN Talent Portfolio Director, Bernard led a team responsible for changing the way the DOD solves problems by building a diverse network and delivering innovation programming designed to solve national security problems by matching them with non-traditional problem-solving communities, primarily in venture and academia.

Bernard has worked with the U.S. government since 2003, when he joined the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Office for Domestic Preparedness (ODP) as a contractor working on the Homeland Security Grant Program. He left his contracting firm in 2005 and joined ODP as a federal program manager.

In 2007, Bernard was approached by the Domestic Nuclear Detection Office to help establish their Office of State and Local Affairs. In addition, he has worked in the Operations Support Directorate, developing state and local preventative radiological/nuclear detection capabilities; he has served as a risk assessment subject matter expert; and he has worked as Principal Deputy Assistant Director for Architecture and Plans, providing leadership and oversight of the organization responsible for the development, analysis, and enhancement of the Global Nuclear Detection Architecture (GNDA).

In 2016, Bernard served as the senior DHS representative to the first U.S.-China Counter Nuclear Smuggling dialogue and frequently briefed Congressional members and staff on national security risk and the GNDA. His last post at DHS was as the Acting Innovation Officer and Acting Chief of Strategic Analysis for the National Risk Management Center within the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.

Bernard received a Doctor of Science (D.Sc.) in Civil Security, Leadership, Management, and Policy in 2016 from New Jersey City University. His dissertation was titled “Who is Professor Plum: A Framework for Defining Non-State Adversaries.”

A native of Maryland, Bernard currently lives in Monterey, CA with his wife and two daughters.

Timothy Boe is a Geographer with the US EPA’s ORD. Timothy’s work primarily focuses on response and cleanup issues following chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) incidents. He has also been developing computer-based decision support tools to aid decision makers in responding to wide-area contamination incidents. Before joining the EPA, Timothy worked as an Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education Fellow where he conducted research on wide area CBRN remediation. Timothy has an M.S. and a B.S. in Applied Science from Arkansas Tech University.

Major Andrew Bowne is the Chief Legal Counsel of the Department of the Air Force/MIT Artificial Intelligence Accelerator (AI Accelerator). In this position, Maj Bowne advises the AI Accelerator on contracts, intellectual property, fiscal law, and ethics. He is also the Air Force lead on a team of researchers from MIT and Lincoln Laboratory that develops machine learning enhanced data frameworks, more efficient computing, and sustainable datacenter through AI solutions. He has served as a Judge Advocate in the U.S. Air Force since 2010. Previous positions held include Deputy Staff Judge Advocate, Professor of Contract and Fiscal Law at the Army Judge Advocate General’s School, and Trial Counsel. Maj Bowne served in Afghanistan as the Rule of Law Team Chief for Helmand Province. Maj Bowne is a PhD candidate at the University of Adelaide, and earned a BA from Pepperdine University, a JD from the George Washington University Law School, and a LL.M. from the Judge Advocate General’s School.

Dr. Amanda Bullock is an AI Lead at the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), where she spearheads digital transformation initiatives involving AI, machine learning, and advanced analytics. She holds a BS in Statistics from Eastern Kentucky University and an MS in Applied Statistics from Wright State University. Amanda earned her PhD in Electrical Engineering, specializing in Statistical Signal Processing, from the Air Force Institute of Technology in 2013. She has extensive teaching experience in mathematics and data sciences at multiple universities and served in a prestigious Fellowship at the Army Research Laboratory. Amanda has played significant roles in civil service, including as Project Engineer for the LEGACY program and Deputy Chief Data Officer in the AFRL. She is currently focused on reducing business toil through AI innovations, connecting AFRL with DoD and industry efforts, and enhancing workforce skills in AI and analytics. Her research interests span Enterprise Architecture, STEM education, and advanced analytics. Amanda is dedicated to driving innovation and modernization in the Air Force through her expertise in AI and analytics.

The Honorable Dr. John Hillen is a highly accomplished CEO in the government contracting space and a former high-ranking U.S. government official. A decorated combat veteran and noted national security scholar, he has led four defense and intelligence technology firms in Northern Virginia, most recently as President and CEO of Sotera Defense Solutions (NASDAQ: GTEC)—awarded the 2012 GovCon Contractor of the Year award in the large company category. He was confirmed by the Senate as the U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs in 2005 and served in that role until 2007.

A recognized industry leader in the technology contracting space, Hillen served in 2012 and 2013 as the chairman of the Professional Services Council and currently sits on the boards of several defense, intelligence, and energy firms. Hillen received the Fed100 award twice – in 2011 and 2017 – has been the subject of cover stories in Smart CEO Magazine, Government Computer News, and Washington Technology.

Dr. Hillen graduated from Duke University, holds a Master’s Degree from King’s College London, a doctorate from Oxford, and received his MBA from the Johnson School of Management at Cornell.

Dr. Nathan Carr is an Adobe Fellow/VP leading the Adobe Research organization in computer graphics for 2D vector and 3D design. His research organization focuses on inventing the next generation experiences for creative designers. These deep innovations have transformed Adobe’s leading creative suite of products which include Photoshop, Illustrator, Firefly, Substance, AfterEffects, Fresco, among others.

Recently his team has focused on breakthrough science in generative imaging technology including Generative AI, forward and inverse 2D and 3D rendering, which includes the capture and understanding of shape, material, lighting, and animation. These technologies are unlocking the next generation of photographic, video, and immersive editing workflows and expanding the palette of tools for creative designers. By combining forward and inverse techniques, new intelligent assistive systems can increase the velocity of the design process across all media types including vectors, images, 3D, and video.

Azza M. Jayaprakash serves as Counsel and Lead for Law, Regulations, and Policy for the Department of Defense (DoD) Intellectual Property (IP) Cadre, in the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment. Azza also serves as Associate General Counsel in the Acquisition Logistics Division of the DoD Office of General Counsel. She provides counsel on laws, regulations, and policies relating to intellectual property, advises and assists DoD customers in the development of intellectual property strategies, and assist DoD customers in drafting and negotiating of IP license terms in contracts and other agreements. She is also a member of the Defense Acquisition Regulations Council's Patents, Data, and Copyrights Team. She previously held positions as a patent attorney and Division Chief in the Army Material Command Legal Center advising various Army program executive offices on technical data and software rights issues. Prior to her DoD career, Azza worked at private law firms doing patent prosecution before the United States Patent and Trademark Office, and intellectual property litigation.

Dr. Jerry McGinn is the Executive Director of the Center for Government Contracting in the School of Business at George Mason University (GMU). In this role, he has established and is leading the first-of-its-kind university center for research, education and training, and collaboration on issues facing the $500B+ government contracting industry. Jerry is also a trusted strategic advisor sought after for his expertise in U.S. industrial policy, supply chain, the Defense Production Act (DPA), industrial security, export control, foreign military sales, and industrial base policies. Jerry was named twice (in 2021 and 2022) to the Wash100, a premier group of private and public sector leaders selected by Executive Mosaic as the most influential leaders in the GovCon sector.

Dr. Nicole Chelonis joined DAU in 2021 and is focused on providing leadership in the modernization efforts of the DAU technology infrastructure, including helping to shape how DAU uses xAPI and generative AI in its total learning architecture.

Before entering civil service in the Department of Defense, Dr. Chelonis spent twenty years in public higher education. Most recently, she served as the Director of Digital Learning at Fitchburg State University where she continues to teach graduate courses focusing on education technology and AI use in the classroom.

A dedicated lifelong learner, Dr. Chelonis holds a PhD in Leadership, an MA in Adult Education from Pennsylvania State University, and a BS in Information Technology. She is currently pursuing an MA in clinical mental health counseling.

&lt;span data-contrast=”none”&gt;Tom Frost is a senior technology enablement consultant for SEI, Inc. with over 30 years of experience in software development, systems architecture, cloud solutions, database optimization and on-line eCommerce.  &lt;/span&gt;  &lt;span data-ccp-props=”{&amp;quot;134233117&amp;quot;:false,&amp;quot;134233118&amp;quot;:false,&amp;quot;201341983&amp;quot;:0,&amp;quot;335559738&amp;quot;:0,&amp;quot;335559739&amp;quot;:0,&amp;quot;335559740&amp;quot;:279}”&gt; &lt;/span&gt;

&lt;span data-contrast=”none”&gt;In his current role with SEI, Mr. Frost works with a wide variety of clients, assisting them with systems implementations, cloud migrations\analysis, performance optimizations, data governance and more.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span data-ccp-props=”{&amp;quot;134233117&amp;quot;:false,&amp;quot;134233118&amp;quot;:false,&amp;quot;201341983&amp;quot;:0,&amp;quot;335559738&amp;quot;:0,&amp;quot;335559739&amp;quot;:0,&amp;quot;335559740&amp;quot;:279}”&gt; &lt;/span&gt;

Benjamin McMartin is a Senior Fellow in the School of Business at George Mason University. His appointment is with the Center for Government Contracting.

McMartin is managing partner of the Public Spend Forum, a Washington, D.C.-based firm dedicated to enabling open government markets worldwide. He is a nationally recognized expert, speaker, and author in the intersection between federal procurement, intellectual property, emerging technology development, and non-traditional acquisition methodologies, who spent more than a decade developing some of the most unique procurement solutions for the Department of Defense.

McMartin previously served as Chief of the Acquisition Management Office for the US Army Combat Capabilities Development Command–Ground Vehicle Systems Center, and prior to that, as a Procuring Contracting and Agreements Officer for the US Army Contracting Command–Warren. McMartin earned his J.D. from the University of Detroit-Mercy Law School and has been a member of the Michigan State Bar since 2008. He is twice the recipient of the Army Achievement Medal for Civilian Service, and a recipient of the Army Civilian Service Commendation Medal.

&amp;lt;span class=”TextRun SCXW84191448 BCX0″ lang=”EN-US” xml:lang=”EN-US” data-contrast=”auto”&amp;gt;&amp;lt;span class=”NormalTextRun AdvancedProofingIssueV2Themed SCXW84191448 BCX0″&amp;gt;Woei-Chyi Chang is a&amp;lt;/span&amp;gt;&amp;lt;span class=”NormalTextRun AdvancedProofingIssueV2Themed SCXW84191448 BCX0″&amp;gt; Ph.D. candidate at Purdue University &amp;lt;/span&amp;gt;&amp;lt;span class=”NormalTextRun AdvancedProofingIssueV2Themed SCXW84191448 BCX0″&amp;gt;Lyles School of Civil Engineering&amp;lt;/span&amp;gt;&amp;lt;span class=”NormalTextRun AdvancedProofingIssueV2Themed SCXW84191448 BCX0″&amp;gt; under the supervision of Dr. Sogand Hasanzadeh.&amp;lt;/span&amp;gt;&amp;lt;span class=”NormalTextRun SCXW84191448 BCX0″&amp;gt; His research &amp;lt;/span&amp;gt;&amp;lt;span class=”NormalTextRun SCXW84191448 BCX0″&amp;gt;focuses on human-autonomy teaming in future construction &amp;lt;/span&amp;gt;&amp;lt;span class=”NormalTextRun SCXW84191448 BCX0″&amp;gt;by deploying AR/VR/MR&amp;lt;/span&amp;gt;&amp;lt;span class=”NormalTextRun SCXW84191448 BCX0″&amp;gt;/XR&amp;lt;/span&amp;gt;&amp;lt;span class=”NormalTextRun SCXW84191448 BCX0″&amp;gt;, wearable sensors,&amp;lt;/span&amp;gt;&amp;lt;span class=”NormalTextRun SCXW84191448 BCX0″&amp;gt; and&amp;lt;/span&amp;gt;&amp;lt;span class=”NormalTextRun SCXW84191448 BCX0″&amp;gt; ML/DL&amp;lt;/span&amp;gt;&amp;lt;span class=”NormalTextRun SCXW84191448 BCX0″&amp;gt; techniques&amp;lt;/span&amp;gt;&amp;lt;span class=”NormalTextRun SCXW84191448 BCX0″&amp;gt; to comprehensively understand workers’ subjective and objective behaviors &amp;lt;/span&amp;gt;&amp;lt;span class=”NormalTextRun SCXW84191448 BCX0″&amp;gt;during the interaction with autonomous technologies on future jobsites&amp;lt;/span&amp;gt;&amp;lt;span class=”NormalTextRun SCXW84191448 BCX0″&amp;gt;.&amp;lt;/span&amp;gt;&amp;lt;span class=”NormalTextRun SCXW84191448 BCX0″&amp;gt; Specifically, he strives to enhance &amp;lt;/span&amp;gt;&amp;lt;span class=”NormalTextRun SCXW84191448 BCX0″&amp;gt;trust&amp;lt;/span&amp;gt;&amp;lt;span class=”NormalTextRun SCXW84191448 BCX0″&amp;gt;-building, communication,&amp;lt;/span&amp;gt; &amp;lt;span class=”NormalTextRun SCXW84191448 BCX0″&amp;gt;safety&amp;lt;/span&amp;gt;&amp;lt;span class=”NormalTextRun SCXW84191448 BCX0″&amp;gt;, and inclusivity&amp;lt;/span&amp;gt;&amp;lt;span class=”NormalTextRun SCXW84191448 BCX0″&amp;gt; of worker-autonomy teaming &amp;lt;/span&amp;gt;&amp;lt;span class=”NormalTextRun SCXW84191448 BCX0″&amp;gt;within the construction industry. On the other hand, Woei-Chyi is pursuing a dual master’s degree &amp;lt;/span&amp;gt;&amp;lt;span class=”NormalTextRun SCXW84191448 BCX0″&amp;gt;at Purdue University &amp;lt;/span&amp;gt;&amp;lt;span class=”NormalTextRun SCXW84191448 BCX0″&amp;gt;Elmore Family School of Electrical and Computer Engineering&amp;lt;/span&amp;gt;&amp;lt;span class=”NormalTextRun SCXW84191448 BCX0″&amp;gt;, with the concentration on computer engineering, Internet of Things, and digital twin &amp;lt;/span&amp;gt;&amp;lt;span class=”NormalTextRun SCXW84191448 BCX0″&amp;gt;development.&amp;lt;/span&amp;gt;&amp;lt;/span&amp;gt;&amp;lt;span class=”EOP SCXW84191448 BCX0″ data-ccp-props=”{&amp;amp;quot;201341983&amp;amp;quot;:0,&amp;amp;quot;335551550&amp;amp;quot;:6,&amp;amp;quot;335551620&amp;amp;quot;:6,&amp;amp;quot;335559739&amp;amp;quot;:160,&amp;amp;quot;335559740&amp;amp;quot;:278}”&amp;gt; &amp;lt;/span&amp;gt;

Maury Peiperl is co-author of the leading textbook on change management, Managing Change (McGraw Hill), as well as two books on careers and work, Career Frontiers and Career Creativity (Oxford) and the central reference in the careers field, The Handbook of Career Studies (Sage). He has also published in Harvard Business Review, Academy of Management Review, Human Resource Management, Group Organization Management and the Journal of International Business Studies, among others.

Prior to joining George Mason University, he was Director (Dean) of Cranfield School of Management, one of the UK’s leading MBA and Executive Development institutions, as well as a Pro-Vice-Chancellor of Cranfield University. Before Cranfield, Peiperl spent 10 years as Professor of Leadership and Strategic Change at IMD in Switzerland, where he developed and directed numerous executive development courses and held a variety of administrative roles. Before becoming a professor he worked for IBM, Merrill Lynch and LEK Consulting and as a research fellow at Harvard Business School.

Peiperl holds a BS in Engineering from Princeton University and an MBA, AM and PhD from Harvard University. He is a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences.

Nada Dabbagh is Professor and Director of the Division of Learning Technologies in the College of Education and Human Development at George Mason University. Dr. Dabbagh teaches graduate courses in instructional design, e-Learning, digital pedagogy, and design research in the Learning Design and Technology (LDT) master’s program and the Learning Technologies Design Research (LTDR) doctoral specialization. Dr. Dabbagh’s research focuses on the pedagogical ecology of technology-mediated learning environments with the goal of understanding the social and cognitive consequences of learning systems design. Specific research interests include online learning, interaction design, and Personal Learning Environments or PLEs.

Deniece Peterson is Sr. Director of Federal Market Analysis at Deltek, leading an analyst team responsible for GovWin’s strategic research and analysis of federal budgets and spending, market trends, technology and acquisition policy, and business development best practices.

Peterson has over 20 years of experience in government contracting, market research and management consulting. Prior to her role with Deltek, Peterson worked for small businesses as a business and go-to-market strategy consultant, market research manager, and federal marketing course curriculum developer and instructor.

Peterson holds a BA in Economics and an MBA from the University of Denver.

Dr. DeLeon is visiting professor at George Mason University. Her assignment in the College of Education and Human Development is focused on innovative learning technologies. In her civil service career, she serves as Learning Director for the Defense Systems Management College at the Defense Acquisition University. Dr. DeLeon completed her EdD in human and organizational learning at the George Washington University. Her research focused on experiential learning methods in leadership training and development.

Mr. William (Will) Roe Roberts is currently head of Acquisitions for the Joint Artificial Intelligence Center (JAIC)/Chief Digital and AI Officer (CDAO), Office of the Department of Defense in Arlington, Virginia. Will is responsible for ensuring that acquisition pathways and methodologies are centered on the JAIC mission of providing AI capabilities to the warfighter and DoD workforce. The work includes creating enabling guides, advice, and contract vehicles to assist the DoD services in the unique nature of AI as an emerging technology and how to tailor DoD contracting to meet this need.


Previously, Will was a Contracting Officer (CO) for the Office of the Secretary of the Air Force (SAF), and worked Acquisition policy for the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) where he provided expertise on service acquisition policy for DoDEA. Additionally, he drafted the Service Acquisition Strategy (SAS) and Procurement Policy Memorandum (PPM) for the agency that incorporated current Federal procurement laws and policies and provided clear guidance and templates to ensure accurate reporting on elements such as Inherently Governmental Functions (IGFs), critical functions, and personal services.


Will became a member of the ABA and Florida Bar as of 2011, receiving his law degree from Stetson University College of Law. During his legal studies, he became fascinated with contract law and commercial business principles. Originally determined to privately practice within the Tampa Florida area, he was later exposed to Federal Contracting and the Federal Acquisition Regulation. Desiring to be “closer to the action” – he has since maintained a role as “Contracting Officer” over legal advisor and has been involved in negotiating contracts for the past ten years.

Dr. Liza Wilson Durant serves as the Associate Provost for strategic initiatives and community engagement at George Mason University and Professor and Associate Dean for strategic initiatives and community engagement in the College of Engineering and Computing.  She works to build meaningful partnerships across the university with external corporate, government, academic, non-profit, and global entities to support the mission of the strategic objectives of the University.  She also serves as the Director of the Northern Virginia Node of the Commonwealth Cyber Initiative (CCI).  Prior to her appointment as associate provost, she served as chair of the Sid and Reva Dewberry Department of Civil, Environmental, and Infrastructure Engineering where she has been a faculty member since 2010.  She received her BS and MS degrees from Cornell University and Stanford University respectively and her Ph.D. in environmental engineering from the Johns Hopkins University.

Dr. Behzad Esmaeili is an Associate Professor with a joint appointment at Purdue University School of Industrial Engineering and Lyles School of Civil Engineering. He actively conducts research in human factors, decision-making, and risk management. His research on construction safety has been nationally and internationally recognized more than once, most notably in the 2014 Prize Award for Innovation “Jaume Blasco,” 18th International Congress on Project Management and Engineering (ICPME), New Scholar award from the Construction Industry Institute in 2014, Best Paper Award from the Construction Research Congress in 2016, Best Academic Award from the Construction Industry Institute in 2016, and the best paper award from ASCE Journal of Management in Engineering 2018. Dr. Esmaeili actively serves on the Construction Industry Institute’s Safety Community of Business Advancement (CII SCBA) and AFH10 committee at the Transportation Research Board (TRB).

Dr. Kamaljeet Sanghera is the Executive Director of the Institute for Digital InnovAtion (IDIA) at George Mason University where her team supports the research community in the pursuit of cutting-edge work to share the future digital society. Before assuming the IDIA role, Dr. Sanghera served as the Executive Director of STEM Outreach for the Volgenau School of Engineering. She was also the Associate Chair of the Information Sciences and Technology department. Dr. Sanghera is a founding member of Virginia’s Governor’s STEM commission. She serves on the executive board of the Northern Virginia Computer Science Teachers’s Association and is on the advisory board of STEM for Her. Dr. Sanghera received the NCWIT Extension Services Award to implement systemic change to increase enrollment, retention, and graduation of women in technology and engineering undergraduate programs. Her efforts have positively contributed to the Go Virginia Tech Talent Pipeline initiative, where she worked closely with Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA), the Fairfax County Government Office, the Northern Virginia Technology Council (NVTC), and Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS). Dr. Sanghera is also an active member of the Students and Technology in Academia, Research, and Service (STARS) program and the National Center of Women in Technology (NCWIT). She has worked on the Sisters Rise Up grant by Reboot Representation. Dr. Sanghera worked with AWS and NVCC in introducing the first BAS in the Cloud Computing degree. For these efforts, Education Dive, a digital publication for the education industry, gave George Mason University a highly regarded Higher Ed “Partnership of the Year” award.

Xennial is Douglas’ third startup. The company focuses on building Virtual and Augmented Reality (VR/AR) enterprise products, solutions, and platforms for corporate and academic organizations. In 2005, Douglas’ second startup was acquired by WPP, the largest global holding company of marketing, advertising, and digital agencies. During his 13-year career with WPP, Douglas was CEO for the Miami units of RMG Connect, Casa, and Mirum.

Douglas leads a team of 40 people working with global clients, such as CAE, the largest aviation training company in the world, as well as Celebrity and Royal Caribbean. Xennial is also collaborating with leading Higher Ed institutions, such as the University of Miami, University of Massachusetts, and University of Virginia, to build groundbreaking immersive learning solutions.

Ravi Garimella is an experienced professional with more than 20 years of demonstrated work history in Programming, eLearning, Section 508, Virtual Reality, Learning Management Systems (LMS), and a Certified Project Manager (PMP) with Government, Commercial, and corporate industries. As the Technical Director at C² Technologies, he is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the production staff, which includes graphic designers, programmers, 3D modelers, and quality assurance. Mr. Garimella is involved in all aspects of the software development life cycle and is well-versed in SCORM and xAPI. Ravi is mission-focused, responsive, detail-oriented, organized, and customer service-driven with a “can-do” attitude. He has worked as a Project Manager with many Federal agencies and commercial clients.

Mr. Garimella earned his Master’s degree in Education Technology from Bloomsburg University, including certificate courses on Robotic Process Automation (RPA) and Bots.

Dr. Shree W. Taylor leads the Government Analytics & Innovation team at Elder Research. Formally trained as a computational mathematician, she has been delighted to create a rewarding non-traditional career centered around mathematics, business and innovation. She has served clients in the government, private and non-profit sectors for over 15 years, and is known for presenting highly technical analyses and topics to non-technical audiences in a format that is relatable and relevant to customers and stakeholders. Dr. Taylor loves to develop leaders; she is an authentic, empathetic and adaptive leader who engages with colleagues to help them reach their team and individual goals.

Dr. Taylor is a first-generation college graduate and is an adjunct professor at Georgetown University. She earned her BS and MS in mathematics from Clark Atlanta University and her PhD in applied/computational mathematics from North Carolina State University. After post-doctoral research at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Dr. Taylor joined the Center for Naval Analyses where she worked on challenges of interest to the US Navy and Marine Corps.  She recently completed the Executive Master’s in Leadership Program from the McDonough School of Business at Georgetown University.

Anders Gronstedt, Ph.D., is a pioneer in extended reality training simulations. As president of The Gronstedt Group, he leads the development of high-fidelity simulations that accelerate learning at scale for the world’s largest employers, including the U.S. Navy, Walmart, Pfizer, Novartis, Takeda, and Bristol Myers Squibb. Dr. Gronstedt, a former marketing professor at the University of Colorado, is a thought leader in the industry, regularly speaking at conferences and contributing to the Harvard Business Review.

Josh leads LMI’s concept development and customer delivery of capabilities for advanced analytics and artificial intelligence (AI), data and enterprise operations, and digital solutions. He previously served as LMI’s vice president of advanced analytics, directing a team that helped federal agencies leverage analytic-driven innovation to materially improve citizen services and operational performance as well as develop capabilities organically.

As a senior executive officer of the LMI Research Institute and LMI Ventures, the latter of which he helped establish, Josh manages a portfolio of partnerships, developing enterprise data management, modeling and simulation, and AI solutions so LMI can address immediate client challenges.

Prior to LMI, Josh was a U.S. Army officer, serving two overseas tours focused on infrastructure reconstruction efforts in Iraq. He later joined Deloitte’s public-sector practice, where he specialized in analytics-driven business model transformation and strategic planning engagements. Josh holds a bachelor’s in systems engineering from the U.S. Military Academy and a master’s in engineering management from Missouri University of Science and Technology.

Dr. Hendrik Haarmann is a senior cognitive scientist currently working in the NSA Office of Innovation (PhD, Psychology, 1993, University of Nijmegen, The Netherlands). He has basic and applied research and consultancy expertise in the areas of learning and performance and neurodiversity. In his theory-driven research on the nature of human memory and its brain mechanisms, Dr. Haarmann has combined experimentation, neuro-computational modelling, neuroimaging, and neurofeedback. This approach has informed Dr. Haarmann’s applied research and consultancy work on enhancement of the learning and performance of professional workers, for example through critical and creative thinking training, artificial intelligence, immersive extended reality technology, and mindfulness for enhanced stress and resilience and sense making. He is a recognized thought leader with a record of highly impactful scholarly publications, numerous presentations at international conferences, and invited and plenary talks and has provided frequent consultancy across the US intelligence and defense community. Dr. Haarmann has previously held positions at the National Cryptologic University (NCU), the University of Maryland’s Applied Research Laboratory for Intelligence and Security (ARLIS), Center for Advanced Study of Language (CASL), and Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences (HESP), at Carnegie Mellon University’s School of Psychology, the Nijmegen Institute for Cognition and Information (NICI) and the Max Planck Institute (MPI) for Psycholinguistics in the Netherlands.

My name is Lana Hashem, and I am a recent bioengineering graduate currently completing an accelerated master’s degree in data analytics engineering at George Mason University. In this project, I focused on the software engineering aspects, specializing in creating, coding, and manipulating VR software and environments. I also designed and performed testing procedures, particularly concentrating on synchronizing VR systems with treadmills and ensuring the accuracy of VR environments displayed on headset screens. My dedication to precision and innovation drives me to develop reliable and functional VR applications that push the boundaries of technology.

Jordan has been designing websites and digital experiences since the early days of the World Wide Web. Inspired and excited by the potential for people to connect with each other around the world, Jordan went to work as a web designer helping people realize the potential of the web as a new medium for entertainment, education, and business.

Today Jordan is a Lead Human-Centered Engineer at MITRE, bringing experience in human-centered design and UX strategy and research to creating innovative solutions for national defense, health, and other public sector sponsors. Previously he lead immersive design at U.Group, working with the public sector, nonprofit, and commercial customers to explore how emerging technologies like AR/VR, AI, and machine learning can change the way we learn, collaborate, and visualize data about the world around us.

Before that Jordan worked in user experience and digital strategy for the Department of Defense and the United States Senate. At the United States Senate, he helped senators and committees unlock the potential of their websites and social media channels to better engage and communicate with constituents.

An active member of the design and XR community, Jordan has served as the President of UXPA DC, co-organizer of DCUX, and a member of the W3C Immersive Web Working Group. Jordan holds a BIS in Interaction Design from George Mason University and an MS in Management of Information Technology from the University of Virginia’s McIntire School of Commerce.

Sungsoo Ray Hong’s research mission is to develop a human-AI collaboration system that can practically improve users’ productivity and creativity in specific domains. He applies research methodologies in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) and Computer-Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW) to design, build, and evaluate future human-AI collaboration artifacts that seamlessly fit human mental models. He is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Information Sciences at George Mason University. He earned his Ph.D. at the University of Washington, Human-Centered Design and Engineering.

Antonio Mañueco, SEI’s National Technology and AI Practice Lead, brings over 20 years of software, data, and processes expertise. He designs and architects cloud-agnostic and hybrid-ready technical workloads, integrating identity, security, and metrics to unlock business potential.

Adept at presenting complex concepts simply, Antonio bridges the gap between business and technology. His technical depth and practicality drive innovation effortlessly. Antonio guides organizations to capitalize on technology while minimizing complexities and risks, streamlining processes without overspending on software licenses.

Sophia Moshasha is determined to fast-track the integration of immersive and emerging technologies. Behind the scenes, on camera, and center stage, she propels multiple initiatives dedicated to elevating education and engagement with XR across diverse industry domains.

With roles spanning as a producer and Virtual Red Carpet host for The Polys – WebXR Awards, a Special Correspondent for the WebXR Summit Series, and a co-host of the VR/AR Association podcast, Sophia has conducted extensive interviews with innumerable XR pioneers and innovators.

Her journey encompasses pivotal contributions that have steered the application of these technologies and propelled the entire industry forward. Notably, her path has led her through stints with Meta’s Public Policy team, the Air Force’s Small Business Innovation Program, and representation of a diverse spectrum of immersive technology enterprises offering solutions tailored to diverse industries.

Since 2017, her active engagement in the immersive technology community includes serving as Vice President of the DC Chapter of the VR/AR Association, co-founding XR women—an international collective driving female representation in technology—and co-founding Ready Player Golf, the pioneering Virtual Reality Charity Golf Outing. This initiative has successfully raised funds for MSF (Doctors Without Borders), XRSI (the XR Safety Initiative), and Children’s Cancer Research Fund (CCRF).

Sophia’s dynamic presence has resonated across global networks through years of dedicated involvement in the XR community. She plays a vital role in guiding policy and standards setting organizations like the VR/AR Association, Congressional Reality Caucus, Metaverse Standards Forum, and the National Training and Simulation Association. Her efforts equip these entities to comprehend the immersive technology landscape, ensuring they are well-equipped to meet the burgeoning interest in adopting these technologies.

Her influence extends to prominent media platforms including Forbes, ABC, CGTN, and the American Dream TV series, where she has shared her insights. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Virginia Commonwealth University.

Taking the next step in her tech advocacy, Sophia is now running for the State Senate in District 39. Her goal is to better equip legislative officials with a comprehensive understanding of the opportunities emerging technologies provide.

Mohammad F. Obeid, Ph.D., is the Mirza Endowed Chair in Global Learning and Associate Professor at Shenandoah University. He currently serves as the Director of the Virtual Reality Design (BS) program as well as Co-Director of the Shenandoah Center for Immersive Learning (SCiL). In those capacities, he leads various initiatives exploring the utility of simulation and virtual learning environments for training and decision making in many domains. He holds a PhD and MS in Modeling and Simulation Engineering from Old Dominion University and a BS in Industrial Engineering from the German-Jordanian University. His research and recent career revolve around synthetic environments and medical-oriented simulations. In a general sense, his interests encompass extended reality (XR) platforms, interactive and predictive simulation, and computer-assisted interventions.

Dolly Oberoi, founder of C² Technologies, has greatly contributed to the aerospace and defense industry through her work in immersive technologies, AI, analytics, and IT. A pioneer and thought leader, she transformed traditional learning environments with immersive technologies and devised transformative enterprise-wide solutions to enhance organizational and individual performance. As an entrepreneur, she’s completed over 18,000 projects for 130+ clients, employing 500+ staff in 22 global locations, and has been recognized with over 200 industry awards.

Apart from her business accomplishments, Oberoi is an active mentor for budding entrepreneurs, running an incubator and accelerator, and hosting entrepreneurship boot camps for women and students. She serves on numerous academic and corporate boards, including George Mason University, Barnard College of Columbia University, and the TiE Global Board. An internationally recognized figure, she represented the U.S. on trade delegations and served under President Obama’s administration. Oberoi’s numerous accolades include the National Defense Industry Association’s Business Leader of the Year and the GovCon Entrepreneur of the Year. She holds a Master’s degree from Harvard University.

Patty is a thought leader in learning design, change management, software product management and project management methodologies and how to systematically adapt strategies to meet the needs of her SEI clients. Most recently, Patty has become a trusted SEI advisor with connecting learning design science to companies struggling to adopt new AI-Technologies in their organizations.

More importantly, Patty is a proud alum of George Mason University and holds a Ph.D. in Education with a focus on Instructional Technology. Patty shares her 25+ years of experience leading teams through the full life cycle of product development as an adjunct faculty member in the Learning Design and Technology Program at George Mason University’s College of Education and Human Development.

Shane is the founder and CEO of Aktiga, a spatial software development company based in Asheville, NC. Aktiga focuses on building accessible 3D content and immersive applications for the future of the web. Shane’s team authored an important white paper on eXtended Responsive Web Design (XRWD) that is set to influence immersive web design for many years to come.

Dr. Pearlstone is the CEO of DicomDirector, a start-up in digital medical imaging that creates three-dimensional holograms, viewable on any AR/VR device, from CT or MRI scans for doctors to use in diagnosis, treatment planning and intra-operative guidance. Most recently, he was Executive Director of HealthHavenHub, a not-for-profit digital healthcare incubator in New Haven, CT, and a partner at HealthVenture, LLC. Prior to joining HealthVenture, Dr. Pearlstone served as Medical Director for Vitas Healthcare of Connecticut. Previously he has served as Chief of the Division of Breast Surgery and Director of Breast Services at the John Theurer Cancer Center at Hackensack University Medical Center, in Hackensack, New Jersey, and Associate Chairman of Surgery, Chief of Surgical Oncology, and Director of Surgical Research at Lincoln Hospital in New York City.

He graduated from Phillips Exeter Academy and received his B.Sc. from Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee.  Following a research fellowship at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute at Vanderbilt, he received his MD from New York University School of Medicine in 1989. He completed his residency in general surgery at NYU; during his residency he spent two years as a Clinical Research Fellow in the Surgical Metabolism Laboratory at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center under Dr. Murray Brennan, where he published extensively in the field of cancer cachexia. He then went on to complete a clinical fellowship in surgical oncology at the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas.

Dr. Pearlstone practiced clinical and academic surgical oncology for many years, serving on the faculty of the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, as well as Yale University School of Medicine. He has worked in biomedical technology transfer since 2002, serving on the faculty of Clemson University College of Engineering in Clemson, SC, and the Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, NJ. In 2010, Dr. Pearlstone received his MBA from the Leadership in Healthcare program at the Yale University School of Management.

J. Regner is the instructional design lead at the Defense Acquisition University’s (DAU) Defense Systems Management College (DSMC). In this role, he helps professors refine and develop their materials, techniques, classes, and courses to ensure that DSMC learners receive a world-class instructional experience. Additionally, J. is leading DAU’s AI transformation effort. As the lead for this effort, J. and his team of volunteers developed and implemented a diffusion of innovation plan to encourage, train, and support DAU employees as they integrate Copilot for Microsoft 365 into their daily work habits.

J. has a master’s in Educational Technology from James Madison University. He previously worked as an instructional designer for the Carilion Clinic hospital group and as a high school educator. His previous EdTech conference talks regarded creating authentic assessments with technology, democratizing the learning experience using technology, and improving presentations with research-based instructional design principles.

Daniel J. Santos (Dan) is the Chief Operating Officer at Brightline Interactive, where he spearheads the integration of the real and digital worlds using groundbreaking AI and immersive 3D technologies. With over 25 years of experience in advanced technology sectors, both domestically and internationally, Dan has pioneered first-of-a-kind programs that transform industries and enhance operational efficiency.

At the heart of Brightline Interactive's mission, Dan champions the development of a digital twin-based decision support system that leverages AI, Universal Scene Description (USD), and mixed reality to revolutionize decision-making and workforce training. This innovative system analyzes extensive data sets to present critical information in an intuitive, spatially-aware format, allowing for seamless interaction with digital twins via mixed reality interfaces. By implementing hardware-agnostic solutions, this transformative technology is accessible from any device, furthering Brightline's commitment to operational adaptability and resilience.

As Executive Director of the Institute for Digital InnovAtion, Dr. Sanghera and her team support the research community in the pursuit of cutting-edge work to shape the future of our digital society, promoting equality, wellbeing, security, and prosperity.

Before assuming the IDIA role, Dr. Sanghera served as the Executive Director of STEM Outreach for the Volgenau School of Engineering. She was also the Associate Chair of the Information Sciences and Technology department. Dr. Sanghera was a founding member of Virginia’s Governor Northam’s STEM commission. She serves on the executive board of the Northern Virginia Computer Science Teachers’ Association. Dr. Sanghera received the NCWIT Extension Services award to implement systemic change to increase enrollment, retention, and graduation of women in technology and engineering undergraduate programs. Her efforts have positively contributed to the Go Virginia Tech Talent Pipeline initiative, where she worked closely with Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA), Fairfax County Government Office, Northern Virginia Technology Council (NVTC), and Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS). Dr. Sanghera is also an active member of the Students and Technology in Academia, Research, and Service (STARS) program and the National Center of Women in Technology (NCWIT). She has worked on the Sisters Rise Up grant by Reboot Representation.

Steve Sheets is a long time developer of desktop, mobile and now VR apps. During these years, he has worked at Apple, Leidos, Meta, America Online, US Government, and other organizations, as well as spending considerable time as an independent developer. He has been active in the VR/AR community leading MagFest VR talks, organizing DV VR Meetups and presenting talks on the future of VR/AR.

My name is Gavin Smiga, and I hold a B.S. in Bioengineering with a concentration in Nanomedicine and Biomaterials from George Mason University (GMU). As a native of Northern Virginia, I have a deep connection to the local community. During my time at GMU, I served as the project manager for our capstone project, which focused on developing a Virtual Reality Platform for Gait Rehabilitation.

I am passionate about researching and developing more effective treatments for diseases and injuries, utilizing both physical rehabilitation techniques and advanced drug therapeutics. Driven by a strong desire to contribute my skills and knowledge to innovative projects, I am excited about the opportunity to make meaningful contributions to the field of biomedical engineering.

My name is Kirubel Tadesse. I was born in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and moved to the United States in 2016. I started my college career at Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA) where I earned my A.S. in Engineering. I then transferred to George Mason University to pursue a B.S. in Bioengineering. While completing my senior year, I also enrolled in the accelerated Master’s program at George Mason to earn an M.S. in Data Analytics Engineering, which I am on track to complete by Spring 2025.

I have been working as a Research Assistant at the Applied Biosensing Lab in the Bioengineering department for over a year. Additionally, I am a fellow at the GMU Center for Adaptive Systems of Brain-Body Interactions (CASBBI) NRT, where I will participate in a multidisciplinary team to tackle a challenge in our community.

Dr. Linton Wells II brings more than twenty years of leadership experience at the interface of policy and technology. Recent research has focused on international cyber resilience and critical infrastructure protection, building resilience in the space domain, countering disinformation in complex information environments, and supply chain risk management, as well as the policy implications of accelerating, converging technological change in areas like biotechnology, robotics, augmented intelligence, advanced manufacturing, information technology, nanotechnology, and energy. This includes the national security implications of the replacement of labor by automation and artificial intelligence, and the ability to reduce pressures for migration and marginalization by building resilience at community levels.

While in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, he served as acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for Networks and Information Integration (ASD NII) and Department of Defense (DoD) Chief Information Officer (CIO) in which roles he oversaw the Defense Department’s $30 billion budget for information technology and related areas. Other senior positions have overseen Command, Control, Communications and Intelligence (C3I), as well as the National Industrial Security Program (NISP). From 2010 to 2014, he led the Center for Technology and National Security Policy, a research center at National Defense University (NDU). In 2014, he completed 51 consecutive years with DoD. He is the President and CEO of Global Resilience Strategies—”Be prepared to bounce forward better,” Visiting Distinguished Research Fellow at the Institute for National Strategic Studies (INSS) at NDU, Chairman of the Advisory Group to the C4I &amp;amp; Cyber Center at George Mason University (GMU), Executive Advisor to GMU’s Center for Resilient and Sustainable Communities, and a member of the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD).

In twenty-six years of naval service, Dr. Wells served in a variety of surface ships, including command of a destroyer squadron and guided missile destroyer. He also acquired a wide range of experience in operations analysis; Pacific, Indian Ocean, and Middle East affairs; and C3I. Born in Luanda, Angola, he graduated from the United States Naval Academy and holds a Bachelor of Science degree in physics and oceanography. He attended graduate school at Johns Hopkins University, receiving a Master of Science in Engineering (M.S.E.) degree in mathematical sciences and a Ph.D. in international relations. He is also a graduate of the Japanese National Institute for Defense Studies in Tokyo. He served on the National Advisory Council of the Whiting School of Engineering at Johns Hopkins.

Dr. Wells has written widely on security studies in English and Japanese journals. He also co-edited a series of books on leader development and international security transformation. He received the Woodrow Wilson Award for Distinguished Government Service from Johns Hopkins University and has thrice been awarded the Department of Defense Medal for Distinguished Public Service.

Dr. Wilson serves as Assistant Professor of Learning Technologies at George Mason University, where he provides instruction to graduate students in the Learning, Design, and Technology (LDT) Program. In 2023, Dr. Wilson assumed duties as Academic Program Coordinator for the Learning, Design, and Technology Program, offering both the M.S. degree and eLearning Certificate. Before joining George Mason, Dr. Wilson taught graduate-level instructional design and educational technology courses online in the Higher Education and Learning Technologies program at Texas A&amp;amp;amp;amp;M University, Commerce. At Southern Methodist University, Dr. Wilson designed and built academic and training courses for SMU’s Center for Teaching and Learning. His teaching experience includes more than 10 years as a professor of journalism and writing at Richland College. Dr. Wilson’s credentials include a Ph.D. in Learning, Design, &amp;amp;amp; Technology from The Pennsylvania State University, a Master of Science in Journalism from Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, and a Bachelor of Science in Microbiology from Xavier University of Louisiana.

Dr. Wilson’s current research interests include augmented and virtual reality, learning experience design, instructional design, and online teaching and learning. Prior to becoming an academic, Dr. Wilson was a major market television news reporter.

Lap-Fai (Craig) Yu is an Associate Professor at the Computer Science Department at George Mason University, where he leads the Design Computing and Extended Reality (DCXR) group. He works on computer graphics, vision, human-computer interaction, and virtual reality, particularly in AI and data-driven techniques for computational design. He obtained his Ph.D. degree in Computer Science from the University of California, Los Angeles with an Outstanding Recognition in Research Award. His research has been featured by New Scientist, the UCLA Headlines, and the IEEE Xplore Innovation Spotlight; and has won Best Paper Honorable Mention Awards at 3DV and CHI conferences. He received an NSF CRII award and an NSF CAREER award for his research on computational design and virtual reality. He served as a member of the Panel on Assessment of Humans in Complex Systems of the National Academies. He regularly serves on the technical program committees of ACM SIGGRAPH, ACM CHI, and IEEE Virtual Reality.

Liuchuan Yu is pursuing a Ph.D. in Computer Science at George Mason University under the guidance of Professor Craig Yu. He conducts research on leveraging Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Extended Reality (XR) technologies, including Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), and Mixed Reality (MR), to enhance human performance. He is skilled in Python, Unity, Meta Quest 2/Pro, Microsoft HoloLens 2, and networked multiplayer development. He holds a bachelor’s degree in remote sensing, a master’s degree in software engineering, and a master’s degree in computer science. He possesses over 5 years of industry experience as a software engineer. He is passionate about driving innovations at the intersection of XR and AI to create immersive and transformative experiences.