Test

9-10 a.m., Hale Library, Room 581 (in person and streamed on Zoom) *DUAL SESSION*

Building the Future: K-AIRES and the Next Wave of Immersive Intelligence

A joint presentation by Kansas State University Salina and Pure Imagination Studios

Panelists: Michael Oetken (assistant professor and director of K-AIRES Center, K-State Salina), Troy Harding (Distinguished Professor and department head of integrated studies, K-State Salina) and Joshua Wexler (CEO and co-founder of Pure Imagination Studio)

Session Type: Panel

Description: This presentation brings together faculty from Kansas State University Salina and executive leaders from Pure Imagination Studios to share the story behind the formation of the K-AIRES Research Center — a groundbreaking collaboration at the intersection of academia and industry. Presenters will explore how the partnership was developed, the strategic vision guiding the center and the cutting-edge immersive technologies that power its mission. Attendees will gain insight into how artificial intelligence is being integrated into next-generation immersive training simulations, educational platforms and entertainment experiences, positioning K-AIRES as a catalyst for shaping the future of spatial computing and intelligent media design.

9-10 a.m., Hale Library, Room 181 (in person and streamed on Zoom) *DUAL SESSION*

Human-Powered Learning in Digital Spaces

Panelists: Andie Faber (associate professor of modern languages, Kansas State University), Beth Pesnell (teaching assistant professor, College of Education, Kansas State University), Christina van Ittersum (accessibility-focused instructional designer, Center for Academic Innovation, Kansas State University)

Session Type: Panel

Description: Many educators across disciplines are finding themselves in a proverbial battle with AI tools in their classes, leaving many frustrated and wondering how they can assess their students' learning, rather than AI capabilities. In this panel, each panelist will present a tool and/or set of practices that educators can use to promote deep learning and discourage AI use or at least promote judicious and intentional implementation of AI tools. Attendees will come away from this panel with concrete strategies that they can immediately implement in their own teaching contexts, whether they teach online or in person.

10-10:15 a.m.

Break

10:15-11:45 a.m., Hale Library, Room 581 (in person and streamed on Zoom) *DUAL SESSION*

Widening Participation in Artificial Intelligence: AI for Good and the Future of Work

Presenters: William H. Hsu (Kansas State University), Andrew Hundt (Carnegie Mellon University), Georgina Curto (Notre Dame University), Jessica Elmore (Council for Advancement and Support of Education), Hau Chan (University of Nebraska-Lincoln)

Session type: Workshop

Description: This workshop aims at discussing near-term, actionable goals for effective education and outreach regarding artificial intelligence (AI) as a ubiquitous and powerful technology — specifically, coping with the high adoption rate and industrialization of AI and its present and incipient impacts. The focus will be a discussion on the future of work and human-beneficial, sustainable uses of AI and what potential the technology holds for human-compatible uses.

Recent surges in automation of physical and intellectual tasks brought by adoption of generative and agentic intelligent systems pose both an opportunity for social and economic change, and risks and harms due to wide-scale use of the technology without commensurate education and preparation for its use. Ideas, questions feedback, challenges, and concerns for discussion and debate are welcome.

The workshop will consist of short, invited talks and a panel on widening participation in AI from a wide range of stakeholders.

10:15-11:45 a.m., *ZOOM ONLY* (Hale Library, Room 108 viewing room for in-person participants) *DUAL SESSION*

Emerging AI Applications: Graduate Student Research from Salina

Moderator: Michael J. Pritchard, assistant professor of machine learning and autonomous systems, K-State Salina

Panelists: Graduate Students from K-State Salina’s integrated systems design and dynamics (ISDD) graduate program

Session type: Graduate Student Panel

Description: This session spotlights AI research conducted by graduate students at K-State Salina. Student presenters will share their work on diverse applications of artificial intelligence, including aerospace systems, predictive modeling, defense technologies and human-machine teaming. Each presentation will highlight not only the technical methods used — such as machine learning, natural language processing and simulation-based design — but also the real-world impact of the research. The session is designed to provide an open forum for discussion and collaboration, allowing faculty, industry and fellow researchers to engage with the next generation of AI innovators. By showcasing the breadth of student projects, the session underscores Salina’s growing role in applied AI research and its integration with industry and defense partnerships. Audience members will leave with a deeper appreciation for both the creativity and rigor of graduate student work in AI.

11:45 a.m.-1 p.m.

Lunch Break (Lunch not provided)

Noon-1 p.m., *ZOOM ONLY* (Hale Library, Room 108 viewing room for in-person participants) Separate Zoom link provided by the TLC: TBA

SPECIAL LUNCH SESSION: Professional Development Series Presentation Sponsored by the Teaching and Learning Center (TLC) at K-State: Student Motivations to Use AI

Presented by Cydney Alexis and Theresa Merrick Cassidy in partnership with the Teaching and Learning Center

1-2 p.m., Hale Library, Room 581 (in person and streamed on Zoom)

Live Debate: AI and the Workforce

Presenters: K-State Debate Team, A.Q. Miller School of Media and Communication, Daniel Robertson (undergraduate, computer science, senior member of K-State Debate Team), Cody Spurlock (undergraduate, communication studies, sophomore member of K-State Debate Team), Dr. Alex McVey (director of debate, Kansas State University)

Session Type: Live Debate

Description: K-State debaters have been discussing labor policy with their peers across the country. They will showcase their skills in a live public debate on the merits of AI. Debaters will engage in a brief, live debate on the topic: "AI is more beneficial than not for workers." Following the debate, faculty and others will be welcome to question the debaters about their positions and the debate in a cross-examination period following the debate.

2-2:15 p.m.

Break

2:15-3:45 p.m., Hale Library, Room 581 *IN-PERSON ONLY* *Pre-Registration Required: Link for Pre-Registration TBA*

Your Career Startup in the Age of AI

Presenters: Skill Guru, AI Career Accelerator and K-State’s Skill X Team

Session Type: Workshop

Description: Your Career Startup in the Age of AI is not just a workshop — it’s a launchpad. Powered by Skill X’s proven career startup framework and Skill Guru’s AI-enhanced facilitation, this session will give students and faculty a front-row seat to the future of skill-building, career design and education itself. With live demos, interactive career-building sprints and surprise innovation opportunities, this session helps participants stop asking “What job should I get?” and start asking: "What can I *build* with AI at my side?"

3:45-4 p.m., Hale Library, Room 581 gallery

Coffee Break (Sponsored by the College of Arts and Sciences)

4-5:30 p.m., Hale Library, Room 581 (in person and streamed on Zoom)

Keynote: Human Agency in Narratives of Technology

Speaker: Dr. Rocki Wentzel, Classics Professor at Augustana University

Session Type: Keynote

Description: Many of the chief concerns surrounding AI and our humanity — questions of agency, identity and the limits of knowledge — are ones that have occupied us since antiquity and have been at the heart of many narratives since then. By exploring recent films about technological subjects alongside Greco-Roman myths such as Pygmalion, Narcissus, and Orpheus, this talk will consider what our narratives about technology reveal about our values, desires and anxieties and will offer the hopeful perspective that even in the face of rapid technological change, we may not be so quick to surrender our agency as we sometimes fear.