Falling into AI

Sept. 22 | 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM
Kansas Union - Woodruff Auditorium
Admission is free, though registration is required. 
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/falling-into-ai-2026-tickets-1997716243060?aff=oddtdtcreator 

Join us for the opening day of Falling into AI. Educators, students, researchers, healthcare professionals, and industry leaders from across KU and KU Medical Center will come together to learn from experts at Google and Amazon Web Services and discuss the opportunities and challenges AI presents for higher education and beyond. The day will feature keynote presentations, a panel discussion, and breakout sessions focused on research, teaching and learning, and student innovation. Attendees will also have the opportunity to visit open labs and center showcases across the Lawrence campus to see how KU researchers, educators, and students are using AI to support their work, research, and develop new ideas.

Registration & Networking (8:30 - 9:00 a.m.)

Keynote Address and Q&A: Zac Chase from Google (9:00 - 9:45 a.m.)

Zac Chase is the Global Lead for Scaled Programming at Google for Education, who previously led development of the U.S. National Education Technology Plan at the Department of Education. 

Keynote Address and Q&A: Mary Strain from Amazon Web Services | AWS (9:45 - 10:45 a.m.)

Mary Strain leads AI and machine learning strategy for U.S. education at Amazon Web Services and began her career teaching middle school in the Bronx.  

Panel Discussions (10:45 - 11:30 a.m.) 

Hear directly from industry leaders as they discuss emerging trends, opportunities, and challenges shaping the future of education, research, healthcare, and work. Bring your questions and join the conversation.

Collaboration Break & Lunch (11:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.)

Breakout Sessions 1-4 (12:00 - 12:45 p.m.)    

Session 1: Amazon Web Services | AWS - Big 12 Room 

Amazon's cloud division and a leading provider of AI and machine-learning infrastructure.

Session 2: CIDDL - Jayhawk Room 

The Center for Innovation, Design, and Digital Learning, focused on technology in educator preparation. 

Session 3: Apple & KUMC - The Jay 

Apple discusses its technology and innovations for supporting teaching, learning, and accessibility. This session is invite only and attendees must show their KUMC IDs.

Session 4: KU Finance - English Room 

KU's financial operations team discusses the opportunities, challenges, and future of AI in finance.

Breakout Sessions 5-8 (12:55 - 1:40 p.m.)  

Session 5: Google - Big 12 Room 

Google's education and AI teams, including Gemini experts, will showcase how AI is transforming education and research.

Session 6: Amazon Web Services | AWS - Big 12 Room 

Amazon's cloud division and a leading provider of AI and machine-learning infrastructure. 

Session 7: Maggie Mosher Agents - The Jay 

Maggie Mosher is a KU special education researcher whose work includes virtual reality, AI tools, and Agentic AI to support students with disabilities.

Session 8: Institute for Information Sciences | I2S - English room

Description coming soon

Breakout Sessions 9-11 (1:55 - 2:50 p.m.)  

Session 9: Center for Teaching Excellence | CTE with Doug Ward (Big 12 Room) 

Associate director of KU's Center for Teaching Excellence and an associate professor of journalism. 

Session 10: AI & the KS Economy with Donna Ginther (The Jay)

Roy A. Roberts & Regents Distinguished Professor of Economics and director of KU's Institute for Policy & Social Research, and a National Bureau of Economic Research associate. 

Session 11: TBD (English Room)

Roy A. Roberts & Regents Distinguished Professor of Economics and director of KU's Institute for Policy & Social Research, and a National Bureau of Economic Research associate. 

Open Lab Tours - Across Campus (3:00 - 5:00 p.m.)

Learn about the research and development in AI from lead researchers at KU throughout campus. Registration is required for Open Lab Tours. Attendees will be asked to select their preferred tours at checkout. 

FLITE Open Lab - Joseph R. Pearson Hall

Address: 1122 W Campus Rd, Lawrence, KS 66045 
Website: Center for Flexible Learning through Innovations in Technology & Education (FLITE)

Center for Innovation, Design, and Digital Learning (CIDDL) Open Lab - Joseph R. Pearson Hall

Address: 1122 W Campus Rd, Lawrence, KS 66045 
Website: Center for Innovation, Design, and Digital Learning (CIDDL)

The Achievement & Assessment Institute (AAI) Open Lab

Address: 1515 St Andrews Dr, Lawrence, KS 66047 
Website: The Achievement & Assessment institute

Kansas University Center on Disabilities (KUCD) Open Lab- Joseph R. Pearson Hall

Address: 1122 W Campus Rd, Lawrence, KS 66045 
Website: Kansas University Center on Disabilities

Networking & Breakfast (8:00 - 9:00 a.m.)

Start the day by connecting with faculty, researchers, healthcare professionals, and students. This networking session provides an opportunity to meet colleagues, exchange ideas, and build new connections before the day begins.

AI Across KU Showcases (9:00 - 10:00 a.m.)

Discover how artificial intelligence is being used across the KU Medical Center. Faculty, educators, healthcare professionals, and students will showcase research projects highlighting AI's growing impact on healthcare, clinical practice, and medical research.

Faculty Innovation Talks (10:00 - 11:00 a.m.)

Hear directly from KU and KUMC faculty members who are integrating AI into their research and profession. These presentations will showcase emerging ideas, lessons learned, and approaches to applying AI to address current and future challenges.

Student Research Showcases (11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.)

Learn how students across KU and KUMC are applying AI to their research and professional work. Attendees will have the opportunity to connect with student researchers and explore how AI is being used to address challenges and shape the future of their fields.

Lunch (12:00 - 1:00 p.m.)

Take time to network with fellow attendees, continue conversations from the morning networking sessions, and connect with colleagues. 

Interactive labs (1:00 - 3:00 p.m.)

See AI in action through hands-on demonstrations, interactive activities, and discussions. Participants will get a firsthand look at how AI is being used in healthcare and research.

Community Partner Discussions (3:00 - 5:00 p.m.)

Join community organizations, healthcare leaders, educators, researchers, and industry partners for discussions about the opportunities and challenges of AI adoption in healthcare and medical research.

One KU AI Showcase
Sept. 24 | 8:30 AM to 3:00 PM
Kansas Union - Woodruff Auditorium & Big 12 Room

Lightning Talks - Woodruff Auditorium (8:30 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.)

A series of short presentations from industry leaders, community organizations, faculty, and researchers from across KU and KUMC. Attendees are welcome to attend individual presentations or stay for the full series. No session registration is required for Thursday, September 24. Attendees are welcome to attend Lightning Talks throughout the day.

The full Lightning Talk schedule is on the next tab. 

Vendor & Community Showcases (8:30 - 11:30 a.m.)

Connect with industry leaders, startups, and community organizations as they showcase AI tools, share their work, and discuss opportunities for collaboration, emerging trends, challenges, and possibilities of AI.

Lunch - On your own (11:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.)

Vendor & Community Showcases (12:00 - 3:00 p.m.)

Discover showcases across KU campus featuring AI research, projects, and innovations from faculty, research centers, and programs across KU and KUMC, including the Center for Innovation, Design & Digital Learning (CIDDL), the Center for Flexible Learning through Innovations in Technology & Education (FLITE), the Institute for Information Sciences (I2S), the Center for Teaching Excellence (CTE), and the Institute for Policy & Social Research (IPSR). 

One KU AI Showcase - Lightning Talks
Sept. 24 | 8:30 AM to 3:00 PM
Kansas Union - Woodruff Auditorium

Lightning Talk 1: Amazon Web Services (AWS) | 8:30 - 9:00 a.m.

Presenter: TBD
TBD

Lightning Talk 2: Google | 9:00 - 9:30 a.m.

Presenter: TBD
TBD

Lightning Talk 3: KC AI Club - Scott Holsman | 9:30 - 10:00 a.m.

Presenter: Scott Holsman, AI Works HQ
TBD

Lightning Talk 4: KC AI Club - Jeff Danley | 10:00 - 10:30 a.m.

Presenter: Jeff Danley, AI Strategy lead, Burns & McDonnell 
TBD

Lightning Talk 5: KC AI Club - Doug Hohulin | 10:30- 11:00 a.m.

Presenter: Doug Hohulin, Exceptional Blueprint Consulting & KC AI Club Board
TBD

Lightning Talk 6: TBD | 11:00 - 11:30 a.m.

Presenter: TBD
TBD

Lightning Talk 7: TBD | 12:00 - 12:30 p.m.

Presenter: TBD
TBD

Lightning Talk 8: Designing AI That People Actually Need | 12:30 - 1:00 p.m.

Presenter: Amber Rowland, Associate research professor at KU's Center for Research on Learning and co-director of its Advanced Learning Technologies (ALTEC) division
Description: Too many AI tools are built around what technology can do rather than what people need. This lightning talk explores how our research team partners with educators, students, families, and other users to co-design AI innovations that are relevant, effective, and ready for real-world use.

Lightning Talk 9: Sean Smith | 1:00 - 1:30 p.m.

Presenter: Sean Smith
TBD

Lightning Talk 10: Rick Ginsberg | 1:30 - 2:00 p.m.

Presenter: Rick Ginsberg
TBD

Lightning Talk 11: Center for Innovation, Design, and Digital Learning (CIDDL) | 2:00 - 2:30 p.m.

Presenter: TBD
TBD

Lightning Talk 12: Using AI to Code Job Ads at Scale | 2:30 - 3:00 p.m.

Presenter: Whitney Onasch, Institute for Policy & Social Research (IPSR)
Description: Use large language models to classify nearly 200,000 science and engineering job ads for signals that employers require or value postdoctoral research experience. We use LLM coding to transform unstructured text into analyzable data, with attention to prompt design, validation against human coders, and the substantive question of whether postdocs are a valuable credential in the private job market or a costly detour for junior scientists.