Dr. Lee Branstetter
Professor, Heinz College
5000 Forbes Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15213
Bio
Lee Branstetter is the James M. Walton Professor of Economics and Public Policy at Carnegie Mellon University's Heinz College, where he has been a faculty member since 2006. He is also a faculty leader of the Future of Work Initiative at the Block Center for Technology and Society and a research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research. His research focuses on the economics of innovation and the social impact of new technologies, with interdisciplinary collaborations across computer science, learning science, and information systems.
Dr. Bruce M. McLaren
Professor & Head of the McLearn Lab
5000 Forbes Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15213
Bio
Bruce M. McLaren is a professor at Carnegie Mellon University and the head of the McLearn Lab, with a strong focus on how technology supports education. His research interests span digital learning games, intelligent tutoring systems, and collaborative learning, including projects like AdaptErrEx and Stoich that explore the use of erroneous examples in education. Prof. McLaren has over 200 publications and has also contributed to AI-based educational technologies, such as tools for moderating collaborative e-discussions and online arguments.
Dr. Aarti Singh
Professor & Director of the NSF AI-SDM
5000 Forbes Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15213
Bio
Aarti Singh is a Professor of Machine Learning at Carnegie Mellon University and the Director of the NSF AI Institute for Societal Decision Making. She received her B.E. in electronics and communication engineering from the University of Delhi, and both her M.S. and Ph.D. in electrical engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Prior to joining Carnegie Mellon, she was a postdoctoral research associate at Princeton University's Program in Applied and Computational Mathematics.
Dr. Ramayya Krishnan
Professor & Dean, Heinz College
5000 Forbes Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15213
Bio
Ramayya Krishnan is the W.W. Cooper and Ruth F. Cooper Professor of Management Science and Information Systems at Carnegie Mellon University, and the Dean of the Heinz College of Information Systems and Public Policy. He has been a faculty member at CMU since 1988 and is an expert in digital transformation, e-commerce, information risk management, and the responsible use of AI. Krishnan has founded several research centers, raised nearly $100 million in funding, and has advised policy makers and organizations such as the Asian Development Bank on technology and policy.
Dr. Peter Brusilovsky
Professor & Director of the PAWS Lab
5000 Forbes Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15213
Bio
Peter Brusilovsky is a Professor of Information Science and Intelligent Systems at Carnegie Mellon University, and the Director of the Personalized Adaptive Web Systems (PAWS) Lab. With over 30 years of experience, his research focuses on personalized learning, user modeling, recommender systems, and adaptive learning technologies. He has received numerous accolades, including the Alexander von Humboldt Fellowship and the NSF CAREER Award, and has contributed extensively to the field through his work as editor and board member for several prestigious journals.
Dr. Ross Higashi
Head of Educational Outreach, Carnegie Mellon Robotics Academy
5000 Forbes Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15213
Bio
Ross Higashi is the Head of Educational Outreach at the Robotics Academy, affiliated with Carnegie Mellon University's NREC. His research focuses on robotics education, computational thinking, and the role of digital badges in student engagement, with numerous publications on the impact of robotics competitions and collaborative behaviors on learning outcomes. Higashi has contributed extensively to studies on how structural programming features, gender, interest, and prior experience influence students' engagement and performance in STEM education.
Dr. Jesse Flot
Co-Director, Carnegie Mellon Robotics Academy
5000 Forbes Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15213
Bio
Jesse Flot is the Co-Director of the Carnegie Mellon Robotics Academy, with over 10 years of experience in robotics education and project management. His research interests include computational thinking practices in robotics classrooms and the role of physicality in programming environments. Flot has contributed to various publications on student engagement and persistence in online courses and the impact of robotics on learning to program.