Plenary Speakers
Ryan Watkins
Professor
George Washington University
Ryan Watkins, PhD, is a Professor at the George Washington University in Washington, DC. He is the program director of the Educational Technology Leadership (MA) program, faculty lead of the interdisciplinary Human-Technology Collaboration (PhD) concentration (research lab), and Director of Education for the GWU Trustworthy AI initiative.
Dr. Watkins co-leads the GW Coders, where he routinely shares innovative uses of Python, PHP, and Javascript. He developed and maintains the social-sharing platform We Share Science, a place for scientists to share video abstracts about their research, and SciencePods, an automated tool for researchers to create podcasts. He co-developed Code2Learn as a clearinghouse for interdisciplinary coding tutorials, and recently developed the open source Python package PreprintScout.
As co-host of Parsing Science (2017-2021), a podcast where leading scientist from around the work share the stories behind their research, Dr. Watkins (along with Doug Leigh from Pepperdine University) explored science through many disciplinary lenses.
Some of his most recent publication include Teaching and Learning with Jupyter (free gitbook), The Art of Knowledge Exchange (World Bank, 2014), available for free online, and A Guide to Assessing Needs: Essential Tools for Collecting Information, Making Decisions, and Achieving Development Results (World Bank, 2012), also available in print and free online. In 2013, A Guide to Assessing Needs was the most read online book available through the World Bank, with more than 57,000 reads.
He is also an author of the world’s top-selling text on e-learning (with more than 150,000 copies in press and in its 4th edition), the E-learning Companion: A Learner’s Guide to Online Success (Houghton Mifflin, 2005, 2007; Cengage 2010, 2013), along with other books including the Handbook for Improving Performance in the Workplace – Volume 2 (Pfieffer/Wiley, 2010), Performance By Design: The systematic selection, design, and development of performance technologies (HRD Press, 2006), and 75 E-learning Activities: Making online courses interactive (Pfieffer, 2005).
Pre-COVID, Dr. Watkins was an active member and past Board Member of the International Society for Performance Improvement (ISPI), a member and TIG lead in the American Evaluation Association (AEA), and was a vice president of the Inter-American Distance Education Consortium (CREAD). In 2005, Dr. Watkins was a visiting scientist with the National Science Foundation (IPA), and he routinely consults on projects with the World Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank on applying needs assessment, evaluation, instructional design, and performance improvement to international assistance programs (including work in Kenya, Tunisia, China, Mexico, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Laos PRD). Dr. Watkins has also facilitated monitoring and evaluation workshops for the International Program for Development Evaluation Training (in Switzerland and China).
Moshe Safdie
Founding Partner
Safdie Architects
Moshe Safdie is an architect, urban planner, educator, theorist, and author. Over a 50-year career, Safdie has explored the essential principles of socially responsible design through a comprehensive and humane design philosophy. His wide range of completed projects include cultural, educational, and civic institutions; neighborhoods and public parks; housing; mixed-use urban centers and airports; and master plans for existing communities and entirely new cities. A citizen of Israel, Canada, and the United States, Safdie’s projects can be found in North and South America, the Middle East and throughout Asia.
Safdie has been the recipient of numerous awards, honorary degrees, and civil honors including the Companion of the Order of Canada, the Gold Medal from both the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada and the American Institute of Architects, the National Design Award for Lifetime Achievement by the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian, and recently the Wolf Prize in Architecture—awarded for a career motivated by the social concerns of architecture and formal experimentation.
Plenary Panelists
Team Science and Translating Research Findings for Application in the Real World:
Understanding and Addressing the Challenges
Stephen M. Fiore
Pegasus Professor, Cognitive Sciences
University of Central Florida
Stephen M. Fiore, PhD, Pegasus Professor, University of Central Florida. He maintains a multidisciplinary research interest on learning and performance in individuals and teams.
M. Khair ElZarrad
Director, Office of Medical Policy, Center for Drug Evaluation and Research
US Food and Drug Administration
Khair ElZarrad, PhD, MPH, is the Director of the Office of Medical Policy (OMP) in FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER). As Director of OMP, Dr. ElZarrad leads the development, coordination, and implementation of medical policy programs and strategic initiatives.
Amanda Vogel
Senior Advisor
National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS/NIH)
Amanda Vogel, PhD, is the Director of the Education Branch within the Office of Policy, Communications and Education, at the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS/NIH). Vogel provides leadership and coordination for Center-wide efforts to advance translational science education and training.
Gregory A. Ruark
Program Manager, Dynamical Influences on Social Systems
DEVCOM ARL Army Research Office
Gregory Ruark, PhD, is a social scientist within Humans in Complex Systems competency, U.S. Army DEVCOM ARL Army Research Office. Dr. Ruark’s use-inspired program Dynamical Influences on Social Systems advances fundamental science through a multidisciplinary lens to support future Army capabilities.
NAS Team Science 10-Year Report
Debbie DiazGranados
Associate Professor, Psychiatry
Virginia Commonwealth University
Dr. Deborah DiazGranados is an Industrial/Organizational Psychologist, an Associate Professor in Virginia Commonwealth University’s School of Medicine. As an Organizational Scientist she focuses on understanding the complexity of a variety of work contexts. Deborah's research focuses on understanding teams, leadership, and collaboration between diverse individuals. Deborah’s research has been published in peer-reviewed journals such as Journal of Applied Psychology, Human Factors, Academic Medicine, Journal of Interprofessional Collaboration, Small Group Research, Human Resource Management, Journal of Management, Current Directions in Psychological Science and The Joint Commission Journal on Quality and Patient Safety. Dr. DiazGranados received her B.S. degrees in Management and Psychology from the University of Houston and her M.S. and Ph.D degrees in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from the University of Central Florida in Orlando, Florida.
Additional Speakers to be Announced Soon!