KINGSTON, R.I. – Dec. 8, 2025 – Artificial intelligence (AI) is here to stay and students, faculty, and staff at the University of Rhode Island have been using the evolving technology for research, teaching, and innovation purposes.
The effective and creative ways AI has been applied across the University will be discussed and displayed at “Discovering AI @ URI Day,” on Dec. 10 from 4-7:30 p.m., in rooms 040 and 045 of URI’s Fascitelli Center for Advanced Engineering, 45 Upper College Road, on the Kingston Campus.
The free event will feature guest speakers, panel discussions, and poster presentations. Refreshments will be provided. The URI community is welcome to share their AI success stories. Those interested in attending the event are encouraged to RSVP.
“As Rhode Island’s flagship R1 research university, URI has the responsibility to lead in the development and thoughtful application of AI across higher education,” said URI Assistant Vice President for Research Computing Gaurav Khanna. “By leveraging advances in AI, URI will expand discovery, prepare students for an AI-shaped workforce, and drive innovations that benefit Rhode Island and beyond.”
Khanna is also the director of URI’s Institute for AI and Computational Research. The institute supports and promotes high-level interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary computational research, including AI-related research.
Guest speakers at Discovering AI @ URI Day will include:
- Victoria Gu, chair of the Rhode Island Senate Committee on Artificial Intelligence and Emerging Technology and representative of District 38 in the Rhode Island Senate
- URI Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs Barbara Wolfe
- URI Chief Information Officer and Associate Vice President for Information Technology Gabriele Fariello
- Yan (Lindsay) Sun, certified AI strategist and co-director of URI’s Center for Cyber-Physical Intelligence and Security (CYPHER), which she founded
“Artificial intelligence touches nearly every aspect of higher education,” said Sun. “What makes the Discovering AI @ URI event special is that it reflects this full ecosystem. We’ll hear not only from faculty and students, who always showcase remarkable innovation, but also from staff whose work keeps the University running behind the scenes.”
A faculty panel discussion, moderated by Karen Lokey, associate director of URI’s ITS Innovation Services, will include:
- Travess Smalley, assistant professor in the Department of Art and Art History
- Ying Zhang, professor in the Department of Cell and Molecular Biology
- Megan Chiovaro, part-time teaching professor in the Department of Electrical, Computer, and Biomedical Engineering
- Peter Cornillon, emeritus professor in the Graduate School of Oceanography
- Abdeltawab Hendawi, associate professor in the Department of Computer Science and Statistics
Sun will moderate the staff panel discussion, which will feature:
- Ryan Gardiner, chief business officer for the College of Engineering
- Chelsie Sullivan, CYPHER Research Center coordinator
- Lisa Chen, teaching and learning support for Information Technology Services
- Brian Blanchette, director of Systems and Technology for the URI Foundation
Jim McGwin, adjunct professor in the College of Business, will facilitate a panel discussion of undergraduate and graduate students representing a diverse range of majors and interests.
There is plenty of support and technology available at URI for students to gain hands-on experience with AI. The Library Innovation Labs, led by Keith Ranaldi, director of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, is considered a collaborative hub, connecting people ideas, and resources across disciplines. Ranaldi and his staff were largely responsible for coordinating the Discovering AI @ URI event.
“We helped coordinate efforts among departments and colleges, ensuring that the hard work being done in AI research and application was visible to the entire campus community,” said Ranaldi.
The application of AI by faculty, students, and staff at URI will be on full display at the Discovering AI @ URI event.
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