March 28th- AI in K-12 Education: Empowering Minds, Not Machines

On March 28th, Courtney Marshall Fairfax County Public Schools will speak on AI in K-12 education, The Human Edge: Empowering Minds, Not Machines. As AI reshapes our world, we face a critical choice: Will we become passive consumers of technology, conforming to systems built for efficiency, or active partners who redefine what’s possible? AI is rewriting the rules. Will we simply follow them, or rewrite the future ourselves? AI doesn’t think—it predicts. It doesn’t ask What if?—it finds What’s most likely? Every decision it makes collapses possibilities into a single, determined outcome. Breakthroughs don’t come from probability. They come from humans who challenge the expected, defy patterns, and create the impossible. She will describe how her work has transformed how students labeled "disruptive" learn, influenced the development of a technology ready workforce, and developed education methods that harness AI to enhance human capability rather than replace it.

Courtney Marshall is a strategist, educator, and AI-human collaboration expert who transforms complex systems into actionable, human-centered innovation. She specializes in breaking deterministic AI patterns, ensuring that technology amplifies human intelligence rather than limiting it. She holds an Ed.S. in Educational Technology specializing in AI from the University of Florida, an M.Ed. in Special Education from the University of Virginia, and a B.S. in Economics from George Mason University. Her work spans business, education, workforce transformation, and AI policy, making her one of the most versatile thought leaders in the field. Marshall served on the Fairfax County Public Schools AI Advisory Board, was recently personally invited to help develop Virginia’s first K-12 AI curriculum and has consulted for organizations including the Wireless Infrastructure Association (WIA) and Ohio’s inaugural Broadband for Teachers program, where she helped shape technology strategies that bridge the gap between education, business, and the future of work. Her SPARK Framework is a blueprint for breaking through the AI Deterministic Barrier, where algorithms optimize but do not explore. She challenges organizations, educators, and leaders to move beyond passive AI consumption and into true collaboration, ensuring that AI remains a catalyst for human ingenuity, not a replacement for it.

On March 14- Perspectives on the Electrical Grid from a Second Year PhD Student

On March 14th, Dahlia Saba will speak with us on Perspectives on the Electric Grid from a Second Year PhD Student. For over 100 years, we have been operating electric grids. However, as it has become apparent that our reliance on fossil fuel based energy is unsustainable and renewable energy has become an increasingly viable alternative, many of the fundamental assumptions we have used to operate the grid so far are changing. In this talk, I will discuss my path towards becoming a PhD student studying the electric grid. I will also present an overview of some of the biggest challenges to a clean energy transition from an electric grid perspective.

Dahlia Saba is a second year PhD student in Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her research focuses on the dynamic stability of electric grids with renewable energy, energy storage, and high voltage DC transmission. She is also pursuing a certificate in Energy Analysis and Policy. She received her B.S. in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from UC Berkeley in 2023. She is also the granddaughter of Don and Lita Nelsen.