Download a PDF of the schedule.
July 9, 2024 | Downes Ballroom
3:30–5 pm | Registration / Coffee & Refreshments / Networking / BioArtography Displays
5–5:10 pm | Welcome & introduction of keynote speaker by Santiago Schnell, the William K. Warren Foundation Dean of the College of Science at the University of Notre Dame
5:10–6:30 pm | Opening Keynote: Establishing Trustworthiness in a World of Distrust
Amy Aines
Founder and Author at Championing Science—Building Vital Communication Skills to Launch Successful Careers
Amy Aines builds career success skills. She is a communication strategist and educator on a mission to help scholars speak and listen so they can make science more accessible. Co-author of Championing Science: Communicating Your Ideas to Decision Makers, Amy honed her expertise directing corporate, employee, and public policy communication for a $10B telecommunications company and its wireless spin-off. This was the beginning of a career in which she has helped scientists and engineers explain complex concepts, collaborate productively, and introduce innovations for a safer and healthier world. As CEO of her boutique communication consulting firm, Amy has worked with more than 50 technology, healthcare, and biotech companies and trained cohorts at leading universities and national laboratories. Amy provides insights into effective communication, relationship-building, and influence approaches.
6:30–8:30 pm | Reception to follow, Seven on 9 Club
July 10, 2024 | Downes Ballroom
8:00-8:25 am | Registration / Coffee & Refreshments / Networking
8:30 am | Welcome & Introduction of Keynote Speaker by Joanne D. Fahey, M.S., Director of Communications, Notre Dame Research
8:40–9:40 am | Keynote: Why the Future of Science is Civic
Dietram Scheufele, Ph.D.
Taylor-Bascom Chair in the Science of Science Communication & Vilas Distinguished Achievement Professor at the University of Wisconsin—Madison
Dietram A. Scheufele is the Taylor-Bascom Chair and Vilas Distinguished Achievement Professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He is also an Investigator in the Morgridge Institute for Research, and a Distinguished Research Fellow at the University of Pennsylvania’s Annenberg Public Policy Center. His work examines the social effects of emerging science and technology.
Scheufele is an elected member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the German National Academy of Science and Engineering, and the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts & Letters, and an elected fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Academy of Political and Social Science, and the International Communication Association. He currently co-chairs the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s Standing Committee on Advancing Science Communication.
9:50–10:40 am | AI Oh My! What can AI do really well? Where does AI struggle? How can I create an ethically responsible process that keeps me out of trouble?
Dan Farkas, MBA, Strategic Communication Lecturer, The Ohio State University
11 am –12 pm | Science Communication in the Digital Age: Engaging with Media, Social Media, and Leveraging AI with Matthew Facciani, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Research Associate, Computer Science & Engineering,
University of Notre Dame
12–1:15 pm | Buffet lunch and networking
1:15–2:15 pm | Panel | From Data and AI to Society: Translational Engagement, Communication, and Impact
Moderator: Nitesh Chawla, Ph.D., Founding Director of the Lucy Family Institute for Data & Society and the Freimann Chair in Computer Science and Engineering, University of Notre Dame
Tanya Berger-Wolf, Ph.D., Director of the Translational Data Analytics Institute and a Professor of Computer Science Engineering, Electrical and Computer Engineering, as well as Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology at The Ohio State University
Nancy Michael, Ph.D., Rev. John A. Zahm, C.S.C. Teaching Professor & Director of Undergraduate Studies for Neuroscience & Behavior, University of Notre Dame
Patrick Gamez, Assistant Teaching Professor & Director, Arts & Letters Dual Degree Program, John J. Reilly Center for Science, Technology, and Values at the University of Notre Dame
Perla Khattar, J.S.D. Candidate at Notre Dame Law School, Tech Ethics Fellow at ND-IBM Lab, Doctorate Fellow at The Kellogg Institute, University of Notre Dame
Roger Woodard, Ph.D., Teaching Professor and Director of the Data Science Masters Program, University of Notre Dame
2:30–3:30 pm | Panel | Communications Leadership in the Era of Generative AI
Moderator: Brett Beasley, Ph.D., Writer and Editorial Program Manager, Notre Dame Research Communications
Deanna Ferrell, M.A., Term Assistant Teaching Professor & Marketing Communications Sr. Assistant Director, College of Science, University of Notre Dame
Josh Weinhold, Director of Communications & Marketing, College of Arts & Letters, University of Notre Dame
Beth Grisoli, M.A., Assistant Vice President of Strategic Communications, University of Notre Dame
Andy Fuller, Executive Director of Brand Content, University of Notre Dame
3:30–3:45 pm | Walk to Jordan Hall of Science
3:45–4:30 pm | Science Communications with the Public: Your Audience is the Hero with Keith W. Davis, Ph.D.
Director of the Digital Visualization Theater & Associate Professor of the Practice in Physics & Astrophysics
4:30–6:30 pm | Networking Reception in the Galleria & Museum Tours
Joanna G. Larson, Ph.D.
Museum of Biodiversity Assistant Curator & Assistant Professor of the Practice in Biological Sciences
Dinner on your own (See list of nearby restaurants.)
July 11, 2024 | Downes Ballroom
8–8:25 am | Registration / Coffee & refreshments / networking / possible campus tours
8:25–8:30 am | Welcome & Introduction by Tammi Freehling, M.S., Director of Communications & External Engagement, College of Science, University of Notre Dame
8:30–10 am | Should Universities Use AI to Evaluate Admissions Applications? An Interactive Policy Simulation
Marlit Hayslett, Ph.D.
Founder & CEO at Hayslett Consulting, science communications and science policy consultancy
10:10–11:10 am | Harnessing Metaverse Tech to Enhance Communication
Diego Gómez-Zará, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Computer Science & Engineering, University of Notre Dame
11:20–11:25 am | Thank You & Closing Keynote Introduction with Kate Garry, M.A.
Executive Director of Academic Communication, Office of the Provost, University of Notre Dame
11:25 am–12:25 pm | Closing Keynote, Civic Science Journalism: Opportunities and Challenges in Bridging Scholarship and Practice in Science Communication
Fanuel Muindi, Ph.D.
Founder and Chief Resident of the Sai Resident Collective, Professor of the Practice in Civic Science at Northeastern University, and a Senior Fellow for Civic Science at Research!America
Fanuel Muindi is a Professor of Practice in Civic Science at the College of Art, Media, and Design at Northeastern University and is the Founder/Director of the Civic Science Media Lab, which is working to bridge scholarship and practice across the civic science landscape through civic science journalism. He is also currently a Senior Fellow for Civic Science at Research!America where he has been conducting civic science journalism (see recently published report) to visualize the landscape of public engagement training initiatives for scientists in the US. A neuroscientist by training, Fanuel earned his PhD in Organismal Biology from Stanford University in 2013 and completed his postdoctoral training in neuroscience at MIT in 2015. He previously served as Assistant Director of Graduate Studies in the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology at Harvard University, and as a Senior Consultant for the Vivien Thomas Scholars Initiative at Johns Hopkins University.