WEBVTT - Education in the Age of AI 0:00:04.200 --> 0:00:07.880 Hello, Hello, Welcome to Smart Talks with IBM, a podcast 0:00:07.880 --> 0:00:13.880 from Pushkin Industries, iHeartRadio and IBM. I'm Malcolm Glabwell. This season, 0:00:13.920 --> 0:00:16.959 we're diving back into the world of artificial intelligence, but 0:00:17.040 --> 0:00:23.200 with a focus on the powerful concept of open its possibilities, implications, 0:00:23.239 --> 0:00:26.560 and misconceptions. We'll look at openness from a variety of 0:00:26.600 --> 0:00:30.600 angles and explore how the concept is already reshaping industries, 0:00:31.040 --> 0:00:34.880 ways of doing business, and our very notion of what's possible. 0:00:35.680 --> 0:00:38.879 On today's episode, doctor Lori Santos sat down with two 0:00:38.920 --> 0:00:43.440 women at the forefront of AI in education. Justina Nixon 0:00:43.479 --> 0:00:48.519 Santil is Vice president and Chief Impact Officer of IBM 0:00:48.720 --> 0:00:53.280 Corporate Social Responsibility, and April Dawson is an Associate Dean 0:00:53.320 --> 0:00:57.040 of Technology and Innovation and Professor of Law at North 0:00:57.080 --> 0:01:01.960 Carolina Central University School of Law. Together, they explore the 0:01:02.040 --> 0:01:06.880 transformative impact of AI on education and the workforce. As 0:01:06.920 --> 0:01:11.840 technology rapidly evolves, industries are being reshaped and the demand 0:01:11.840 --> 0:01:15.240 for new skills is at an all time high. This 0:01:15.400 --> 0:01:19.959 is opening up opportunities for diverse talent, enabling individuals from 0:01:20.000 --> 0:01:23.000 various backgrounds to excel in roles they might not have 0:01:23.120 --> 0:01:28.040 previously considered. They also address the ethical considerations of AI, 0:01:28.560 --> 0:01:34.080 emphasizing the importance of maintaining a human centered approach. Whether 0:01:34.120 --> 0:01:36.720 you're a teacher or student, or someone interested in the 0:01:36.760 --> 0:01:39.880 future of work, it's essential to embrace the role of 0:01:39.920 --> 0:01:44.160 AI in the education landscape. AI is not only changing 0:01:44.200 --> 0:01:47.199 the way we work, but also how we learn, making 0:01:47.400 --> 0:01:52.680 education more accessible, personalized, and aligned with the demands of 0:01:52.720 --> 0:01:53.920 the modern job market. 0:01:59.080 --> 0:02:01.240 Just in anypels great to me both of you. I'm 0:02:01.280 --> 0:02:02.640 so excited for this conversation. 0:02:03.440 --> 0:02:06.080 Thank you for having me and thank you for having 0:02:06.120 --> 0:02:07.720 me Justina. 0:02:07.840 --> 0:02:10.280 To start, could you share some insights on your journey 0:02:10.320 --> 0:02:13.760 to becoming IBM's Chief Impact Officer and how your background 0:02:13.760 --> 0:02:16.880 in engineering shapes your approach to corporate social responsibility. 0:02:17.360 --> 0:02:20.000 So I've had an interest in journey. I'm an immigrant. 0:02:20.120 --> 0:02:23.200 I was one of the only black women who graduated 0:02:23.240 --> 0:02:27.200 from my school's mechanical engineering program many many years ago. 0:02:27.800 --> 0:02:30.880 I started my engineering career at a nuclear facility that's 0:02:30.919 --> 0:02:34.200 around forty five miles outside of Buffalo, New York, and 0:02:34.280 --> 0:02:37.400 eventually worked for one of the largest telecommunications companies in 0:02:37.440 --> 0:02:41.919 the world in engineering, marketing, and eventually in corporate social responsibility. 0:02:42.520 --> 0:02:45.720 I was hired to lead the organization away from traditional 0:02:45.760 --> 0:02:50.560 philanthropy to creating platforms and solutions that leveraged four G 0:02:50.680 --> 0:02:55.760 and five G technologies to positively impact disadvantaged communities, and 0:02:55.840 --> 0:02:58.120 that is what has led me to the work that 0:02:58.160 --> 0:03:00.960 I do at IBM today. I have the honor of 0:03:01.000 --> 0:03:04.079 being the company's first Chief Impact Officer, and is such 0:03:04.080 --> 0:03:08.000 a privilege and a responsibility to be at IBM, which 0:03:08.000 --> 0:03:13.200 has such a huge history in sustainability, in social and 0:03:13.240 --> 0:03:16.639 in the ethical space as well. When I consider how 0:03:16.680 --> 0:03:20.160 my background in engineering ties into the work that I do, 0:03:20.840 --> 0:03:26.560 I actually think engineers are very skilled at analyzing data 0:03:26.600 --> 0:03:30.679 and at innovative problem solving. The other thing where there's 0:03:30.720 --> 0:03:34.200 a lot of alignment with my engineering background is really 0:03:34.240 --> 0:03:37.840 around how do I think about using technology to solve 0:03:37.880 --> 0:03:40.800 some of the biggest issues that we have in society? 0:03:41.200 --> 0:03:44.880 And I get very excited about innovating and creating and 0:03:44.960 --> 0:03:49.400 leveraging technologies like AI and hybrid cloud to really bring 0:03:49.480 --> 0:03:51.760 those into the work that we do and to solve 0:03:51.800 --> 0:03:54.760 some of those big challenges that we have in society 0:03:54.760 --> 0:03:57.120 today around sustainability and education. 0:03:57.600 --> 0:03:59.960 That's fabulous. April, tell me about your path to be 0:04:00.000 --> 0:04:02.720 becoming Associate dean of Technology and Innovation as well as 0:04:02.760 --> 0:04:03.640 a professor in law. 0:04:04.640 --> 0:04:09.320 So I am a child of an educator, actually educators. 0:04:09.320 --> 0:04:12.360 Both my parents are educators. I went to high school 0:04:12.400 --> 0:04:15.200 where my mom taught, and it was in the eighties 0:04:15.240 --> 0:04:18.560 and it was during that time period when teachers were 0:04:18.600 --> 0:04:21.719 given Apple computers, so they were brand new. My mom 0:04:21.760 --> 0:04:24.719 brought one home. I started playing with it. Then I 0:04:24.800 --> 0:04:27.520 just kind of fell in love with the technology. I 0:04:27.600 --> 0:04:30.719 received my undergraduate degree in computer science because of that 0:04:30.800 --> 0:04:34.800 early exposure. I went to Bennett College here in Greensboro, 0:04:34.880 --> 0:04:39.960 North Carolina. It's an HBCU, a historically black college and university. 0:04:40.600 --> 0:04:44.599 I was a programmer after graduating from Bennett, and I've 0:04:44.600 --> 0:04:48.360 always loved technology, but I also had a love for 0:04:48.440 --> 0:04:51.440 the law. So after being a programmer for a couple 0:04:51.440 --> 0:04:54.000 of years, I decided to go to law school. And 0:04:54.080 --> 0:04:58.240 even as a lawyer, I leveraged technology in my private practice. 0:04:58.800 --> 0:05:02.160 When I decided to begin teaching almost twenty years ago, 0:05:02.920 --> 0:05:05.840 I would ask myself, how could I leverage a technology 0:05:06.000 --> 0:05:09.800 to enhance my teaching to help the students better understand 0:05:09.839 --> 0:05:14.680 the material. And so when our dean at the time 0:05:14.800 --> 0:05:18.240 Brownie Lewis, when she was able to facilitate a five 0:05:18.240 --> 0:05:21.920 million dollar grant to North Carolina Central University School of Law, 0:05:22.720 --> 0:05:26.839 we created the Technology Law and Policy Center, and she 0:05:27.040 --> 0:05:29.599 asked me if I would be interested in serving as 0:05:29.680 --> 0:05:34.360 the inaugural Associate Dean of Technology and Innovation. So suffice 0:05:34.360 --> 0:05:36.559 it to say, I'm in my dream job. I'm able 0:05:36.640 --> 0:05:40.000 to combine my love of technology, my love of law, 0:05:40.120 --> 0:05:43.840 my love of education, and so it's really an exciting 0:05:43.880 --> 0:05:46.320 time to be in a position like I have. 0:05:47.360 --> 0:05:49.719 I love that, April. What inspired you to integrate AI 0:05:49.760 --> 0:05:52.200 and technology into your law curriculum? 0:05:52.800 --> 0:05:56.920 It's interesting, As I mentioned before, I've always used it 0:05:57.279 --> 0:06:02.000 personally as an educator, but the thought of teaching a 0:06:02.200 --> 0:06:05.760 class that really kind of focused on technology and the 0:06:05.839 --> 0:06:10.960 legal implications of that really occurred because Ray Thomas, who 0:06:11.040 --> 0:06:13.800 was an IP lawyer and worked at IBM at the 0:06:13.839 --> 0:06:17.360 time in twenty twenty so around the pandemic, he encouraged 0:06:17.440 --> 0:06:21.280 us to take advantage of the IBM Skills Build Training program, 0:06:21.360 --> 0:06:25.080 the Train the Trainer program. So really, not until that 0:06:25.279 --> 0:06:28.880 time period did I even really even think about teaching 0:06:29.120 --> 0:06:33.120 a tech focused legal class. And during that time period, 0:06:33.160 --> 0:06:35.400 a couple of my other colleagues and I we did 0:06:35.440 --> 0:06:39.039 the train the Trainer blockchain course. I did the data 0:06:39.120 --> 0:06:43.000 science course, and then that next summer we team taught 0:06:43.040 --> 0:06:46.760 the Blockchain for Lawyer's class, which we designed, and then 0:06:46.800 --> 0:06:50.760 I taught a Data Science for Lawyers class, and so 0:06:51.080 --> 0:06:53.719 that was, you know, really kind of the first iteration 0:06:53.880 --> 0:06:57.960 of us really being intentional about teaching technology and law. 0:06:58.680 --> 0:07:02.080 And then one of my other colleagues, doctor Savon Da Grady, 0:07:02.279 --> 0:07:04.919 she is a professor at the School of Library and 0:07:04.920 --> 0:07:09.159 Information Sciences here at NCCU. She reached out to me 0:07:09.240 --> 0:07:12.040 and said, would you be interesting in teaching a joint 0:07:12.080 --> 0:07:15.720 AI and the law class that would include her Masters 0:07:15.760 --> 0:07:18.920 of Information Science students and my law students. So it's 0:07:18.960 --> 0:07:23.440 a wonderful interdisciplinary class where you have master's students and 0:07:23.560 --> 0:07:26.920 law students and we talk about the foundations of AI, 0:07:27.080 --> 0:07:31.040 we talk about the legal implications of policy implications, and 0:07:31.120 --> 0:07:34.080 so really, you know, this kind of all started because 0:07:34.120 --> 0:07:38.560 of the resources that IBM have made available to NCCU. 0:07:39.920 --> 0:07:42.120 That's so cool, and that class sounds amazing. I wish 0:07:42.160 --> 0:07:44.200 I could like drop out of being a professor. I 0:07:44.320 --> 0:07:47.320 dond this class. This sounds awesome soon as the question 0:07:47.400 --> 0:07:49.080 for both of you, in this age of AI and 0:07:49.120 --> 0:07:52.440 open technology, does the role of education change? Are we 0:07:52.520 --> 0:07:54.640 kind of at a different spot with what education should 0:07:54.680 --> 0:07:55.320 be doing now. 0:07:56.160 --> 0:07:59.600 When I look at the rule of education today from 0:07:59.680 --> 0:08:02.880 the corporate point of view, I think it does change. 0:08:02.960 --> 0:08:06.880 I was having a discussion earlier today with some members 0:08:06.880 --> 0:08:11.840 of my team, and we were discussing early professional hires, 0:08:11.840 --> 0:08:15.240 so people would want to hire right out of college, 0:08:15.760 --> 0:08:18.280 and one of the first things that I shared was 0:08:18.360 --> 0:08:21.800 some of the tasks that they would have done previously 0:08:22.160 --> 0:08:25.720 will be automated. We will be using AI for those 0:08:26.240 --> 0:08:29.120 basic tasks that in the past we would have hired 0:08:29.120 --> 0:08:34.000 an intern or a recent college graduate to do. And 0:08:34.040 --> 0:08:38.440 it's so critical now that we look at higher level 0:08:38.679 --> 0:08:41.760 types of tasks that we will need college graduates to do. 0:08:42.200 --> 0:08:46.160 And I can foresee in the future hiring someone from 0:08:46.280 --> 0:08:49.960 college who does not have at least a basic understanding 0:08:49.960 --> 0:08:52.880 of AI. There will be some roles where they will 0:08:52.880 --> 0:08:55.720 have to have an advanced understanding, especially if they're in 0:08:55.800 --> 0:09:00.240 an engineering role or computer science role, but across the 0:09:00.280 --> 0:09:03.600 board they will need to understand AI. So when I 0:09:03.640 --> 0:09:07.000 think about the way that education is changing, whether you're 0:09:07.040 --> 0:09:10.959 a college student, whether you are an adult professional, you 0:09:11.040 --> 0:09:14.000 will need to be a lifelong learner and you will 0:09:14.000 --> 0:09:18.720 need to understand how to continuously upskill and reskill yourself 0:09:19.160 --> 0:09:22.440 to be able to understand technologies like AI because of 0:09:22.480 --> 0:09:25.880 the rapid acceleration of these types of technologies, and I 0:09:25.880 --> 0:09:29.360 think that's very important. I think everyone has to be prepared, 0:09:29.559 --> 0:09:32.600 if they're not doing it today, to upskill and reskill themselves. 0:09:32.960 --> 0:09:36.440 And I can't foresee any roles in the future where 0:09:36.640 --> 0:09:41.119 candidates will not need to have a very basic understanding 0:09:41.120 --> 0:09:43.760 of AI or even advanced understanding of AI. 0:09:45.200 --> 0:09:47.280 That's great, April. Let me ask you a slightly different 0:09:47.360 --> 0:09:49.600 version of the question, what is the significance of AI 0:09:49.679 --> 0:09:51.720 for students and young professionals today? 0:09:52.480 --> 0:09:56.080 When we think about the disruption that JENAI especially has 0:09:56.200 --> 0:10:00.000 caused within the legal profession, students have to be more 0:10:00.080 --> 0:10:04.400 or adept when it comes to feeling comfortable, being uncomfortable, 0:10:04.480 --> 0:10:07.560 and learning something new. The other thing that I would 0:10:07.640 --> 0:10:11.560 just kind of emphasize from an educational standpoint is this 0:10:11.679 --> 0:10:16.360 also means that educators have to approach teaching differently. You know, 0:10:16.400 --> 0:10:21.280 I've been teaching for going on twenty years and things 0:10:21.320 --> 0:10:24.160 are kind of being turned on their heads somewhat, right, 0:10:24.720 --> 0:10:29.760 and I have had to upskill and reskill. We can't 0:10:29.800 --> 0:10:32.559 teach that what we don't know. We can't monitor that 0:10:32.600 --> 0:10:34.880 what we don't know. Just as the students have to 0:10:35.000 --> 0:10:38.880 understand generative AI, the educators have to understand it as well. 0:10:39.400 --> 0:10:41.800 Yeah, this is something I've felt in the classroom myself 0:10:41.840 --> 0:10:45.440 as a psychology professor, right, is that I'm realizing how 0:10:45.600 --> 0:10:47.679 much I need to kind of go back to school 0:10:47.720 --> 0:10:50.240 and learn about all these AI tools, not just so 0:10:50.280 --> 0:10:51.560 that I can teach it, but just so I can 0:10:51.640 --> 0:10:54.440 understand how my students are using these things, right, but 0:10:54.520 --> 0:10:57.160 also to figure out how I can enhance the educational 0:10:57.160 --> 0:10:59.800 experience of my own students in psychology right by giving 0:10:59.840 --> 0:11:02.520 them access to these tools. And so, yeah, I'm curious 0:11:02.520 --> 0:11:06.000 in your experience, how does AI actually enhance the educational 0:11:06.040 --> 0:11:08.240 experience for your law students. And I'm curious if you 0:11:08.240 --> 0:11:10.080 could give an example of the type of thing you 0:11:10.120 --> 0:11:11.119 do in your classroom. 0:11:11.840 --> 0:11:14.840 Yes, So one of the things that I tell my 0:11:14.920 --> 0:11:17.840 students is you got to get your hands dirty. You 0:11:17.920 --> 0:11:20.680 can't understand these tools if you don't kind of dig 0:11:20.720 --> 0:11:23.839 in and just see how they work, so one giving 0:11:23.880 --> 0:11:27.360 them permission and encouraging them to do it. In terms 0:11:27.440 --> 0:11:31.040 of how they might be able to use these tools 0:11:31.080 --> 0:11:34.600 to help them learn better, I encourage them to as 0:11:34.640 --> 0:11:39.240 they're wrestling maybe with concepts that are confusing, they haven't 0:11:39.240 --> 0:11:41.800 completely wrapped their heads around it. And when we think 0:11:41.800 --> 0:11:45.480 about large language models, these tools are really helpful in 0:11:45.480 --> 0:11:49.040 that sense. Right, if there's a passage in the book 0:11:49.040 --> 0:11:52.080 and you're not quite following it, or there's a case 0:11:52.320 --> 0:11:55.800 right and you need some assistance in breaking it down, 0:11:56.520 --> 0:11:59.120 running that information through a large language model and then 0:11:59.160 --> 0:12:02.960 asking questions about it can be really beneficial. Also in 0:12:03.040 --> 0:12:06.679 the law score the legal contexts, large language models are 0:12:06.720 --> 0:12:09.200 really helpful for that as well. But one thing I 0:12:09.240 --> 0:12:12.280 do caution my students is that any understanding that you 0:12:12.360 --> 0:12:15.320 think you have gained through the use of these tools, 0:12:15.679 --> 0:12:18.079 you need to circle back to your professor and make 0:12:18.080 --> 0:12:19.840 sure that your understanding is correct. 0:12:20.679 --> 0:12:22.760 I love that, and I've seen the importance of that 0:12:22.840 --> 0:12:25.280 in my own classroom too. You mentioned so many of 0:12:25.280 --> 0:12:27.160 the things that these tools are great at, but I 0:12:27.200 --> 0:12:29.400 think another thing that AI in the classroom can help 0:12:29.480 --> 0:12:33.600 us with is democratizing the classroom, and so Justina, I'm curious, 0:12:33.600 --> 0:12:36.440 in what ways do you think integrating AI into education 0:12:36.559 --> 0:12:38.520 is help us going to bridge these gaps and actually 0:12:38.520 --> 0:12:40.960 democratize access to education even more. 0:12:41.320 --> 0:12:44.120 Yeah, I think it's going to really make a difference 0:12:44.200 --> 0:12:48.080 in providing access to education in many different ways. I 0:12:48.120 --> 0:12:50.640 want to give you an example through alla IBM Skills 0:12:50.679 --> 0:12:55.880 Bill program, we're infusing AI technology into the platform to 0:12:55.920 --> 0:13:01.760 create a more personalized enhance experience for learners in every language. 0:13:01.960 --> 0:13:05.760 So we are creating personalized learning pathways, we are tailoring 0:13:06.600 --> 0:13:11.080 the access to our learners to meet their individual needs, 0:13:11.440 --> 0:13:14.440 and we are also using AI to answer questions in 0:13:14.480 --> 0:13:17.680 a more timely and accurate manner. If you really think 0:13:17.679 --> 0:13:20.240 about it, you will need a significant staff to be 0:13:20.360 --> 0:13:23.840 able to respond quickly to questions to make sure the 0:13:23.880 --> 0:13:28.280 questions are accurate. With AI, we can answer questions immediately, 0:13:28.800 --> 0:13:31.480 we can answer them in a more sophisticated way than 0:13:31.480 --> 0:13:34.120 we did in the past, and we can also offer 0:13:34.240 --> 0:13:38.840 cost recommendations and learning pathways that meet their needs. We 0:13:38.960 --> 0:13:42.679 have courses such as AI Ethics and prompt Writing and 0:13:42.760 --> 0:13:46.320 getting started with machine learning all the way to actually 0:13:46.480 --> 0:13:50.679 use in coding to help create these large language models. 0:13:50.720 --> 0:13:53.520 So When you think about the average learner that we 0:13:53.559 --> 0:13:56.720 are working with, they may want just an introductory course 0:13:56.840 --> 0:14:00.640 on AI ethics or understand it and how to use 0:14:00.679 --> 0:14:04.160 AI in their day to day work, or they actually 0:14:04.160 --> 0:14:07.560 may want to understand how do you really leverage or 0:14:07.600 --> 0:14:09.719 code for a large language model, And I think it's 0:14:09.760 --> 0:14:12.800 important to give them all the different options and create 0:14:12.840 --> 0:14:16.280 those personalized learning pathways for them. The other thing around 0:14:16.520 --> 0:14:21.560 really democratizing opportunities to provide free access to this kind 0:14:21.560 --> 0:14:24.040 of learning, and we do that again through our Skills 0:14:24.080 --> 0:14:29.400 Bill program. If you have courses that you can only 0:14:29.640 --> 0:14:33.640 pay to access, then you're really not giving the opportunity 0:14:33.680 --> 0:14:37.080 for everyone to advance and to learn. So by leveraging 0:14:37.120 --> 0:14:40.440 AI on our platform but also providing that free access, 0:14:40.760 --> 0:14:44.160 we're really helping to bridge the gap for learners and 0:14:44.200 --> 0:14:47.720 make sure they can upskill and reskill themselves and help 0:14:47.760 --> 0:14:50.479 them also increase social and economic mobility. 0:14:51.680 --> 0:14:54.240 It sounds like an amazing program, Justina. Can you describe 0:14:54.240 --> 0:14:57.600 the vision behind IBM Skills Built and how it's built 0:14:57.600 --> 0:14:59.360 to reach so many learners around the world. 0:15:00.040 --> 0:15:03.440 So IBM has always been committed to investing in the 0:15:03.480 --> 0:15:08.480 future of work, and we've offered educational experiences for many, 0:15:08.520 --> 0:15:13.400 many years. And IBM Skills Built is a program. Again, 0:15:13.480 --> 0:15:16.760 it's free, it's open, anyone can access it. But it's 0:15:16.800 --> 0:15:20.920 really around getting access to the right technical skills and 0:15:21.040 --> 0:15:24.760 workplace learning skills so that you could be prepared for 0:15:25.280 --> 0:15:29.760 a career in technology, but in any industry and any field. 0:15:30.240 --> 0:15:35.440 We know now that understanding technology, understanding AI or cybersecurity 0:15:36.000 --> 0:15:39.400 or any of those tech topics are needed whether you're 0:15:39.480 --> 0:15:42.360 working in a tech company, or whether you're working in 0:15:42.400 --> 0:15:45.840 retail or in legal or any of these different industries, 0:15:45.880 --> 0:15:47.520 so we want to make sure we could provide that 0:15:47.560 --> 0:15:50.920 access to learners. In twenty twenty one, we launched a 0:15:50.960 --> 0:15:54.120 global commitment to skill thirty million people by twenty thirty 0:15:54.560 --> 0:15:58.520 and we are making significant progress against that goal. Just 0:15:58.640 --> 0:16:01.680 last year we reported that we skilled eleven point five 0:16:01.760 --> 0:16:05.320 million learners around the world, and these are learners that 0:16:05.560 --> 0:16:10.400 enrolled in IBM courses, including access in our platform, IBM 0:16:10.480 --> 0:16:14.640 Skills Build, and it's really the cornerstone of our education 0:16:14.760 --> 0:16:18.800 work at IBM. We're really focused on scaling our work 0:16:19.080 --> 0:16:24.080 through partnerships, so we partner with historically black colleges and universities, 0:16:24.120 --> 0:16:26.520 and that's how of course we got the chance to 0:16:26.520 --> 0:16:30.960 meet April. We partner with nonprofit organizations across the globe. 0:16:31.120 --> 0:16:34.480 We also partner with governments to make sure we provide 0:16:34.480 --> 0:16:37.800 that free access to the communities that are aligned with 0:16:37.840 --> 0:16:41.400 their national agenda around skilling and those communities that are 0:16:41.440 --> 0:16:45.480 most in need. It's really important that we scale the 0:16:45.560 --> 0:16:50.360 program through those premier partnerships, so that's extremely important to us. 0:16:51.320 --> 0:16:55.560 The vision behind IBM Skills Build is truly inspiring. In 0:16:55.600 --> 0:16:59.560 a world where technology is changing every industry, having access 0:16:59.600 --> 0:17:03.280 to these crucial skills is more important than ever. This 0:17:03.400 --> 0:17:07.120 initiative is breaking down barriers and ensuring that people from 0:17:07.200 --> 0:17:10.760 all walks of life can participate in the future of work. 0:17:11.680 --> 0:17:15.840 In order to effectively scale a platform, the strategic collaborations 0:17:15.840 --> 0:17:21.240 with educational institutions, nonprofits and governments are key. It's clear 0:17:21.280 --> 0:17:25.560 that IBM is deeply invested in creating long lasting change 0:17:25.680 --> 0:17:29.840 in communities around the world. This approach will strengthen the 0:17:29.880 --> 0:17:34.159 workforce globally, helping to bridge the digital divide and create 0:17:34.280 --> 0:17:37.040 more equitable opportunities in the tech space. 0:17:38.600 --> 0:17:40.399 So now we're shifting gears to think a little bit 0:17:40.440 --> 0:17:43.280 about the real world insights. Justina What can you tell 0:17:43.359 --> 0:17:46.000 us about the skills first movement? This seems to be 0:17:46.040 --> 0:17:48.840 an open approach to attracting top talent. What are you 0:17:48.880 --> 0:17:50.560 hearing from students and partners. 0:17:51.240 --> 0:17:55.000 Yeah, So, IBM has been leading the skills first movement 0:17:55.119 --> 0:17:57.439 full quite some time. And one of the things that 0:17:57.480 --> 0:18:00.840 we realize, and we actually tested this out, is that 0:18:00.960 --> 0:18:04.240 you don't always need a four year degree to be 0:18:04.320 --> 0:18:07.560 successful at a tech job. So when we looked at 0:18:07.640 --> 0:18:11.159 the job postings that we had, we decided to make 0:18:11.200 --> 0:18:15.160 a commitment to have at least fifty percent of our 0:18:15.320 --> 0:18:19.800 job postings not requiring a four year degree. And when 0:18:19.880 --> 0:18:23.040 we started hiring people without a four year degree in 0:18:23.119 --> 0:18:28.160 certain roles, we realized that they were as successful as 0:18:28.160 --> 0:18:30.320 those with a four year degree. Now, this doesn't work 0:18:30.359 --> 0:18:33.199 across the board, but this is really a way to 0:18:33.400 --> 0:18:37.080 get access to what I consider to be untapped talent 0:18:37.680 --> 0:18:40.159 that are skilled in different ways. Maybe they've had some 0:18:40.320 --> 0:18:44.400 experiences already, maybe they have a different set of badges 0:18:44.400 --> 0:18:48.399 and certificates or other credentials that can support them getting 0:18:48.440 --> 0:18:51.640 access to some of the roles that are offered by companies. 0:18:51.720 --> 0:18:55.439 So this is really a way to help address the 0:18:55.480 --> 0:18:59.480 opportunity gap and provide a pathway for diverse talent. 0:19:00.680 --> 0:19:03.040 What impact do you think AI has had on global 0:19:03.119 --> 0:19:05.040 learning standards broadly so far? 0:19:06.240 --> 0:19:08.919 I think from the perspective of a law student realizing 0:19:08.960 --> 0:19:11.680 that this little universe in which we kind of thought 0:19:11.760 --> 0:19:15.480 we might operate has expanded. When we think about AI 0:19:15.560 --> 0:19:18.400 and we think about the implications of AI, it goes 0:19:18.440 --> 0:19:21.800 far beyond our state national I mean, you have to 0:19:21.840 --> 0:19:25.640 have an understanding of what's going on in other countries. 0:19:25.720 --> 0:19:28.680 So even when we're thinking about the regulation of AI 0:19:28.720 --> 0:19:32.680 and the governance of AI and policies surrounding AI, it 0:19:32.760 --> 0:19:36.040 means you have to be open to learning about what's 0:19:36.080 --> 0:19:40.119 happening in other countries where AI is disrupting those spaces 0:19:40.160 --> 0:19:43.800 as well. So again, I think it really underscores for 0:19:44.080 --> 0:19:47.560 our law students how you have to see yourself as 0:19:47.600 --> 0:19:51.000 part of a larger team. Lawyers don't work in isolation, 0:19:51.320 --> 0:19:55.359 and it's really good that law students are recognizing that 0:19:55.520 --> 0:19:56.760 while they're still in school. 0:19:57.720 --> 0:20:00.200 So it really seems like these technologies are kind of 0:20:00.280 --> 0:20:03.159 changing the learning experience and law by making kind of 0:20:03.240 --> 0:20:06.040 broader and maybe more global. Justina, can you share an 0:20:06.080 --> 0:20:08.800 example of how IBM skills Build has made a significant 0:20:08.800 --> 0:20:11.080 difference in other kinds of learning journeys. 0:20:11.200 --> 0:20:11.400 Yeah. 0:20:11.440 --> 0:20:13.720 Absolutely, I mean this is one of the most rewarding 0:20:13.760 --> 0:20:16.520 parts of my job. What I get excited about is 0:20:16.560 --> 0:20:19.800 when I travel and I meet with students who have 0:20:19.840 --> 0:20:22.159 been a part of IBM Skills Build and they have 0:20:22.400 --> 0:20:27.000 been able to use the learning, the certificates, the opportunities 0:20:27.400 --> 0:20:30.359 that we've provided them around mentorship as well to be 0:20:30.400 --> 0:20:33.000 able to move into a better paying job or a 0:20:33.040 --> 0:20:36.879 new job that they did not have the opportunity previously. 0:20:37.280 --> 0:20:39.880 We had one of our learners, his name was Oscar 0:20:40.240 --> 0:20:43.560 and he arrived in California from Mexico when he was 0:20:43.600 --> 0:20:46.360 around five years old, and he worked and he attended 0:20:46.400 --> 0:20:50.399 college full time. But during his last semester he was 0:20:50.480 --> 0:20:53.520 introduced to the IBM Skills Build program through the Hispanic 0:20:53.640 --> 0:20:58.040 Heritage Foundation, one of our partners, and through the career 0:20:58.080 --> 0:21:01.560 assessment tool of the program identified areas where he could 0:21:01.600 --> 0:21:05.439 excel and it allowed him to dig deeper into learning 0:21:05.520 --> 0:21:08.720 paths that matched his interests and his skills. So he 0:21:08.800 --> 0:21:13.240 started taking courses such as AI Fundamentals, He earned credentials 0:21:13.520 --> 0:21:16.640 and he was able to get a better role when 0:21:16.680 --> 0:21:20.520 he graduated from college. So we have so many beneficiaries 0:21:20.560 --> 0:21:23.560 of the program who have been able to access the training, 0:21:23.880 --> 0:21:27.600 also access the mentorship that we provide through the program, 0:21:27.800 --> 0:21:30.440 and able to get a better pain on new job 0:21:30.480 --> 0:21:31.040 because of it. 0:21:31.880 --> 0:21:35.040 That's fabulous, Peopril, I know your students have used IBM 0:21:35.080 --> 0:21:37.400 Skills Build. Can you give us an example of how 0:21:37.400 --> 0:21:39.679 it's made an important impact on a student's journey. 0:21:39.760 --> 0:21:44.399 Yes, absolutely so. I mentioned that we taught a Blockchain 0:21:44.480 --> 0:21:48.760 for Lawyers class and one of the students had a 0:21:48.800 --> 0:21:53.600 big interest in blockchain cryptocurrency. He actually also had a 0:21:53.680 --> 0:21:56.800 master's in information science and so he was a dual 0:21:56.840 --> 0:21:59.840 degree student. He was also in my AI and the 0:22:00.119 --> 0:22:03.280 law class, so we not only got the blockchain certificate, 0:22:03.760 --> 0:22:07.320 he got the AI Foundation certificate. He wound up being 0:22:07.359 --> 0:22:10.119 the editor in chief of the law journal and he 0:22:10.280 --> 0:22:13.040 is a legal tech lawyer. And so this kind of 0:22:13.080 --> 0:22:15.920 goes back to what Justina was saying about making sure 0:22:16.000 --> 0:22:20.000 that the talent that's there has access to the resources. 0:22:20.040 --> 0:22:22.160 It really does make a big difference in so many 0:22:22.200 --> 0:22:23.320 of our students' lives. 0:22:24.320 --> 0:22:27.600 That's such an inspiring story, Justina. I'm curious what impact 0:22:27.680 --> 0:22:29.959 Skills Build has had on the communities you work with, 0:22:30.080 --> 0:22:31.600 maybe even beyond just students. 0:22:32.240 --> 0:22:37.400 Yeah, so it has had a tremendous impact in our communities. 0:22:37.800 --> 0:22:41.080 I think one of the big things about digital skills 0:22:41.119 --> 0:22:46.040 and upskill in and reskilling is not just in certain areas. 0:22:46.080 --> 0:22:49.679 For example, I mentioned the story of Oscar who was 0:22:49.760 --> 0:22:53.040 graduating from college got access to Skills Build. It helped 0:22:53.440 --> 0:22:56.720 him get a better paying job. But we have programs 0:22:56.760 --> 0:23:00.200 in sustainability as well where we are working with farmers 0:23:00.480 --> 0:23:04.160 in the middle of Texas and we are providing access 0:23:04.200 --> 0:23:07.000 to skills Build as well so that they can use 0:23:07.080 --> 0:23:10.520 the technology and understand the technology that we are bringing 0:23:10.680 --> 0:23:14.840 to them throughout Sustainability Accelerator program. And what's so interesting 0:23:14.880 --> 0:23:18.360 about this is we need to upskill and reskill them 0:23:18.400 --> 0:23:21.120 as well. So if you think about certain jobs where 0:23:21.160 --> 0:23:24.400 you just need to better understand the data or the technology, 0:23:24.880 --> 0:23:27.600 our partnerships with nonprofits to be able to bring it 0:23:27.640 --> 0:23:30.959 to people in different fields and sustainability is one that 0:23:31.000 --> 0:23:34.320 we focus on as well. That has been inspiring to me. 0:23:34.960 --> 0:23:38.120 We also have programs where we focus on girls, especially 0:23:38.200 --> 0:23:41.359 in India, and make sure we're giving them access to 0:23:41.440 --> 0:23:44.880