Reconnect Workshop 2024
The 2024 Reconnect Workshop gathered 23 participants, including government and industry professionals, faculty from Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs), and community colleges. This year’s theme centered on the intersection of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and security, highlighting how AI can bolster security measures by detecting threats and anomalies with unprecedented accuracy and speed. The workshop, held over four days in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, featured a series of lectures and activities to equip participants with practical skills and knowledge that they can continue to explore and integrate into their teaching.
Keynote speaker Professor Vivek Singh from Rutgers University delivered a comprehensive introduction to AI, exploring machine learning and deep learning applications in security. Sinan Ozdemir, the founder and Chief Technology Officer of Loop Genius, discussed AI’s broader implications across sectors and its impact on young people. Rajan Chari, a Principal Engineering Manager at Microsoft Research, provided insights into distributed multi-agent frameworks and reinforcement learning systems, while Donna Beers, a Professor at Simmons University, shared her syllabus and references for a course in machine learning, offering practical guidance on integrating machine learning into undergraduate education.
During the workshop, participants were tasked with creating instructional modules to facilitate the integration of SENTRY-related research topics into a repository made available for use in college curricula nationwide. These modules allow faculty at educational institutions, especially at MSIs and community colleges to easily integrate current AI and security research topics into the curriculum. Each module covers five to eight days of instruction and utilizes concepts shared by SENTRY researchers and other DHS Centers of Excellence, including CCICADA. Through these educational modules, SENTRY intends to foster broader participation of underrepresented minority students in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) topics.
The 2025 Reconnect Workshop will continue to build on this year’s successes, expanding participation and focusing on new topics to be announced later this year. The ongoing development of educational modules supports SENTRY’s effort to enhance STEM education and create career pathways for minority groups in the homeland security enterprise.
