The AI Conversation is a 30-minute webinar series hosted by Bao Johri, vice president for Information Technology and chief information officer. Each session features a faculty or staff member sharing how they use AI to enhance teaching, streamline operations, transform research and enrich campus life. The series fosters dialogue about using AI responsibly, ethically and effectively.

Goals of the series:

• Encourage thoughtful integration of AI in higher education.
• Inspire cross-disciplinary exploration.
• Discuss ethics, academic integrity and institutional strategy.
• Build a campus culture where AI is understood and applied with care.

Interested in presenting? Complete an Interest Form to propose a discussion topic or present on how you use AI in your teaching, research or administrative work.

Meet Upcoming Guests - February 2026

Dr. Dermot Donnelly-Hermosillo
Noon - 12:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 5
Dr. Dermot Donnelly-Hermosillo specializes in the role of instructional technologies to support enhanced student science learning. Such technologies include virtual labs, virtual reality and automated guidance through natural language processing. He is an active member of the campus community in guiding AI implementation — he was the co-chair of the AI Teaching and Learning Subcommittee (2023-24), led a CSU-wide course on AI Teaching and Learning Tools (spring 2024), and is a current member of the AI Services and Technology Innovation Committee (spring 2025-present). Some of his current research investigates the ethical use of AI in university settings.

Dr. Young Maeng
9 - 9:30 a.m. Friday, Feb. 6
Dr. Young Maeng is an artist, researcher and assistant professor of art in painting and drawing at Fresno State. Her work explores the ethical and philosophical implications of artificial intelligence through expanded painting, integrating traditional Korean painting with Western painting, digital processes and AI-generated imagery. Drawing on Deleuze’s non-human ontology and East Asian aesthetics, Maeng examines how humans, nature and AI systems coexist and how creativity is reshaped in an AI-driven world. Her current research, supported by Fresno State’s P-RSCA Impact Award, focuses on AI, equity and emerging forms of posthuman creativity.

Register on the AI Conversation webpage.