The keynote speaker for the 2017 State Tech Summit was Dr. Sethuraman "Panch" Panchanathan, Executive Vice President, ASU Knowledge Enterprise, and Chief Research and Innovation Officer, Arizona State University, discussed the ingredients needed to build a talent pipeline for the 21st century economy.
“Most importantly, our children must stay inspired to learn during their entire life. Hear me when I say that lifelong learning is a spirt they must embody,” said Panch. “It also vital to inspire talent into post-secondary education.”
Panch described several initiatives ASU has piloted to help in this endeavor including the Herberger Young Scholars Academy which embodies a highly challenging and hands-on learning environment; ASU Prep Digital a college prep option where online high school and university courses converge in a unique learning opportunity for students. Global Freshman Academy provides freshmen online to who aren’t on the standard collegiate path.
Panch said, “Future citizens must be innovative thinkers as well as global thinkers. So, universities themselves must be globally minded, entrepreneurial, team-oriented, and focused on developing a student’s mindset as well as their skill set.”
Panch showed a video of students at the ASU Luminosity Lab developing artificial intelligence glasses for the blind; experimenting with escort drone prototypes so that students walking on campus feel safe; as well as developing jet packs to help increase athletic speed for the military, as well as help those who might have trouble standing.
“We want people to solve problems not agonize about them. And we want to help develop an entrepreneurial mindset; it’s important for us to think in ways that are creative and out of the box, ultimately to be highly competitive in this world,” Panch said.
ASU has earned several recent accolades including being #5 in the nation for producing the best-qualified graduates according to Wall Street Journal Business and #1 in the US for innovation according to U.S. News and World Report.
An inspiring speaker that made one want to go back to school again!
