The New Black? How Digital Ed Is Everything
…Back to school? Not necessarily appealing right? The experimental, embedded, and reflexive departments of education and training within creative industries are reinventing education. This panel gathers some visionaries to discuss the positioning of education in the modern workplace. Many traditional business functions such as PR, sales, marketing, philanthropy, recruitment, and business development are now “education initiatives.” There is a need for a 21c model of professional adult education in the workplace. We’ll discuss what the possibilities are given new cooperative models, technological tools, talent gaps, and knowledge sharing in the increasingly competitive fields of global business. We will also share thoughts on pioneering schools including ones internal and/or external to the organization, institution, start-up, and platform-specific models.
Presenters
Originally from New Orleans, Allison started her digital career in Colorado at Vail Resorts as National Partner Marketing Manager. After a few winters in Vail, she landed at texturemedia in Boulder as Senior Director of Business Development. During her tenure, the agency grew from 15 to 75 people and sold to Crispin Porter + Bogusky in 2008.
While at CP+B she led digital education and development including the launch of a new industry focused school, Boulder Digital Works @bdwcu. At BDW she led executive education, marketing, PR, industry development, and partner management.
At GS&P she is responsible for digital education and development for employees and clients. Curriculum includes Interaction Design, Business Development, Experience Design, Social Media, Mobile, Strategy, Analytics, Production, Programming and rotating cultural and creative topics. Students attend pop-ups, field trips, classes and workshops.
Allison has a MA in Integrated Marketing and a BA in Fine Arts and Communications. She lives in Mill Valley CA with her husband, daughter, and two Abyssinians. She’s known to play chess until the wee hours and makes a mean dish of Cajun BBQ Shrimp.
Giselle Schmitz grew up in advertising agency- literally. After watching her parents slog it out in traditional and PR agencies, she started her career client-side at Coca-Cola and Cisco. She took a sabbatical from the business world in 2007 to work for the Obama for America campaign as a Regional Field Director where she experienced first hand the power of social media in moving message. Fully hooked, she co-founded a social startup born of the campaign which a year later led her to join Facebook. Giselle joined Facebook to build inspirational educational programs like Facebook Studio Live and the Creative Garage. She and her husband Brian (also a Facebooker) live in Mountain View, CA. You can subscribe to her updates at facebook.com/gisellemarie
Lori Kent is a visual artist, education researcher, and sometimes professor of art and visual studies. Based in New York City, she lectures on the culture of technology, invents community-based art projects, and facilitates creativity workshops. Dr. Kent is a graduate of Columbia University (Ed. D. College Teaching of Art) and has an MA in Critical and Creative Thinking. She has worked in numerous museums and universities in New York and Boston and is a recent recipient of a National Endowment for the Humanities fellowship (Stanford University).
As a first-timer to SXSW, I look forward to meeting folks interested in digital education, social justice, and great ideas simmering in culture.
Sunday, March 11
