Time limit: 2 days
DATE: December 4 & 11, 2024
TIME: 5 - 7 pm
LOCATION: In person, Tukwila SPEEA Hall (15205 52nd Ave. S, Tukwila, WA 98188)
This course is taught in TWO Wednesday sessions (5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.) on Wednesday, December 4 & 11. You are siging up to attend BOTH sessions.
Class size is limited to 20 people.
STUDENTS WILL BE REQUIRED TO have a Windows or Mac computer. This must be a personal computer and not one issued by your workplace.
This training WILL NOT be recorded.
Participants will learn:
Get ready to be immersed in the world of mixed reality technologies. This class is crafted around standalone, dynamic concepts that connect cutting-edge Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) tools with real-world applications. These applications aim to transform the way we approach environmental sustainability, mental health, and the aerospace industry. With a focus on research by design, you'll experience a hands-on learning adventure that puts you at the forefront of technological advancements.
Azhar Kimanje is software engineer and Director of Mixed Reality Outreach with a pioneering spirit to attach real world use cases to immersive technology. Azhar specializes in extended reality engineering applications, in education, simulation, and conversational AI.
Shukra Jaliya is a Technical Lesson Plan Developer at AVELA, creating VR-based activities and hands-on workshops focused on STEM education. Shukra designs engaging lessons that inspire students to explore technology and engineering concepts.
AVELA offers underrepresented minority students an opportunity to gain hands-on experience developing and presenting STEM activities to K-14 students, which bolsters the technical and leadership skills of UW’s URM student body. Many K-14 schools and communities in the greater Seattle area lack access to STEM resources like physical hardware and technology, career mentorship from professional engineers, college application assistance, as well as awareness of free online opportunities that they can take advantage of. AVELA’s projects aim to build sustained partnerships with underserved K-14 schools and communities across Washington state to support a more equitable public education system. Undergraduate students in AVELA are mentored by graduate students, research professors, and industry allies, before they go on to mentor middle and high school students interested in STEM fields. Through this multi-tiered mentorship model, we aim to provide more K-14 students with opportunities to engage in hands-on STEM projects, and to discover new creative outlets that expose them to college and industry level tools and concepts. We currently have a network of 200 undergraduate and graduate students who receive our weekly text messages and emails, as well as an average of 50 students who show up to our weekly hybrid meetings.
During the 2022-2023 academic year (Fall/Winter/Spring), more than 90 different UW students from URM backgrounds participated in AVELA (37% male and 63% female/non-binary). AVELA members were able to teach, mentor, and tutor more than 1000 K-14 students in more than 35 classrooms and community centers (91% in-person and 9% virtual/hybrid) across Washington state. AVELA students have gone on to work at companies like Microsoft, NASA, Amazon, Boeing, IBM, Texas Instruments, Nvidia, and many others.
