Speaker HEAD 2026:
Professor Stephen Adams has been a faculty member at Mohawk College since 2014, where he specializes in bringing challenging and engaging topics to Software Development classrooms. Whether bringing GPT AI to introductory programming courses, using gaming to motivate learning mathematical heuristics and advanced algorithms, or leading student teams on applied research topics including facial recognition, handwriting analysis, object classifiers, and other topics, he brings a love of discovery to each project he works on.
A graduate of McMaster University (HBSc, MSc in Computer Science), he has worked in industry as a team member developing high-performance math libraries at IBM, and on real-time control systems for robotic steel cutting processes at Linatrol Systems. His applied research interests center on the application of emerging technologies to traditional problems. His projects include work within Digital Humanities, demonstrated by projects such as “Between the Lines” and “Remembering Their Faces
Title: What AI Research Teaches Us About Data, Trust, and Storytelling
Drawing on applied AI research in museums, archives, and historical records, this talk explores what real-world projects can teach us about data preparation, trust, and storytelling. Through examples involving handwriting recognition, facial recognition, object classification, and metadata analysis, the talk highlights how meaningful analytics depends not just on tools and models, but on careful preparation, verification, and interpretation of data.
Speaker HEAD 2025:
Professor, Dr. Ali El-Sharif transitioned to academia after holding many industry roles and leading global teams in the financial, automotive, and healthcare domains. He is a professor at St. Clair College School of IT, teaching various Data Analytics and Cybersecurity courses.
He holds a Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering and an MBA from Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio. He also has a Master of Information Security and a PhD in Information Systems from Nova Southeastern University in Ft Lauderdale, Florida.
He is the co-author of the upcoming book on Responsible AI with Python and the co-lead for the Google Developer Groups Windsor chapter.
Title: Data Analytics Careers in the Age of Generative AI
How is the role of a data analyst evolving with the rapid advancements in Generative AI? This talk examines how Generative AI is transforming data analytics careers, the emerging skills that professionals can develop to differentiate themselves, and the opportunities to utilize AI-driven tools to maximize their impact.