The Penn State Behrend Speaker Series brings distinguished and accomplished individuals to campus to inspire thought and spark conversation about compelling issues and events. Our guest speakers, with their unique perspectives, enhance understanding of current events; community and economic development; and political, business, and societal challenges.
The Speaker Series is made possible by the college's Student Activity Fee, the Division of Student Affairs, and the Harriet Behrend Ninow Memorial Lecture Series Fund.
The Pennsylvania State University encourages qualified persons with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities. If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation or have questions about the physical access provided, please contact Brenda Zinram in advance of your participation or visit.
Previous Speakers
Jeremy O'Mard, IBM Consulting
"Cracking the Code: AI and Cybersecurity"
Monday, November 6, 7:30 p.m., 180 Burke
Free and open to the public
Cybersecurity experts spend nearly a third of every workday investigating false positives. Artificial intelligence can help them focus on legitimate threats, says Jeremy O'Mard, senior managing consultant in the Hybrid Cloud Management Practice at IBM Consulting.
He will discuss how companies are deploying new digital defenses, including threat detection, pattern-recognition algorithms, and automated incident responses.
In his role at IBM Consulting, O'Mard provides infrastructure security and support to clients. He is known for his leadership, problem-solving skills, and successful technical implementations. With over a decade of experience, he is well-versed in technical operations, system administration, and application security for commercial, state, and federal organizations.
Outside of IBM, O'Mard is a major in the Maryland Defense Force and commander of the 256th Cyber Defense Unit. He is also the founder and CEO of O'Mard Consulting Services, LLC, where he uses his expertise to help clients create a safer digital experience.
O'Mard, a 2013 Penn State Behrend graduate, also serves as treasurer of the Behrend Black Leadership Alumni Coalition. He received the 2021 Penn State Alumni Achievement Award.
Ainslie Brosig, Executive Director, expERIEnce Children's Museum
Tuesday, January 30, 2024, at 7:30 p.m., 180 Burke
Free and open to the public
Ainslie Brosig has been the executive director of the expERIEnce Children's Museum in Erie, PA, since 2013. She holds a bachelor of science degree in Communications and Media Studies from Penn State Behrend. Brosig has been well known for her work in the nonprofit sector for more than 20 years.
Under Brosig's leadership, the Children's Museum has seen tremendous growth. Museum attendance has doubled and membership has tripled. She is currently overseeing the Museum's $18 million expansion and renovation—the largest capital campaign for an organization of its size in Erie County.
Brosig, a 2001 Penn State Behrend graduate, was awarded the Behrend Commission for Women's 2019 Woman of Impact Award. She is a member of Behrend's Women’s Engagement Council.
Matthew White, CEO, Whitethorn Games
Wednesday, February 21, 2024, at 5:30 p.m., 180 Burke
Free and open to the public
Matthew White is a local entrepreneur, most noted for being the CEO of Whitethorn Games, an indie game publisher based in Erie, PA. With fifteen years of experience in games, he is passionate about creating and supporting approachable, chill, and accessible games for diverse audiences. His former games career spans data science, user research, and business development across a variety of enterprises.
As a former academic and a current author, he also has a strong background in game development and education, with a focus on user research and human-computer interaction (HCI). He has published multiple books and articles on topics such as cognitive psychology, the psychology of individual differences, and user experience in games. He has additionally taught and supervised undergraduate students in game design, programming, and artificial intelligence at Penn State.
Jotham Austin II, Ph.D.
Monday, April 15, 2024, at 7:30 p.m., 180 Burke
Free and open to the public
Jotham Austin II, a 1996 graduate of Penn State Behrend, was trained as a basic scientist in the laboratory of Dr. Michael Campbell at Behrend, and the experience led to an enduring interest in cell biology and electron microscopy (EM). As a graduate student at Arizona State University, Jotham worked with Dr. Andrew Weber to study the photosynthetic competence of mutant Arabidopsis cells with reduced chloroplast number.
As a postdoctoral fellow with Dr. L. Andrew Staehelin at the University of Colorado-Boulder, Jotham studied microtubule organization during cell division in plat cells, and the 3-D structure of thylakoid membranes in chloroplasts. That training gave him an appreciation for the power of EM, a technique that was historically foundational for both cell biology and structural biology. Jotham was inspired by the innovative methods for preserving cells and tissues in their native state using cryo-preservation, being developed at University of Colorado-Boulder Laboratory for 3-D Electron Microscopy of Cells. These innovations proved to be transformative in terms of the information that could be gleaned from EM, and Jotham realized that many more such innovations were on the horizon. Jotham therefore decided to focus on EM technology application and development, and to continue working with scientist to harness the power of these techniques.
Jotham joined the University of Chicago in 2005 as technical director of the Cryo-preservation and 3-D Tomography Facility. In 2010, the pre-existing EM facility was merged with his facility to create what is now called the Advanced Electron Microscopy (AEM) Facility, working with numerous researchers at the University of Chicago and beyond. In 2014 Jotham was appointed as research assistant professor. Most notably in this role he was as an instrumental player in enabling the University of Chicago to take full advantage of the recent revolution in cryo-EM structural biology. In 2023 Jotham was promoted to research associate professor and director of the AEM Facility at the University of Chicago to continue supporting and developing additional EM techniques, including quantum sensor imaging, electron tomography, cryo-electron tomography, correlative microscopy, large volume array tomography, and cryo-micro electron diffraction.
When Jotham is not in the laboratory taking pictures of cells he is writing short fiction and novels. His debut novel, a sci-fi psychological thriller, Will You Still Love Me, If I Become Someone Else?, was published in 2021. Jotham also publishes the bimonthly science outreach newsletter and podcast Rabbit Hole of Research that explores science through the lens of science fiction, fantasy, and pop culture.
A list of previous speakers is available.