In this episode of the Campus Technology Insider Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Rhea Kelly sits down with Sidney Fernandes, CIO, and VP of Digital Experiences at the University of South Florida. They discuss the impact of agentic AI in higher education, focusing on USF's initiatives to make technology and workflows user-friendly. Topics include the formation of the Bellini College of Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity and Computing, strategies for integrating AI to improve student and faculty experiences, and the importance of security, compliance, and data governance in AI deployment. In addition, they explore how USF leverages student ambassadors to scale AI literacy and solutions across its campuses.

00:00 Introduction and Guest Welcome

00:30 Sydney Fernandez's Background and Role at USF

01:10 USF's Technology Strategy: Making It Easy

02:44 Digital Experiences at USF

05:33 AI Initiatives and Early Goals

13:32 Scaling AI with Student Ambassadors

23:44 Challenges and Lessons Learned

26:08 Future of AI at USF

29:19 Conclusion and Farewell

Resource links:

• GenAI at USF
• Bellini College of Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity and Computing

Music: Mixkit

Duration: 30 minutes

Transcript