"My Circle Got Smaller, AI Got Closer," an online webinar exploring the mental health
implications of artificial intelligence, will be hosted by The University of Baltimore's
Center for AI Learning and Community-Engaged Innovation (CAILI) and the Center for
Entrepreneurship and Innovation (CEI) on Wednesday, April 8 from noon to 1 p.m. The
forum, which will take place on Zoom, is free and open to the public. (Attendance
details listed below.) It will feature a panel of guest speakers in a lively discussion
on how AI is reshaping our inner lives and relationships. Your perspectives on this
open-ended topic are encouraged.
AI expert Jason Michael Perry, a principal and the fractional chief AI officer at
PerryLabs, will moderate this dynamic, live session. It is part of the University's
AI in Practice webinar series, designed to foster meaningful conversations about AI's
role in higher education and professional practice.
The full list of participants is as follows:
- Moderator Jason Michael Perry brings more than two decades of experience in helping businesses research, prototype,
build, and scale AI-driven solutions. A public speaker and author of The AI Evolution, he writes a free weekly newsletter, "Thoughts on Tech & Things." Perry serves as
a senior advisor for the World Trade Center Institute and is an entrepreneur in residence
at The University of Baltimore. A board member of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra,
he led the award-winning event "AI in A Minor," which showcased AI-composed music
in collaboration with AWS and the BSO.
- Panelist Jessica Stansbury is the founding director of the Center for AI Learning and Community-Engaged Innovation
at UBalt, where she works to ensure that the benefits of artificial intelligence are
accessible, equitable, and grounded in human needs. Drawing on her background as a
substance use counselor and former psychology faculty member, Dr. Stansbury champions
a "human-first" approach to digital innovation. Her work, featured in The Washington Post and The Chronicle of Higher Education, focuses on AI readiness as a form of digital literacy—advocating for systems that
augment human potential rather than replace it. Dr. Stansbury is dedicated to bridging
the digital divide, helping Baltimore's educators and community leaders harness AI
to create opportunities and enhance human connection.
- Panelist John Donahue is an associate professor of psychology in the Yale Gordon College of Arts and Sciences
at UBalt, where he is also the director of the M.S. program in Counseling Psychology.
Dr. Donahue is a licensed clinical psychologist specializing in the treatment of anxiety
disorders and trauma-related conditions. His research has broadly emphasized transdiagnostic
processes of change in cognitive-behavioral psychotherapies, as well as dimensional
models of personality and psychopathology. Presently, his research focuses on the
investigation of psychological flexibility in relation to personality pathology and
the measurement of processes of therapeutic change in written language.
- Panelist Alison Papadakis is a teaching professor and director of Clinical Psychological Studies in the Department
of Psychological and Brain Sciences at Johns Hopkins University. In addition to teaching
courses on mental health and psychotherapy, Dr. Papadakis's clinical interests are
in depression, anxiety, and eating disorders. Her research focuses on stress, coping,
peer relationships, and mental health in adolescents and young adults. As an educator,
she sees AI as both a powerful tool and a source of anxiety due to academic integrity
concerns and as a promising mental health resource, which also raises questions about
safety and the impact of replacing human interactions with AI interactions.
To attend this event, fill out this online registration form.
Learn more about The University of Baltimore's Center for AI Learning and Community-Engaged Innovation and the Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation.
