Social Learning Summit 2011

This opening keynote panel will discuss the current state of higher education, the rapid evolution of modern education with social media and technology, and the radically new and innovative ideas being promoted by some of those in the social media world, including the AU Social Media Club.

Featuring:

• Moderator: Sarah Kessler, Reporter, Mashable (@sarahfkessler) - Sarah Kessler is a reporter at Mashable, a top source for news in social and digital media, technology and web culture. Before joining Mashable in 2010, she was the editor-in-chief of global education magazine Abroad View. Her articles have appeared in Sierra Magazine, Inc. Magazine, CNN.com, and USAToday.com.

• Patrick Foster, Digital Solutions, USA TODAY College (@mrpattyfoster) - Patrick Foster works on digital solutions for the USA TODAY College and Business Development teams. He has a deep background in journalism and music as well, having spent more than a decade contributing to publications like The Washington Post, Time Out London and SPIN. He runs the Twitter accounts@USATODAYCollege and @mrpattyfoster.

• Jon Hussey, Manager of Web Communications, American University (@auwebmanager) - Jon Hussey, Manager of Web Communications, American University (@auwebmanager) - Jon Hussey is in charge of the American University Facebook, Twitter (@AmericanU), and Foursquare accounts and manages the university's social media strategy. He recently published a chapter on the use of Twitter in higher education in the book, "Higher Education Administration with Social Media." Before coming to American University, Hussey was a sports journalist with the Boston Globe. He is currently pursuing a Master's degree in Interactive Journalism from American University's School of Communication. 

• Yong Lee, Acting Director, SMCEDU (@yongclee) - Yong Lee is a graduate of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, where he received a B.S. in Information Systems. A former software developer, he currently directs Social Media Club for Education (SMCEDU), an initiative that seeks to advance social media in higher education. He hosts a weekly Twitter chat on these topics every Monday at 12:30pmET under the #smcedu hashtag. Yong also serves as a project assistant in the Center for New Designs in Learning and Scholarship (CNDLS) at Georgetown University.
• Andi Narvaez, SMCEDU Advisory Board Member (@andinarvaez) - Andi Narvaez is a social media and public relations professional. She currently serves on the advisory boards of Social Media Club DC and Social Media Club Education Connection, she is public relations chair for DC Twestival and works for Citizen Effect, a philanthropy startup dedicated to providing citizens with the tools and support they need to work directly with communities in need around the world. She is originally from Quito, Ecuador but moved to Washington, DC in 2009 to pursue a masters degree in Public Relations at University of Maryland. You can read her blog at andinarvaez.com and follow her on Twitter @andinarvaez.
• Alex Priest, President and Founder, AU Social Media Club (@alexpriest) - Alex is the founder and president of the AU Social Media Club. An American University senior, Alex is pursuing a dual-degree in marketing and public communications, with a minor in statistics. Alex has a passion for not only social media, but for learning and for finding innovative ways of improving higher education. In the past, he’s worked with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, the American Legacy Foundation, MS&L PR, the Consumer Electronics Association, TechChange, and the United States Institute of Peace.

• Scott Talan, Assistant Professor, AU School of Communication (@talan) - Scott Talan, MPA, has worked in media, PR, and communications in four distinct fields: TV News, Politics, Nonprofits and Higher Education. Scott worked at the United Nations, Harvard University and the New Mexico Legislature. He recently served as the Director of Communications for the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs. Before news, Talan was as an elected city council member and Mayor of Lafayette, California. His first career was in nonprofit communications working for the March of Dimes. Talan received his Master in Public Administration from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, studied broadcast journalism at Stanford after getting his BA from the University of California at Davis.

• Rhonda Zaharana, Assistant Professor, AU School of Communication - Dr. Rhonda Zaharna is an associate professor of public communication in the School of Communication. She has been teaching full time at the university level since receiving her doctorate from Columbia University in 1987. This semester, she experimented with hosting her International Public Relations class on Facebook during a snow day, and her story was featured in The Washington Post and on Facebook's twitter feed.

Sure, Facebook and Twitter are hot topics today, but blogging is still at the heart of social media and online communication. This panel will explore the how and why of blogging for today's students, and explore how blogging itself can be used to learn from each other and with each other.

Featuring:

• Kaitlin Carpenter, Student, American Unviersity - 
• Jessica Darmawan, Student, American University - Jessica Darmawan is a budding international blogger from Jakarta, Indonesia. With her passion for travel, she blogs about the world's largest archipelago, Indonesia, and its unique culture, natural landscape, traditional cuisine, and people. Within 6 months, her blog has grown to over 5,500 followers from all over the world. She hopes to work with Indonesia's Department of Tourism in the future to further expand her blog. Jessica is a Junior in the School of International Service at American University, and she hopes to use social media to promote causes.
  
• Winston "Stone" Ford, Owner and CEO, Couch Sessions (@couchsessions) - Recognized as an international music tastemaker by industry insiders and musicians "in the know," Stone (aka Winston Ford) is the creator of The Couch Sessions, the premier online destination for alternative urban music and culture.Stared in 2005, The Couch Sessions has been recognized worldwide for exposing new and emerging talent. In 2011, Stone branched out to create his own Artist Development company under the Couch Sessions brand in addition to a new marketing and branding firm. He lives in New York City.

• Andi Narvaez, SMCEDU Advisory Board Member (@andinarvaez) - Andi Narvaez is a social media and public relations professional. She currently serves on the advisory boards of Social Media Club DC and Social Media Club Education Connection, she is public relations chair for DC Twestival and works for Citizen Effect, a philanthropy startup dedicated to providing citizens with the tools and support they need to work directly with communities in need around the world. She is originally from Quito, Ecuador but moved to Washington, DC in 2009 to pursue a masters degree in Public Relations at University of Maryland. You can read her blog at andinarvaez.com and follow her on Twitter @andinarvaez.
  
• Chris Richards, Pop Music Critic, Washington Post (@chris__richards) - Chris Richards is the pop music critic at the Washington Post. His work appears regularly in the Post's Style section and even more frequently on Click Track, the Post's pop music blog. Before arriving at the Post, he was editor of The Fader magazine and a member of the Washington post-punk group Q and Not U.

Some have suggested today's youth are a generation of "slacktivists". Activists in name only, using the "like" button and tweets as forms of protest. Is this generation of students less motivated to truly act than in the past? Or are they simply armed with different tools?

Featuring:

• Moderator: Tyler Gray, Social Media Associate, Bivings Group (@tylergray) - Tyler works as a Social Media Associate at The Bivings Group, a D.C. based website development and media monitoring agency. His background in online activism includes work with corporations, small businesses, non-profits and political organizations / candidates for local, state and national office. While a student at George Mason University (class of 09’), Tyler’s most memorable achievement was working with Students for Barack Obama to bring then Senator Obama to a rally at GMU one week before he announced his run for president in February 2007.
• Angelo Carusone, Campaign Director, Media Matters for America (@StopBeck) - Angelo Carusone is Campaign Director at Media Matters for America. He received a bachelor’s degree in American Studies from Fordham University in 2004 and a J.D. from the University of Wisconsin Law School in 2010.  During law school, Carusone founded the StopBeck effort.  Organizing participants via social media, the StopBeck effort has helped hold Glenn Beck accountable by successfully convincing sponsors to cease advertising on Beck’s show.

• Christie Garton, Editor and Blogger, USA TODAY (@universitychic) - Christie Garton is the editor and blogger for USA Today’s "Kindness" community, dedicated to philanthropy and corporate responsibility coverage. An award-winning social entrepreneur for her work in founding a music volunteer non-profit at the age of 19, Garton is also founder of UniversityChic.com, an online magazine and community website for college women nationwide and author of best-selling guide for college women, U Chic: The College Girl's Guide to Everything. Garton graduated magna cum laude from the University of Kansas with a double degree in Business Administration and French in 2001 and then went on to secure her J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania School of Law in 2006. She lives in New York City with her husband.

• Asher Huey, New Media, New Partners (@asherhuey) - Asher Huey is a new media political consultant based of out Washington, DC. He has a background as an organizer and works to use online tools as organizing resources. He is a graduate of American University. To learn more about asher: http://newpartners.com/about-us/asher-huey.php

• Sarah Kessler, Reporter, Mashable (@sarahfkessler) - Sarah Kessler is a reporter at Mashable, a top source for news in social and digital media, technology and web culture. Before joining Mashable in 2010, she was the editor-in-chief of global education magazine Abroad View. Her articles have appeared in Sierra Magazine, Inc. Magazine, CNN.com, and USAToday.com.
• Josh Koster, Managing Partner, Chong and Koster (@JoshKoster)
• Alan Rosenblatt, Associate Director for Online Advocacy, Center for American Progress Action Fund (@drdigipol) - Alan Rosenblatt, Ph.D. develops and implements Social Advocacy strategy at the Centerfor American Progress and CAP Action Fund. He founded and convenes the InternetAdvocacy Roundtable; teaches course on internet politics at Johns Hopkins, Georgetown,and American Universities; blogs at TechPresident.com, HuffingtonPost.com, and KStreetCafe.com; serves on the boards of directors for E-Democracy.org and EnlightenedCitizenry; and serves on the editorial boards for the Journal of Information Technology& Politics and the Journal of Political Marketing. He taught the world’s first internetpolitics course at George Mason University in 1995. Find him on Twitter, Sledeshare.net,YouTube, Facebook, and across the web at DrDigipol.

• Megan Yarbrough, Online Campaigns Associate, M+R Strategic Services (@misshealth) - Megan Yarbrough, public health advocate, is an Online Campaigns Associate and Social Media Guru at M+R Strategic Services, where she works with nonprofits to develop effective online advocacy campaigns. Prior to joining M+R, she helped manage the youth advocacy program at the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. She is a graduate of American University.

We've all reached that inevitable moment in our lives when we're faced with a huge decision. Whether to accept our parents friend request on Facebook. Older generations are constantly becoming more involved in social media. This panel will discuss the alleged "generation gap" in social and digital media. Does it exist? Does it matter? Our panelists, including Chanelle Schneider, Debbie Weil, and American University student Miranda Gale, will explore those questions and more.

Featuring:

• Moderator: Chanelle Schneider, Creator and Chief Contributor, ThereFromHere (@writerchanelle) - Chanelle Schneider is a Social Media Strategist, a Blogger, an Editor, and a Designer. Identifying a need in social media to eliminate perceived barriers in the intergenerational workplace, Chanelle initiated an ongoing, virtual conversation among generations. That conversation, #GenYChat, has turned into a popular chat – and brand – on Twitter, with hundreds of tweets each week. Chanelle also created and is chief contributor to ThereFromHere, a website dedicated to illuminating inconsistencies in popular societal memes surrounding generational and cultural marketing. In addition to being interviewed by MSNBC and NPR, Chanelle’s blog posts have appeared on YouTern, iGrad, Pongo Resume and many more.

• Miranda Gale, Director of Online Operations, AU Social Media Club (@mirandagale) - Miranda is an effervescent and innovative Public Relations and Marketing senior at American University in Washington, D.C. Originally from Golden, Colorado, her broad interests include hiking, the performing arts, social media, marketing, event planning, and the cupcake craze. With experience on the hill, in documentary production, marketing, and public relations, Miranda is continually looking for new opportunities and frontiers to explore. Miranda will be graduating with honors in May, with a B.S.B.A. in Marketing and a double major in Public Communications.

• Patrick Foster, Digital Solutions, USA TODAY College (@mrpattyfoster) - Patrick Foster works on digital solutions for the USA TODAY College and Business Development teams. He has a deep background in journalism and music as well, having spent more than a decade contributing to publications like The Washington Post, Time Out London and SPIN. He runs the Twitter accounts@USATODAYCollege and @mrpattyfoster.

• Alejandra Owens, Blog Managing Director, AARP (@frijolita) - Alejandra Owens is the Managing Director of AARP’s 5 year old blog. She is also a member of AARP’s Social Communications team providing strategic advice on the use of various social platforms. Alejandra is also a food blogger, regularly posting recipes on her own site One Bite At A Time and contributes to the neighborhood blog Boderstan.com as a food writer. She can be found on Twitter at @frijolita.
• Debbie Weil, Social Media Consultant (@debbieweil) - Named one of the Most Influential Women in Technology in 2010 by Fast Company, Debbie Weil is a rare species - a baby boomer who is a digital native. She launched her first website in 1995, has been blogging since 2003 at debbieweil.com/blog and is the author of one of the first and most definitive books about business blogging: THE CORPORATE BLOGGING BOOK. In addition to consulting and writing, she has spoken at conferences all over the world, including China and Dubai. Debbie is a Washington DC-based corporate social media consultant and speaker who has helped a range of clients including GlaxoSmithKline and the American Camp Association embrace and execute social media and blogging. She also blogs for the Huffington Post. She was named by Washingtonian Magazine as a DC Top 100 Tech Titan and is a Top Twitterer in DC @debbieweil with more than 10,000 Followers. Debbie has a unique background as a former journalist with corporate marketing experience. She holds an MBA degree from Georgetown University, a Masters in Journalism from the University of Wisconsin and is a graduate of Harvard with a degree in English.

Today's politicians have a lot to keep in mind when running for office. Our panel of experts and authorities will discuss today's "Facebook Candidates" and how the public world of social media has impacted modern political elections.

Featuring:

• Moderator: Sam Tift, Student, American University (@USMiddleClass) - Sam Tift has a young background in social media communication. As a political science major, Sam saw new media as an emerging component of grassroots campaigns. Sam spent much of his junior year at American University researching the impact of social media on issue campaigns, political campaigns and government transparency. Since November 2010 he has independently operated social media accounts targeting union members and progressives. He hopes to see greater democratic participation through social media in the future.
• Krystal Ball, Democratic Strategist (@KrystalBall1) - Krystal Marie Ball is a 29-year-old Democratic Strategist and former Virginia Congressional Candidate, in addition to being a Certified Public Accountant, software engineer, small business owner and mother. Krystal was recently named by Forbes Magazine as number 21 on the magazine’s “Most Powerful Women in the Mid Term Elections” list.  The Week magazine rated her as one of the Top Eight Political Stars of 2010, along with Marco Rubio, Scott Brown and Chris Christie.  Although Krystal is a committed democrat, she is passionately dedicated to civility and to improving the quality of political discourse.  Profiled all over the United States for her innovative use of Social Media in politics, Ball's compelling political vision for her party has been featured as far away as The China Post. Krystal was the Democratic Nominee for US Congress for the 1st District of Virginia in 2010. Although she did not win, her electoral performance was exceptional given the overall climate for Democrats in 2010. Her campaign displayed an unusually strong fundraising prowess and excelled in the use of social media in politics. The campaign raised over $1M as a first time candidate from more than 6,000 donors in all 50 states. Follow her at @KrystalBall1.

• Asher Huey, New Partners (@asherhuey) - Asher Huey is a new media political consultant based of out Washington, DC. He has a background as an organizer and works to use online tools as organizing resources. He is a graduate of American University. To learn more about asher: newpartners.com/about-us/asher-huey.php and follow him at @asherhuey. 

• Alan Rosenblatt, Associate Director for Online Advocacy, Center for American Progress Action Fund (@drdigipol) - 

• Alan Rosenblatt, Ph.D. develops and implements Social Advocacy strategy at the Centerfor American Progress and CAP Action Fund. He founded and convenes the InternetAdvocacy Roundtable; teaches course on internet politics at Johns Hopkins, Georgetown,and American Universities; blogs atTechPresident.com, HuffingtonPost.com, and KStreetCafe.com; serves on the boards of directors for E-Democracy.org and EnlightenedCitizenry; and serves on the editorial boards for the Journal of Information Technology& Politics and the Journal of Political Marketing. He taught the world’s first internetpolitics course at George Mason University in 1995. Find him on Twitter, Sledeshare.net,YouTube, Facebook, and across the web at DrDigipol.

• Susan Page, Washington Bureau Chief, USA TODAY (@susanpage) - Susan Page is the Washington Bureau chief for USA TODAY. She's interviewed the past eight presidents and covered the last eight presidential campaigns -- from an era of faxes to the advent of email and now tweets and Facebook postings. She has a bachelors degree from Northwestern and a masters from Columbia. Follow her at @SusanPage.

• Greg Pinelo, Partner, GMMB (@gregpinelo) - Greg Pinelo is a Partner in GMMB’s Washington office. He is an award winning political and communications strategist for a wide-ranginggroup of corporate, nonprofit, national association, government and electedclients.  During his diverse 18-year career at the firm, Greg has founded GMMB’s Creative Group, run the Los Angeles office and now helps lead the firm’s campaign consulting team. Greg was a key member of the media team for Barack Obama’s historic campaign for the Presidency, writing and developing many ads that aired nationally and in battleground states during both the primaries and the general election.  He was also part of the speaker preparation operation at the highly successful Democratic National Convention in Denver. Greg developed advertising for Jim Webb's upset victory in the 2006 Virginia Senate race, Mark Warner’s winning campaigns for Governor and the U.S. Senate and multi-state efforts for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. Greg’s work extends well beyond the political realm, with a clientele that has included the Save Darfur Coalition, CTIA – The Wireless Association, the Motion PictureAssociation of America, the Directors Guild of America, the California Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Charles and Helen Schwab Foundation, to name a few. Greg was instrumental in the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Covering Kids & Families campaign, for which GMMB received the prestigious David Ogilvy Award recognizing outstanding research-driven creative. He also coordinated the development of advertising for the foundation's Cover the Uninsured Week. A native of Kentucky, Greg received a B.A. from Oberlin College, where he majored in both history and political science and lettered in varsity basketball.

• Dave Stroup (@davestroup) - Dave Stroup is a technology professional and online activist from Washington, D.C. In January 2011, he successfully led a grassroots effort to draft Bryan Weaver for D.C. City Council. Dave is a former editor of DCist and presently advises the Weaver campaign on social media and online organizing strategy. Follow him at @davestroup.

80% of today's jobs come from networking. Do you think social media plays a role in your future? This discussion will focus on strategies and stories of how social media can impact your future career.

Featuring:

• Moderator: Megan Ackerman, Vice President, AU Social Media Club (@MissMeganEmily) - Megan is a social media enthusiast, entertainment junkie and lover of all things pop culture from Los Angeles, CA. Before coming to American University, Megan received her Associates Degree in Marketing from Santa Barbara City College in 2009. Megan is now a senior at AU, working on her Bachelors Degree in American Culture and Media, an interdisciplinary study she created which combines Broadcast Journalism, Public Relations, and American Studies.

• Brittany Cooper, New Media Strategies (@brittanycooper) - Brittany is an accomplished recruiter and communications strategist specializing in digital and social recruitment, and cultural engagement. Her recruitment experience spans across multiple verticals, including promotions and community engagement, crisis communications, public affairs, corporate brand management, design and creative, healthcare, technology, and sales/business development. Brittany regularly consults and trains individuals and local organizations on how to best utilize social media for networking and job placement.  She can be found online at @brittanycooper and linkedin.com/in/brittanyacooper.

• Heather Coleman, Strategic Communications Specialist, CorpComm, Inc. (@heathercoleman) - Heather Coleman, MBA, has worked in government communications for 10+ years managing mass media campaigns, website design and most recently helping clients develop social media strategies. She is the social media lead at CorpComm, Inc.and researches new tools and tactics that can be used by clients. She supports outreach for the Army Contracting Command's ArmyHire.com website and helped them win an inaugural NVTC Social Media Award for Best Use of LinkedIn in 2010. This recruitment website regularly showcases career opportunities within the Army Contracting Command. Heather is also a Top 100 member on GovLoop, the social network for government and has a featured blog, "This is Govable". She also is a contributing blogger for OhMyGov!. Heather can be found on Twitter (@heathercoleman) and on LinkedIn at http://www.linkedin.com/in/heathermcoleman.

• Greg Cypes, Director of Product, Clearspring (@gregcypes) - Greg Cypes joined Clearspring as the Director of Product to help the company develop and execute on its vision to bring user-centric sharing to the AddThis network. Before joining Clearspring, Greg served in several lead technical roles for AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) product suite. At AOL, Greg was credited with transforming AOL's client software from a self-contained entity to one of the most robust and powerful open messaging and peer-2-peer networks in the world. He’s well-known in the industry for pioneering next-generation communication tools that have enabled people to better connect and share via the social networks they love like Twitter and Facebook through the AIM platform. Greg's spoken at tons of industry events, including SXSW, Web 2.0 Expo, MashupCamps, Future of Web Apps, Techcrunch 50 and W3C, and has been quote and contributed content to today’s leading business and technology trade publications.

• Jason Parker, Director of Strategic Partnerships, Brazen Careerist (@jasonhparker) - Jason Parker is the Director of Strategic Partnerships for Brazen Careerist, a DC-based startup. Jason creates partnerships with universities to provide opportunities for alumni and students to participate in virtual recruiting events with Fortune 500 employers. Prior to his work with Brazen, Jason was a successful recruiter and then marketing manager for a DC-based IT recruitment firm. Simply put, Jason helps get great people great jobs.

• Charles Purdy, Senior Editor, Monster Careers (@monstercareers) - Charles Purdy is the senior editor of Monster; he has appeared on CNN’s “Your Bottom Line,” Fox Business News, and Wall Street Journal Radio, and his career advice has appeared on Forbes.com, CNBC.com, CBS SmartMoney.com, and many other financial sites. He is also the author of the book “Urban Etiquette” and a former managing editor of “Macworld” magazine.

• Scott Talan, Assistant Professor of Communication, American University (@talan) - Scott Talan, MPA, has worked in media, PR, and communications in four distinct fields: TV News, Politics, Nonprofits and Higher Education. Scott worked at the United Nations, Harvard University and the New Mexico Legislature. He recently served as the Director of Communications for the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs. Talan has worked as a writer at ABC News Good Morning America for hosts Diane Sawyer and Charlie Gibson. He's also reported on-air for local TV news stations in several states (Florida, New Mexico, California) covering politics including the 2000 presidential recount story. Before news, Talan was as an elected city council member and Mayor of Lafayette, California. His first career was in nonprofit communications working for the March of Dimes.