An equal partnership.
Two IIN hubs, four investigators, and a Peoria-based community workforce organization, sharing governance, deliverables, and credit.
Three nodes, shared community impact.
The investigators.
Dr. Kang leads the partnership and technical architecture for the human-reviewed knowledge engine. His work in recommender systems, efficient AI, machine learning, computer vision, and robotics helps translate scattered workforce resources into structured, reviewable pathway guidance that can be maintained by partners over time.
Dr. Rashid brings applied AI, cyber-physical-social systems, IoT, robotics, and prototype-building expertise to the project. He supports responsible AI safeguards, workforce data organization, evaluation instrumentation, training materials, and the cloud workflow needed to turn the pilot into a usable system.
Dr. Chan connects the technical pilot to public-facing AI education, stakeholder engagement, and clear communication. His interdisciplinary background in mathematical sciences, philosophy, and campus AI learning communities supports workshops, pilot sessions, feedback interpretation, and responsible community use.
Mr. Palmer grounds the pilot in Peoria-area workforce realities and community capacity building. Through Cultivation Institute and regional engineering leadership, he helps identify priority pathways, convene employers and community stakeholders, review modules for local relevance, and shape sustainability and replication planning.