Our Team

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Our Staff

Shalimar Quiles

Jeffrey Riley

Valerie Brock

Vicky Vlantis

Matt Taylor

Ethan Berman

Randi Williams

Angela Marzilli

Jorge Gallardo

Shalimar Quiles

Shalimar Quiles has built a distinguished career as an educational leader dedicated to advancing equity and excellence across sectors. Shalimar began her career with the UP Education Network, where she played a key role in launching Boston’s first Horace Mann Charter School. She then transitioned to the Lawrence Public Schools where she held various leadership positions over the last decade including Student Re-engagement Manager, Chief of Staff to the state-appointed Receiver/ Superintendent, and most recently as the Principal of the Oliver Elementary School. In addition to her role as Educator, Shalimar serves as a Trustee at Lawrence General Hospital and Northern Essex Community College, where she is also the Executive Secretary and Chair of the Nominating Committee. Shalimar holds a bachelor’s degree in communications from Simmons University and a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction from Merrimack College.

Jeffrey Riley

Jeffrey C. Riley is the former Massachusetts Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education. Prior to that position, Mr. Riley has been appointed Superintendent/Receiver of the Lawrence Public Schools, where over 6 years, he led a team that brought major improvements by shifting resources and autonomy to the school level, expanding the school day, increasing enrichment opportunities, and ensuring all schools had great leaders and teachers. Mr. Riley’s previous experience spanned urban and suburban districts and includes teaching in Baltimore, Md., being principal of Tyngsboro Middle School and Boston’s Edwards Middle School. Mr. Riley holds a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from Pomona College in California, a master’s degree in counseling from Johns Hopkins University in Maryland, and a master’s degree in school administration, planning, and social policy from Harvard University.

Valerie Brock

A new addition to the Day of AI team, Valerie was previously a Computer Science Education Manager, working with educators across NYC Public Schools to bring computer science to all. Recently, Valerie has become an AI Literacy advocate, even creating a curriculum for early childhood students to understand AI and how it affects their daily lives. Before this position, Valerie served as a teacher for Students with Disabilities in grades K through 8th for 13 years. Valerie has always integrated technology and computer science into the curriculum as an educator. Particularly finding the bridge between students’ passions and real-world scenarios to captivate their interests. Valerie’s experience with all learners has helped her design optimal professional learning opportunities for educators and engaging elementary-level curricula and resources. Valerie holds a New York State School Building Leader certificate from the College of St. Rose, a B.S. Ed. in Childhood Education, and an M.S. Ed. in Special Education from St. John’s University, respectively.

Vicky Vlantis

A graduate of Teacher’s College at Columbia University, and former teacher of all-things science, Vicky brings an academic background in Chemistry and Education to her work at DayofAI.org What she loves most about the programs is the power the courses have to positively impact teachers’ and students’ self-images and confidence, and convince them that they can do anything they put their mind to. When not hanging out with her DayofAI family, Vicky can be reliably found playing with her dogs and spending time with her family.

Matt Taylor

Matt Taylor is a professional learning facilitator and curriculum developer with Day of AI, where he helps build curricula and professional learning programs through a constructionist and critical consciousness lens. Previously, he worked with the i2learning Foundation and Boston Public Schools on implementing 21st-century curricula focused on participatory design and public school organizational transformation. Matt is also the technical lead for the Data Nutrition Project, an initiative that builds tools and learning experiences to mitigate bias perpetuated by algorithmic decision-making systems.

Ethan Berman

Ethan founded i2 Learning bringing hands-on project based learning to K12 students around the world. Prior to i2 Learning, Ethan was the CEO and founder of RiskMetrics Group a financial technology firm that he ran from startup to NYSE publicly traded company until the company was sold in 2010. Ethan is currently the President of the board of The Roxbury Latin School.

Randi Williams

Randi Williams, Ph.D., is an AI educator and tinkerer passionate about empowering others to responsibly use AI for positive social impact. In her daily role, she works with AI researchers, policymakers, and everyday changemakers to address tech misconceptions and mitigate harm. Previously, she developed K-12 AI curricula and platforms for the Day of AI and MIT RAISE initiatives, making AI instruction available to thousands of educators worldwide.

Angela Marzilli

Angela has spent her career as an educator in southern Maine. She started out as a teacher of gifted math students in grades 3-8 and then moved on to be an elementary school classroom teacher in grades 3, 4, and 5. Angela is currently the Prek-12 STEM Coordinator in a public school district in southern Maine, where she focuses on professional learning in science, math, engineering, and project-based learning.

Angela lives in southern Maine with her family, including her two young daughters. When she isn’t working, Angela enjoys adventures in the ocean and in the woods with her family. She also loves reading detective mysteries, playing games (anything but Candyland), and watching musical theatre.

Jorge Gallardo

For over 15 years, Jorge has been dedicated to education, including more than a decade in New York City Public Schools as both a science and computer science teacher and a Computer Science Education Manager. From introducing students to the foundations of computer science to supporting teachers in bringing these topics to their students, he has consistently worked to empower young minds for the demands of the technological era we’re living through. His tech journey began at a 24-hour hackathon, where a friend introduced him to the possibilities of coding, sparking a passion he’s since shared with others. Now, Jorge focuses on growing awareness and understanding of AI, equipping students and educators alike with the skills to create solutions that can improve their lives and those of others. In his free time, he enjoys making YouTube videos, coding, and creating resources encouraging others to explore the exciting world of computer science and AI.

Our Advisors

Cynthia Breazeal

Director, RAISE ● Professor, MIT Media Lab, Personal Robots Group ● Associate Director, MIT Media Lab

Eric Klopfer

Co-Director, Professional Development and Education Research ● Professor, Comparative Media Studies/Writing ● Director, Eduction Arcade ● Co-Director, J-WEL World Education Lab

Hal Abelson

Co-Director, AI Literacy & Technologies ● Professor of Computer Science and Engineering, MIT CSAIL ● Founder, App Inventor

Cynthia Breazeal

Director, RAISE ● Professor, MIT Media Lab, Personal Robots Group ● Associate Director, MIT Media Lab

Breazeal leads RAISE to advance research and innovation at the intersection of AI, social empowerment, and education and to foster diversity and inclusivity in an AI-literate society. Her research investigates new ways for K-12 students to learn about AI concepts, practices, and ethics by designing, programming, training, and interacting with robots, AI toolkits, and other technologies. Her research also develops personalized learning companions for language, literacy, and social-emotional development.

Eric Klopfer

Co-Director, Professional Development and Education Research ● Professor, Comparative Media Studies/Writing ● Director, Eduction Arcade ● Co-Director, J-WEL World Education Lab

Klopfer is an expert in serious game design to promote student engagement and learning in STEM. His work uses a design-based research methodology to span the K-12 educational technology ecosystem, from the design and development of new technologies to professional development and implementation, to prepare the next generation of STEM educators. He is the Director of the Scheller Teacher Education Program.

Hal Abelson

Co-Director, AI Literacy & Technologies ● Professor of Computer Science and Engineering, MIT CSAIL ● Founder, App Inventor

Abelson is a pioneer of constructionist learning and computational thinking. He has developed tools and programming languages to help students learn about AI and computer science. App Inventor empowers people with little programming experience to write mobile phone applications. His team is expanding App Inventor to help students learn about AI and develop AI-enabled mobile apps.

Our Day of AI team includes faculty, students, research scientists, assessment experts, and many others from the MIT RAISE Initiative and i2Learning who actively engage in research and innovation in AI, education technology, teacher professional development, pedagogy, curriculum development, and assessments. More recently, many former K12 school administrators and classroom teachers have joined our team. This has allowed us to continually update our Day of AI materials and keep pace with the frenzied arc of AI technology – while delivering easy-to-use educational materials suitable for any teacher and creative K-12 hands-on learning experiences that are relevant and engaging students around the globe.