Artificial intelligence is reshaping industries, workforce expectations, and the nature of learning itself. As University of the Pacific advances its commitment to student-centered innovation, academic excellence, and career readiness, we invite faculty, staff, students, and alumni to join a special conversation exploring the future of AI in higher education and society.

This timely discussion will be moderated by Dr. Cathy Davidson, an internationally recognized scholar, author, educator, and recipient of the 2025 Harold W. McGraw, Jr. Prize in Education. Most recently, Dr. Davidson founded the Futures Initiative at the Graduate Center (City University of New York) where she was also Distinguished Professor and served as Senior Advisor on Transformation to the CUNY Chancellor. Previously Distinguished Professor and Vice Provost for Interdisciplinary Studies at Duke University, she is co-founder and codirector of HASTAC (the world’s first and oldest academic social network) and author of more than 20 books, including the award-winning "The New Education: How to Revolutionize the University to Prepare Students for a World in Flux," and is currently writing a new book examining the impact of artificial intelligence on higher education and society.

Joining Dr. Davidson are two distinguished University of the Pacific alumni who are helping shape the future of AI and emerging technologies:

Christine Trodella (COP '92)
Vice President, Meta
Christine is responsible for bringing Meta’s LLMs to market. In addition to leading sales and partnerships, Christine spends her time understanding enterprise AI adoption patterns, LLM/API pricing and packaging strategy, competitive dynamics across the major model providers, and building repeatable GTM motions for a category that's still being defined in real time. She has been at Meta for 15 years and held leadership positions across Meta’s ads business, virtual reality and Meta glasses organizations.

Drew Henry (SOECS '85) 
Executive Vice President, Physical AI, Arm 
Drew leads Arm's Physical AI Business Unit, overseeing technologies that power automotive systems, robotics, and autonomous machines. He also leads Arm's global ecosystem strategy, including AI and developer platforms, and has held senior leadership roles at NVIDIA, SanDisk, and Silicon Graphics. 

Discussion Topics

• AI and the future of higher education
• Preparing students for an AI-driven workforce
• Responsible and human-centered AI adoption
• Emerging technologies, including spatial computing and robotics
• Industry perspectives on innovation, talent development, and career readiness
• The evolving role of universities in preparing the next generation of leaders

As highlighted in Pacific's AI Task Force recommendations, AI adoption is not simply a technological initiative. It is a strategic opportunity to enhance learning, strengthen innovation, improve student success, and equip graduates with the skills, adaptability, and ethical awareness needed to thrive in an AI-enabled world. This conversation will explore how higher education can embrace these opportunities while remaining grounded in its mission of preparing students for meaningful careers, lifelong learning, and responsible leadership.

Event Details

Date: November 12, 2026
Time: 12:00-1:00 p.m.
Location: Long Theatre

Open to all Pacific faculty, staff, students, and alumni.

We hope you will join us for this engaging discussion on the future of AI, education, and leadership in a rapidly changing world.