Among the events celebrating the inauguration of Thomas Poon, Ph.D., as Loyola Marymount University’s 17th president, is a symposium that explores the impact of artificial intelligence on society, putting LMU in the center of society’s hottest conversation topic.
On Monday, Dec. 1, 2025, in the Life Sciences Building Auditorium, Safiya U. Noble, Ph.D., will deliver a keynote before a panel of distinguished academics exploring the trending theme further.
Following Dr. Noble’s keynote, there will be a moderated-panel discussion featuring Noble and LMU faculty scholars who approach AI from a range of disciplines. The evening will conclude with a post-event reception.
The keynote address will focus on the impact of AI on society, a touchpoint for all and something that intersects both scholarly and academic lives. The featured keynote speaker is Dr. Safiya U. Noble, David O. Sears Presidential Endowed Chair of Social Sciences and Professor of Gender Studies, African American Studies, and Information Studies at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). She is the Director of the Center on Resilience & Digital Justice and Co-Director of the Minderoo Initiative on Tech & Power at the UCLA Center for Critical Internet Inquiry (C2i2). Dr. Noble is the author of the best-selling book Algorithms of Oppression: How Search Engines Reinforce Racism. In 2021, she was recognized as a MacArthur Foundation Fellow for her ground-breaking work on algorithmic discrimination.
The forthcoming December digital issue of LMU Magazine also includes a feature on Dr. Noble’s work.
Panel Discussion Participants
Moderator:
Mairead Sullivan, M.S.W., Ph.D., professor of women’s and gender studies in the LMU Bellarmine College of Liberal Arts, director of the University Core Curriculum, principal investigator of a Mellon Foundation grant to advance the intersection of AI and disability studies, and member of the University Taskforce on Generative AI.
Panelists:
Safiya U. Noble, Ph.D., professor at UCLA, where she serves as the director of the Center on Resilience and Digital Justice and co-director of the Minderoo Initiative on Tech and Power.
Colin Doyle, J.D., associate professor of law at LMU Loyola Law School and member of the University Taskforce on Generative AI.
Jordan Freitas, Ph.D., associate professor of computer science in the LMU Frank R. Seaver College of Science and Engineering, co-chair of the University Task Force on Generative AI, and Faculty Senate secretary.
Justin Trevor Winters, instructor of screenwriting and creative technology in the LMU School of Film and Television, director of The Innovators Film Festival, Mellon Faculty Fellow (2025), and member of the University Taskforce on Generative AI.
The symposium is free and open to the public. Advance registration is required; you can RSVP here.