The Shenandoah Center for Immersive Learning (SCiL) will hold a half-day symposium on virtual reality (VR) and the future of learning on Thursday, Nov. 14.

The symposium runs from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the SCiL lab in the basement of the Health and Life Sciences building on the Winchester main campus. Attendees will discuss the place of VR in the future of learning and workforce preparedness, along with the potential for VR uses in the field of mental health.

Additionally, demonstrations of faculty and student VR apps, ranging from a virtual debate stage to civil rights and medical simulations, will be presented in the SCIL studio.

The event is free and open to the public.

During the symposium, SCiL will premiere “The Mind of a Teen Shooter,” an interactive virtual learning experience meant to delve into the causes of school shooting events and to help identify solutions.

The 20-minute experience allows attendees to explore the mindset of a teen shooter through a variety of documented memories of nine real-life teen shooters. There will be commentary from experts on teen shooter psychology, including State Department officials and renowned psychologists. The symposium will include a conversation with actors and crew of “The Mind of a Teen Shooter.”

The project is a collaboration between Shenandoah Conservatory and SCiL.

If you are interested in attending the event, please RSVP to jruscell14@su.edu and provide your name; agency, university or corporate affiliation; email address and phone number.

Only attendees who pre-register will receive a boxed lunch. Please bring your registration confirmation with you.

VR Symposium Schedule

11 a.m. to noon

Pre-scheduled viewing of “The Mind of a Teen Shooter” app

Noon to 12:20 p.m.

Welcome remarks

• J.J. Ruscella, MFA | Executive director of SCiL

12:20 to 12:40 p.m.

Lunch

12:45 p.m. to 1:45 p.m.

Discussion with cast and crew on the production of “The Mind of a Teen Shooter.”

• Erin Bogdanski | CEO of Thera, moderator

2 p.m. to 2:45 p.m.

The New Workforce and VR-Based Immersive Learning: Mental Health Care & Corporate Training.

• Richard Kozlow | CEO of NW Works

3 p.m. to 3:45 p.m.

Perspectives on the Future of Learning in Virtual Worlds.

• Jesse Schell | CEO of Schell Games
• Andy Mink | Vice president of education at the National Humanities Center
• Phaedra Boinodiris | Representative from IBM’s Academy of Technology
• Tim Taylor | Instructional technology supervisor at Shenandoah County Public Schools

3:45 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Wrap up with J.J. Ruscella