Welcome to the Summer 2025 edition of News Bytes! News Bytes is your go-to source for the latest happenings at Drexel University's College of Computing & Informatics (CCI), where we recognize academic and professional milestones of our students and faculty, including notable achievements in conferences, scholarships, awards, fellowships and more. Whether you're looking for inspiration or just want to stay in the loop, we’ve got highlights from across the CCI community.
Conferences and Presentations
Professor Rosina Weber Highlights XAI Challenges at IJCAI 2025, Joins AAAI Executive Council
Rosina Weber,
PhD
At the International Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence (IJCAI) 2025 held in Montreal, Canada this August, CCI Professor Rosina Weber, PhD, presented her topic, “XAI Is in Trouble,” linking problems with definitions, motivations and evaluation practices to explainable AI’s interdisciplinary nature and to inadequate scientific rigor. She highlighted recommendations to avoid these problems as well as open research questions for the field.
Earlier in 2025, Weber, professor of information science and computer science, was elected to the Executive Council of the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AAAI), a nonprofit scientific society devoted to advancing the scientific understanding of the mechanisms underlying thought and intelligent behavior and their embodiment in machines.
Scholarships, Grants and Fellowships
Robb Hall
Cybersecurity Student Robb Hall Awarded Scholarship
Hall, BS cyber security and information technology '25 and a CCI undergraduate dean’s ambassador, received a $10,000 scholarship from Google and Student Veterans of America (SVA). The scholarship assists student veterans who pursue computer science degrees in the United States.
Spring Mini Grants Propel Student Research
Pennoni Honors College’s Undergraduate Research and Enrichment Programs office awarded 12 Drexel student-faculty pairs with mini grants of up to $1,000, funding research, scholarship and creative work in spring 2025. CCI students Gary Pham, computer science '25; Nihar Shah, economics and data science '28; and Madeline Navea, psychology '25 with a data science minor, were among the recipients.
Jessica Medina
Information Science PhD Student Shares Insights on Doctoral Fellowship
In a recent profile, Jessica Medina, a student in CCI’s PhD in Information Science program, provided an in-depth account of the CSGrad4US fellowship’s timeline and the support it afforded her while she applied to PhD programs. Medina additionally touched on the research progress and goals she’s pursuing as part of her doctoral studies.
Competitions
Student Teams Innovate Disaster Relief Solutions
Student teams developed market-based disaster relief solutions—focused on preparedness, mitigation, response, recovery, prevention and communication—within a single day before pitching their ideas at the Baiada Institute Innovation Tournament held at Drexel earlier this year. Winning teams included: Insure 3D, featuring CCI’s Prashastha Nirwan, computer science ’26; and Disaster Ready, featuring CCI computer science students Abdul Chaudhry ’27, Ame Shajid ’28 and Samii Shabuse ’27.
Corporate Partners
Expanding Industry Collaboration with Comcast Through MSAIML
A graduation ceremony for a recent Comcast cohort of students.
CCI is deepening its partnership with Comcast, offering a cohort of the telecommunications firm’s employees an MS in Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning beginning this fall. Designed for 35–40 employees, the program features three embedded certificates: Applied AI & ML, Computational AI & ML, and Big Data Analytics—advancing workforce development in cutting-edge technologies.
Community Impact
Empowering Future Tech Leaders: CCI’s Summer Camp Opens Doors to AI, VR and Cybersecurity
Working together at CCI's Digital Development Camp—VirtuaQuest, 2025.
This summer, 87 high school and incoming CCI first-year students immersed themselves in Drexel’s Digital Development Camp—VirtuaQuest, a three-week program designed to prepare young minds for the future of technology. Led by CCI faculty and staff, the camp offered cutting-edge courses in AI, quantum computing and virtual reality, alongside hands-on workshops and enrichment sessions.
In the News
CCI Professor Completes 100-Mile Race, Earns JASIST Paper Nomination
Tim Gorichanaz,
PhD
Tim Gorichanaz, PhD, associate teaching professor at Drexel CCI, fulfilled a long-time goal by completing the Western States® 100-Mile Endurance Run in June 2025. Despite an ankle injury, he not only finished the race but also contributed to research on endurance athletes.
In addition to his athletic accomplishments, Gorichanaz was honored in the academic sphere: his paper, “Virtuous search: A framework for intellectual virtue in online search,” was shortlisted for the prestigious 2025 Best Paper Award by the Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology (JASIST), the top journal in information science.
Highlighting Capstone and Senior Projects
Boast Guards, the first place and top gaming project team at the CCI Senior Project Showcase 2025.
From building accessible archival guides to developing AI tools for medical writing, Drexel CCI students are turning classroom knowledge into community-focused solutions. These articles covering CCI’s Capstone/Senior Projects highlight how students collaborate with industry partners, apply technical skills, and advocate for broader understanding—demonstrating the power of experiential learning at Drexel.
Celebrating Commencement
A scene from Drexel CCI's Class of 2025 commencement ceremony.
The University graduated its Class of 2025 at a historic University-wide event June 12 that stressed the value of a Drexel education and continuing experiential learning while ceremony speakers shared advice, reflections and life lessons.