{"674396":{"#nid":"674396","#data":{"type":"news","title":"LMC Scholar of Cognition and Creativity Named Regents\u2019 Professor","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EBrian Magerko, whose groundbreaking work in cognition, coding education, and creativity has been featured in classrooms across the country and even in celebrity-led music competitions, has been named a Regents\u2019 Professor by the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201cThis is really as much a comment on the amazing quality of collaborators and mentors that I have had the good fortune to work with as it is anything about me,\u201d said \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/iac.gatech.edu\/people\/person\/brian-magerko\u0022 rel=\u0022noreferrer noopener\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003EMagerko\u003C\/a\u003E, who has been at Georgia Tech\u2019s \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/lmc.gatech.edu\/\u0022 rel=\u0022noreferrer noopener\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003ESchool of Literature, Media, and Communication\u003C\/a\u003E (LMC) since 2007. \u201cI wouldn\u0027t be able to do the kind of multidisciplinary work I do in creativity and computing without their invaluable efforts and insight. I feel very fortunate to be working at Georgia Tech and just hope that my work has helped make the world a little bit of a better place.\u201d\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EIn their nomination letter, LMC Chair Kelly Ritter and former Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts Dean Kaye Husbands Fealing said that Magerko is \u201cnot just a leading researcher who serves as a role model for junior faculty, postdoctoral fellows, and graduate students; he is also someone who takes that expertise and puts it to work in creating a strong and forward-looking vision for his colleagues and program, and in doing so, provides pathways for others to accomplish their own professional and intellectual goals.\u201d\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EMagerko, who has brought more than $15 million in funding to Georgia Tech, becomes the second active Regents\u2019 Professor in LMC, along with science fiction scholar Lisa Yaszek, and the fifth in the Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts. The others are Marilyn A. Brown in the School of Public Policy, Willie Pearson in the School of History and Sociology, and Seymour E. Goodman in the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs. Additionally, Brad Fain, director of the Center for Advanced Communications Policy, holds the title of Regents\u2019 Researcher, and Kirk Bowman in the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs holds that title of Regents\u2019 Entrepreneur.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003ERitter praised Magerko as a researcher who \u201cmakes significant, impactful, and cross-disciplinary contributions to the fields of cognitive science, computer science, and computational media research.\u201d\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201cHe seeks to better understand social collaboration and creativity between humans and artificial intelligence, as well as how to use computing to improve the lives of marginalized populations, which is emblematic of the humanistic-centered, social-justice mission that undergirds LMC as a whole,\u201d Ritter said.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EWorking with Jason Freeman in the School of Music, Magerko helped lead development of \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/earsketch.gatech.edu\/landing\/#\/\u0022 rel=\u0022noreferrer noopener\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003EEarSketch\u003C\/a\u003E, a popular application designed to teach coding through music. More than 1.5 million students across the U.S. and overseas have used the platform. The program was also central to \u201cYour Voice is Power\u201d music competitions sponsored by Amazon Future Engineer and featuring Pharrell Williams, among others.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003ESince then, he has worked on National Science Foundation grants to extend EarSketch\u2019s capabilities to include artificial intelligence and more capabilities for \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/news.gatech.edu\/news\/2023\/06\/21\/making-coding-education-more-accessible-blind-and-visually-impaired-youth\u0022 rel=\u0022noreferrer noopener\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003Eusers with visual impairments\u003C\/a\u003E. He also helped create \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/expressivemachinery.gatech.edu\/tunetable\/\u0022 rel=\u0022noreferrer noopener\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003ETuneTable\u003C\/a\u003E, a musical interactive tabletop exhibit that teaches the basics of computer coding.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EMore recently, he has been working on a project called \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/expressivemachinery.gatech.edu\/projects\/luminai\/\u0022 rel=\u0022noreferrer noopener\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003ELuminAI\u003C\/a\u003E, which involves creating an avatar powered by artificial intelligence capable of improvising dance moves with humans. That project will soon culminate in an exhibition at Kennesaw State University, where Magerko is collaborating with Andrea Knowlton of KSU\u2019s Department of Dance.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EAdditionally, Magerko \u2014 who holds courtesy appointments in the School of Psychology and the College of Computing \u2014 has published more than 100 peer-reviewed articles on computational media, cognition, and learning during his career. He is also a senior researcher at the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/aialoe.org\/\u0022 rel=\u0022noreferrer noopener\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003ENSF Adult Learning and Online Education AI Institute\u003C\/a\u003E.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EIn addition to his research work, Magerko also serves as director of graduate studies for LMC\u2019s \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/dm.lmc.gatech.edu\/\u0022 rel=\u0022noreferrer noopener\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003EDigital Media\u003C\/a\u003E program, which produces master\u2019s and Ph.D. graduates prepared to take on jobs in digital media, game design, user experience research, higher education, and more.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201cDr. Magerko exemplifies our teaching and educational mission in his work on behalf of our Digital Media program,\u201d Ritter said. \u201cHe has built an already strong and forward-looking program into an even better one that provides pathways for students to accomplish their own professional and intellectual goals. He is a tremendous asset to LMC, the Ivan Allen College, and Georgia Tech, and we\u2019re thrilled the Board of Regents has chosen to award him this well-deserved distinction.\u201d\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp lang=\u0022EN-US\u0022\u003EMagerko is one of 19 Georgia Tech faculty to \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/news.gatech.edu\/news\/2024\/04\/25\/19-tech-faculty-receive-regents-distinctions\u0022 rel=\u0022noreferrer noopener\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003Ereceive\u003C\/a\u003E Regents\u2019 distinctions this year.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","summary":"","format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EBrian Magerko becomes the fifth active Regents\u0027 Professor in the Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Brian Magerko becomes the fifth active Regents\u0027 Professor in the Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts"}],"uid":"34600","created_gmt":"2024-04-25 21:01:29","changed_gmt":"2024-04-26 16:11:18","author":"mpearson34","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2024-04-25T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2024-04-25T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"673857":{"id":"673857","type":"image","title":"Brian Magerko","body":null,"created":"1714078898","gmt_created":"2024-04-25 21:01:38","changed":"1714078898","gmt_changed":"2024-04-25 21:01:38","alt":"\u0022\u0022","file":{"fid":"257306","name":"brian magerko.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/2024\/04\/25\/brian%20magerko.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/2024\/04\/25\/brian%20magerko.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":305927,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/2024\/04\/25\/brian%20magerko.jpg?itok=8JjDvoLp"}}},"media_ids":["673857"],"groups":[{"id":"1281","name":"Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts"},{"id":"1283","name":"School of Literature, Media, and Communication"}],"categories":[],"keywords":[],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:michael.pearson@iac.gatech.edu\u0022\u003EMichael Pearson\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\r\nIvan Allen College of Liberal Arts\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["michael.pearson@iac.gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}