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iFEST Special Event Promises an Engaging Discussion on the Future of Military Learning

August 17, 2021
iFEST graphic War on the Rocks graphic

iFEST 2021, the premier annual event for showcasing the latest distributed learning science and technology, will be held 31 August to 2 September 2021. In addition to deep-dive discussions with leaders from military agencies, industry, and academia, iFEST 2021 features a unique session – Learning, Development, and Data…on the Rocks! – focused on the “new normal” of military education and training.

Ryan Evans, founder, and host of the popular War on the Rocks podcast series and website, will moderate the discussion. Panelists include Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) (invited); Major General Andrea D. Tullos, Deputy Commander of the US Air Force’s Air Education and Training Command; Brigadier General Charles T. Lombardo, Deputy Commander for training at the Army Combined Arms Center; and the Hon. Alan R. Shaffer, former Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment and former Director of the NATO Collaboration Support Office.

The discussion will focus on the challenges and promise of a modernized DoD education and training ecosystem, featuring an AI-informed, data-centric, hire-to-retire continuum of learning. The DoD has prioritized workforce technology and data monitoring goals for employee upskilling and reskilling, military personnel credentialing, technology-enabled training, next-generation wargaming, enterprise shared services, and data interoperability. How will these advancements contribute to readiness? How will new approaches for talent management affect the composition of DoD’s military and civilian workforce? What might Professional Military Education or joint military exercises look like in an unfettered, modernized future state?

This 90-minute panel discussion, live-streamed with support from the Department of Homeland Security, begins at 3:30 p.m. EDT on 31 August, and includes opportunities for iFEST participants to offer questions for the panelists. The discussion will also be recorded and redistributed as a podcast to the War on the Rocks audience of approximately 100,000 listeners.

Visit the War on the Rocks website for more information on this and other podcast recordings. Registration for iFEST 2021 is available through the National Training and Simulation Association (NTSA) website (registration is free for government employees and active-duty military personnel). Click here to download the latest iFEST 2021 conference agenda.