AWS Education Podcast

In this episode, Pratik Chunawala shares his experience bridging the gap between academia and industry through deep partnerships with NYU Tandon, Carnegie Mellon University, and the City University of New York (CUNY). As a Principal Consultant in AWS ProServe, Pratik discusses how he's helping shape curriculum to prepare students for the AI era, moving beyond tool usage to governance, security arc...

In this episode, Sarah Currey shares her insights on building a culture of security through AWS's Security Champions program and the innovative approaches to AI security in the age of autonomous agents. She discusses the launch of the free Security Champion Knowledge Path on AWS Skill Builder, AWS's partnership with Mido Academy in South Africa, and critical considerations for securing agentic AI...

Episode Details   Date:   April 13, 2026 Duration: ~26 minutes  Speakers: Pranusha Manchala (Host), Joe Chapman (Principal Solutions Architect at AWS)  Episode Summary   In this episode, Joe Chapman joins Pranusha Manchala to discuss the critical importance of resiliency in generative AI applications for education. Joe shares his expertise on building highly reliable...

Episode Details   Date: March 30, 2026  Duration: ~23 minutes  Host: Pranusha Manchala   Guests:    Darren Kraker, Solutions Architect, AWS Cloud Innovation Center  Ryan Maine, Director of Student Services, Walnut Valley Unified School District  Jeremy Goins, Deputy Superintendent, Corona Norco Unified School District  Sharon Liang, Software Engineer In...

Episode Details   Date: March 16, 2026  Duration: ~26 minutes  Host: Pranusha Manchala   Guest: Mike Kenny, Owner of Math Fact Lab  Episode Summary   In this episode, Mike Kenny shares the inspiring journey of Math Fact Lab, a platform revolutionizing how students master foundational math skills. As a former fifth-grade math teacher with 19 years of experience, M...

Episode Details   Date:  2026-03-02  Duration: ~15 minutes  Speakers: Leo Zhadanovsky (Host), Zach Pendleton (Chief Architect at Instructure)    Episode Summary   In this episode, Zach Pendleton, Chief Architect at Instructure, shares how the company built Ignite AI—an agentic AI solution powered by Amazon Bedrock—to transform educator and student experiences in...

Episode Details   Date: 2026-02-16  Duration: ~7 minutes  Speakers: Leo Zhadanovsky (Host, Enterprise Technologist for Education at AWS), Gayathri Rengarajan (Guest, Associate Director of Data Science at PowerSchool)  Episode Summary   In this special re:Invent episode, Gayathri from PowerSchool shares the journey of building Power Buddy, an AI-powered learning assistant t...

Episode Details:   Duration:  ~29 minutes  Host:  Bret Pontillo  Guests:   Bharath Prabhakaran - VP and Chief Digital Officer, University of Cincinnati  Josette Riep - AVP of Integrated Data Engineering and Application Services, University of Cincinnati  Episode Summary:   In this episode, Bret Pontillo sits down with two leaders from the University of Cincinnati...

Episode Details: Duration: ~32 minutes Date: 2026-01-26 Speakers: Bret Pontillo (Host), Ludo Francois (CEO & Founder, TrackIt), Brad Winett (President & Partner, TrackIt) Episode Summary: In this episode, Bret Pontillo sits down with TrackIt's leadership team to explore how system integrators are transforming education through AWS cloud solutions. Ludo Francois and Brad Winett share their...

Episode Details:   Date:  2026-01-19 Duration:  ~27 minutes  Speakers:  Host - Bret Pontillo, Guest - Deepika Chopra (CEO & Founder of Alpha U AI, Author)  Episode Summary:   In this episode, Deepika Chopra, CEO and founder of Alpha U AI and author of "Move First, Align Fast," shares her insights on organizational alignment and AI adoption. Drawing from 15+ years in financi...

Episode Details: Date: 2026-01-12 Duration: ~20 minutes Speakers: Pranusha Manchala, Bret Pontillo Episode Summary: In this episode, Pranusha and Bret dive deep into Amazon Q Business, AWS's most capable generative AI-powered assistant. They explore how educational institutions can quickly build custom AI applications using natural language, leverage Q Apps for personalized learning experiences, a...

Episode Details: Date: 2026-01-05 Duration: ~32 minutes Speakers: Brett Pontillo (Host), Nico Menciere (Guest - Senior Startup Solution Architect at AWS) Episode Summary: In this episode, Brett Pontillo sits down with Nico Menciere, a Senior Startup Solution Architect at AWS specializing in Web3 and FinTech companies. Nico provides an in-depth exploration of stablecoins, decentralized finance (DeF...

Episode Details Date: 2025-12-29 Duration: ~20 minutes Speakers: Pranusha Manchala (Host), Bret Pontillo (Co-host), Vanitha Sugumaran (AWS Solution Architect Leader) Episode Summary In this special episode recorded at the AWS DC Summit, Vanitha Sugumaran shares her inspiring journey from manufacturing at John Deere to leading AWS's Solutions Architect team. She discusses her leadership philosophy,...

Episode Details Date: 2025-12-22 Duration: ~25 minutes Speakers: Pranusha Manchala (Host), Brett Pontillo (Host), James Kuhlke (Principal Solution Architect at AWS) Episode Summary In this special episode recorded at the AWS DC Summit, James Kuhlke, a Principal Solution Architect at AWS, shares his insights on how AI is transforming education. With 6 years of experience working with strategic EdTe...

Episode Details: Date: 2025-12-15 Duration: ~20 minutes Speakers: Bret Pontillo (Host), Brett Berman (Solution Architect Manager at AWS) Episode Summary: In this episode of the AWS Education Podcast, host Bret Pontillo sits down with Brett Berman, Solution Architect Manager at AWS, to explore how artificial intelligence is transforming personalized learning in K-12 education. Brett shares insights...

Episode Details: Date: 2025-12-08 Duration: ~20 minutes Speakers: Bret Pontillo (Host), David Gendle (Senior Manager of Solutions Architecture) Episode Summary In this episode of the AWS Education Podcast, host Bret Pontillo sits down with David Gendle, Senior Manager of Solutions Architecture for AWS's Southeast region, to discuss the critical challenges faced by higher education and state/local...

Episode Details: Date: 2025-12-03 Duration: ~16 minutes Speakers: Host : Shane Kalil (AWS Higher Education Lead, Northeast), Guest : Joseph T. Yun (Director of AI & Professor at University of Pittsburgh, CEO of Blue Fox Labs) Episode Summary: In this special DC Summit edition, Shane Kalil sits down with Joseph T. Yun, who brings a unique dual perspective as both a professor of electrical and c...

Episode Details: Date:  2025-10-27 Duration:  ~27 minutes Speakers:  Host - Bret Pontillo, Guest - Sanjay Srivastava, CEO and Founder of Vocareum Episode Summary: In this episode, Sanjay Srivastava shares his entrepreneurial journey from semiconductor design to education technology, discussing how Vocareum is revolutionizing hands-on learning through virtual labs and cloud sandboxes...

Description Episode Details: Date: 2025-10-06 Duration: ~15 minutes Speakers: Host - Pranusha Manchala, Guest - Richa Batra, Senior VP of Anthology Episode Summary: In this episode, Richa Batra shares Anthology's digital transformation journey, particularly focusing on how they're leveraging AWS and AI to revolutionize student support services in higher education. She discusses their transition fr...

Episode Details Date: 2025-10-1 Duration: ~20 minutes Speakers: Host - Pranusha Manchala, Guest - Leo Zhadanovsky (Ent Technologist EDU/SLG) Episode Summary This episode explores the transformative impact of Generative AI in education technology, featuring insights from Leo Zhadanovsky. The discussion covers practical applications of AWS's GenAI tools, including Q for Business, Amazon Bedrock, and...

Episode Details: Date: 2025-08-15 Duration: ~25 minutes Speakers: Pranusha Manchala (Host), Craig Jordan (Principal SA at AWS) Episode Summary: This episode of the AWS Education Podcast focuses on the importance of data strategy in higher education. Craig Jordan, a Principal SA in the AWS education team, discusses how institutions can unlock the power of data to improve various aspects of their op...

Episode Details Date: 2025-08-01 Duration: ~34 minutes Speakers: Brett Pontillo (Host), Dallas Maddox (AWS Higher Ed Data Analytics Strategy Lead) Episode Summary This episode explores the evolution of data strategy in higher education, featuring insights from Dallas Maddox, who brings experience as both a former university Chief Data Officer and current AWS Higher Ed Data Analytics Strategy Lead....

Episode Details: Date: 2025-08-18 Duration: ~38 minutes Speakers: Host: Pranusha Manchala (AWS Education Podcast Host) Guest: Leo Zhadanovsky (Enterprise Technologist at AWS) Episode Summary: Leo Zhadanovsky shares insights from Amazon's 20+ years of software development and operational excellence, discussing the transformation from monolithic to microservice architectures. He explores how educati...

Episode Details Date: 2025-08-04 Duration: ~51 minutes Speakers: Host: Bret Pontillo (AWS Education Podcast Host) Guest: Nate Ober (AI Strategist at AWS) Episode Summary In this engaging episode, Nate Ober shares his journey from education technology to AI strategy at AWS, exploring the transformative potential of AI agents in education and daily life. The discussion covers practical applications...

Episode Details Date: 2025-07-21 Duration: ~38 minutes Speakers: Host: Bret Pontillo (AWS Education Podcast Host) Guest: Mary Strain (AI Strategist for Education at AWS) Episode Summary In this insightful episode, Mary Strain shares her journey from classroom teacher to AI strategist and explores how AI Knowledge Graphs are revolutionizing higher education. The discussion covers the current challe...