Instructor: Jon Caris, Director of the Spatial Analysis Lab, Smith College

Jon directs the Spatial Analysis Lab at Smith College which supports classes across the curriculum as well as faculty and student scholarship. He studies how decisions made in the political economy manifest themselves upon the landscape. He is particularly interested in visualizing partitioned, regulated space that unintentionally marginalizes individuals and communities. Jon began tinkering with drones in 2013 to capture aerial imagery for a variety of mapping and research projects.  He is now a FAA certified remote pilot and teaches short courses and workshops on drone technology and applications with emphasis on mapping and broadly understanding the emergence of this disruptive technology.

Instructor: Kate Lee, Senior Media Producer, Smith College

Kate is a national award winning writer and producer, and a strong advocate for media that informs and inspires, both through production and education. Lee currently serves as Senior Media Producer at Smith College where her job responsibilities include instructional design, curricular development, and multimedia production. Lee’s primary focus is to facilitate knowledge building and creativity through the leverage of instructional design and technology. Lee is a FAA certified remote pilot dedicated to helping others explore their creative potential on the ground and in the air. Prior to Smith, Lee served as Media Consultant at The University of Michigan in Ann Arbor where she built and managed a professional video and audio recording studio.

Tracy Tien, Spatial Data Specialist, Smith College

Tracy works with students and faculty whose research intersects with spatial science. Her affinity for the bird's eye view extends from satellites to drones. She's interested in the research capabilities of UAVs, from data acquisition to deriving digital models of the landscape. She's a FAA certified remote pilot and part of the Spatial Analysis Lab team that teaches short courses/workshops regarding drones and considers how this emerging technology influences human spatial narratives.