Southern Miss Human Capital Development Ph.D. Alum publishes articles on military training

Fri, 13/01/2023 – 14:32 | By: Dena Temple

Graduating from the University of Southern Mississippi Human Capital Development program in 2016, Dr. Richard Ayers recently presented two significant research papers at the Interservice/Industry Training, Simulation and Education (I/ITSEC) Conference. in Orlando, Florida.

I/ITSEC is the world’s largest modeling, simulation and training event. It is sponsored by the National Training and Simulation Association (NTSA), which promotes cooperation among the Armed Forces, industry, academia, and various government agencies in pursuit of better training and education programs, identification of common training problems, and development of multiple service programs. Because the NTSA is an affiliated subsidiary of the National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA), the conference emphasizes issues related to defense and security.

Ayers, who retired from the US Army in 2018, currently works as an organizational design and change management consultant for Booz Allen Hamilton. With more than 29,000 employees worldwide, the company provides consulting services in the defense, health, energy, international development and other fields.

The first of Ayers’ two articles, “A Multi-Method Learning Framework for Multi-Ability Airmen,” develops best practices for situational and experiential learning integrated with virtual reality technology in a training environment, specifically for the United States Air Force. USA is the sole author of this article.

Ayers co-authored the second paper, “Developing a Searchable Web-Based Repository for Sharing ARVR Training Assets,” with five Air Force and civilian colleagues. This document describes the Air Force Research Laboratory’s effort to design and develop a web-based Community of Practice in response to the explosion of interest in the use of commercial Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR)-ready technologies. to use in training. This virtual community allows designers to easily share assets and help users learn from each other through webinars and discussion groups.

“The PhD in Human Capital Development. The program at USM absolutely prepared me for the very competitive world of defense consulting,” Ayers said in a recent interview. “I would not have been able to do the research and write it without the team
[at the School of Leadership].”

“Dr. Ayers is just one of our graduates making a difference,” said Dr. Heather Annulis, director of the USM School of Leadership, which offers the Ph.D. program in Human Capital Development. “Her Your desire to positively influence change and your commitment to taking Air Force combat effectiveness training to the next level ensure your success. We are proud to call you a Southern Miss Alumnus.”

The School of Leadership is located within the University of Southern Mississippi College of Business and Economic Development and operates on the Coastal USM campus in Long Beach, Miss.

For more information on the degree programs offered by the School of Leadership, visit https://www.usm.edu/leadership or email SchoolOfLeadershipFREEMississippi.