MVP and MLSA Collaboration Benefits Tech and Community

From November to December 2023, an online session series titled "Learn Live: Build your AI portfolio with AI Kick-off Challenge Projects" was held for individuals looking to apply AI to solve real-world problems. The series kicked off with "Build a minigame console app with GitHub Copilot" as part of the Microsoft Ignite 2023 sessions, where Microsoft Cloud Advocates demonstrated how to create a game using GitHub Copilot.

Episodes 2 and 3 were both collaborations involving Microsoft MVPs and Microsoft Learn Student Ambassadors. Episode 2 featured a session titled "Add image analysis and generation capabilities to your application" led by Ivana Tilca, an AI and Microsoft Azure MVP who has been previously featured on this MVP Communities Blog (e.g. Microsoft Ignite & Microsoft MVP - Global Experience), and a Microsoft Learn Student Ambassador, Rachel Irabor. Episode 3, "Build a Speech Translator App," was presented by AI MVP Charles Elwood and Microsoft Learn Student Ambassador Vidushi Gupta, explaining how to develop a Speech Translator App.

Charles reflected on the collaboration as both fun and meaningful. “The comments from the audience were so positive on the Learn Live episode, I think we helped a lot of people that day. It was a lot of work though. Vidushi and I spent so many hours debugging the code and the documentation was nonexistent for the Power Apps connectors.”

He continues, "Vidushi would work on this until 4am, then send us emails, and then had to study for finals. So, she had to take breaks, and I was in LA visiting family to take breaks. Then, Carlotta Castelluccio (Cloud Advocate) brought in some help, and Someleze Diko (Cloud Advocate) and Olanrewaju Oyinbooke (MI/AI Researcher, COSMOS at UALR) guided us through Power Apps.  It was the most interesting collaboration where AI brought this amazing group of people together to solve a problem (and we were in all corners of the world). I wish I could bottle this up.”

Vidushi noted the scarcity of female Student Ambassadors focused on Power Platform and expressed her ambition to become an MVP someday. “She has the persistence to solve the big problems and she has such a good and friendly teaching style. I was so impressed,” Charles praised her potential and influence, offering advice and encouragement toward achieving her goal to become an AI MVP.

The "Learn Live: Build your AI portfolio with AI Kick-off Challenge Projects" series allowed community members worldwide to embark on new journeys of AI technology. Moreover, the preparation for these sessions provided MVPs and Student Ambassadors with shared experiences from which they could learn extensively from each other. Charles's mentorship might pave the way for Vidushi's future inclusion in the MVP program, potentially expanding the global MVP community circle and fostering ideal ecosystems through new collaborations between MVPs and Student Ambassadors.

The impact of such collaborations is immeasurable. The joint sessions between Microsoft MVPs and Microsoft Learn Student Ambassadors are a prime example of this. We encourage you to explore different collaborations with people in various roles, gaining new perspectives, knowledge, and experiences.

If you are eager to learn more about the topics shared in this series, official Learn Modules are available on Microsoft Learn:

- Challenge project - Build a minigame with GitHub Copilot and Python - Training | Microsoft Learn

- Challenge project - Add image analysis and generation capabilities to your application - Training | Microsoft Learn

- Challenge project - Build a speech translator app - Training | Microsoft Learn

For those interested in learning more about the "Learn Live: Build your AI portfolio with AI Kick-off Challenge Projects" series, a comprehensive review is available on the Educator Developer Blog.

Learn Live - Build your AI portfolio with AI Kick-off Challenge Projects - Microsoft Community Hub