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March 2025

Alumnus recognized for AI expertise 

While the rest of the world is still trying to unpack the implications and abilities of artificial intelligence (AI), one Wayland alumnus is making his mark as a thought leader in the arena. Doug Shannon, a 2007 graduate of the San Antonio campus, spends his days as Global Intelligent Automation and GenAI Leader for a clinical research organization based in Switzerland. But off the clock, he researches and regularly posts about AI, Robotic Process Automation (RPA), and the technologies reshaping the way businesses operate. He was named one of the Top 25 Thought Leaders to Watch in the USA and was recognized as Thought Leader of the Year in Asia. 

In January, Doug was named a member of the Forbes Technology Council and is also a Gartner Peer Ambassador, providing insights into AI, automation, and digital transformation.

“The opportunity to collaborate with global leaders and amplify the conversation around enterprise autonomy, GenAI, and intelligent automation is something I’m truly excited about,” he said.

He is also an advisory board member for PEX Network and co-hosts a YouTube show titled Insight AI. As a Strategic Advisor in Enterprise AI, Automation, and Digital Transformation, Doug is driving the future of intelligent enterprises by guiding organizations through AI adoption, automation strategies, and multi-agent system implementations. He is part of Theia Institute, a cybersecurity and AI ethics think tank based in Washington, D.C., and a member of the IA Forum, which is collectively driving digital transformation excellence. He speaks globally on AI, automation, and enterprise transformation, sharing insights on how businesses can integrate intelligent automation to drive efficiency and innovation. 

Doug started his IT career and studies at Wayland, but as the industry evolved, so did his career path. Like many in his field, he saw his role replaced. Rather than staying stagnant, he transitioned to the business side as a Senior Business Systems Analyst, where he worked closely with quality assurance (QA) teams. Then, everything shifted again. 

One day, a VP came to him and said, “We’re not going to do QA anymore. We don’t see the value in it, but there’s this robotic process automation thing happening.” Doug was given the opportunity to explore automation, leveraging his deep IT background to navigate this emerging field. He agreed, not realizing that decision would completely redefine his career. He quickly saw that automation wasn’t just about replacing tasks. It needed resilience and adaptability to truly scale. 

That’s when he started tackling a fundamental issue, why automation breaks and how to make it self-correcting instead of failing silently.

“At the time, automation was fragile. If one thing went wrong, it failed, and you had to go back and fix it manually. I wanted to build

automation that could recover on its own, diagnose issues, and keep running," he said. 

His approach to self-healing automation not only worked but started saving companies millions of dollars in operational costs. More importantly, it preserved long-term ROI by reducing the ongoing maintenance burden that often ate into automation’s potential savings. Instead of constantly fixing broken workflows, businesses could focus on scaling automation and compounding its value over time. As word spread, he found himself driving large-scale intelligent automation initiatives across multiple organizations.

Then, everything shifted again. After recently finishing a postgraduate degree in Artificial Intelligence, where he studied how to build and architect machine learning (ML), natural language processing (NLP), and other AI-driven systems, Doug saw the landscape evolving faster than ever. 

Two years ago, on his birthday, the same day ChatGPT-3 was released, GenAI officially entered the mainstream. Having already worked extensively with machine learning models and automation, Doug immediately saw how this new technology could supercharge everything he had been building. 

“What was going on is that AI teams were struggling to get good data, and automation teams were struggling to make automation more intelligent. GenAI brought both together; good automation creates good data, and good data fuels better AI," he said. "That’s when I realized the next frontier wasn’t just automation or AI separately, but how they could work in tandem to create something exponentially more powerful.”

That realization became the foundation of his work today, building AI-driven automation that continuously improves itself, learns from real-world execution, and evolves alongside the business.

Doug takes a teaching approach, focusing on mentorship and education through his LinkedIn posts, social media discussions, and thought leadership. Rather than just talking about AI hype or the news of the day or hour, he breaks down how AI and automation can be practically applied to solve real-world challenges. 

“Even if you find success in doing something new, many will say it’s useless or impossible. But if it works, and you can prove it, showcase it, to help others understand it, then you have something amazing, and that’s worth sharing," says Doug. 

While there are still a lot of questions about where AI will go, Doug said understanding the basic role of helping companies to be more efficient is a large part of the equation.

“AI and automation shouldn’t be about replacing people, but about optimizing the workforce we already have,” Doug explained. “I tell companies: it’s not fire; it’s don’t hire. Every business should be growing at an 18 percent rate for their stakeholders. Natural attrition already happens, people retire, move on, or shift roles. Instead of rushing to backfill every position, businesses should evaluate whether automation and AI can absorb certain tasks, allowing the existing workforce to be more effective and focus on higher-value work.

“Instead of manually keying everything in, AI can process data faster. Automation sees the ins and outs of workflows and handles repeatable tasks more efficiently,” he added. “If we use AI to drive

analytics and make better decisions, we can empower the employees we already have, rather than constantly spending time and resources training new hires to do repetitive work. It’s not about cutting jobs, it’s about working smarter with the people we’ve already invested in.”

Doug says he believes the human touch is essential in keeping AI grounded and productive. He says too often, AI takes off in ways that leave people behind, creating a disconnect between technology and those who are supposed to benefit from it.

“The real challenge isn’t AI itself, it’s making sure businesses find the common ground between automation and human value. AI should be a tool that enhances human capability, not something that replaces connection and purpose," he said. "Companies need to be intentional about using a human-first approach to drive work forward.”

At the end of the day, he said people still want to interact with people. Whether it's selling something, collaborating, or just engaging, that human element matters.

"Right now, that’s getting lost in the rush to implement AI. The bigger issue is that many don’t fully understand how AI is already changing the world around them, which fuels uncertainty and fear," said Doug. "That’s a natural human reaction. The key isn’t just building better AI; it’s helping people understand it, making sure they feel empowered and not replaced by the technology shaping the future."

Looking back, Doug was working as a contractor for the Department of Defense in San Antonio when he earned his Wayland degree, calling it a great experience at an institution that truly supported working students. Raised in San Antonio, Texas, he has now lived in California for 16 years, where he continues to push the boundaries of AI and automation. Yet, despite working at the cutting edge of technology, his focus remains deeply human, helping businesses, leaders, and employees navigate the future with intelligence, innovation, and integrity.

 

Track alumnus pens autobiography to inspire

After a lifetime of overcoming challenges and learning valuable leadership lessons, Wayland alumnus Shelton Riggins has channeled his experiences in to an autobiography to inspire younger generations.

Titled Shelton H. Riggins: My Life Journey, the book was released in late 2024 and is available online through Barnes and Noble and Amazon. And while the 70-page book is fresh off the presses, it has been a work in progress for decades.

“This is something I’ve been planning on doing for a long time but just haven’t done it. I’ve always

wanted to share my life story. Somewhere around 2022 兔子先生系列麻豆, I started on it and got it completed in 2024,” said Shelton, who earned his bachelor’s degree in 1977. “I gave myself a birthday party in the summer of 2024, even though my birthday wasn’t until November. I did a manuscript for everybody and passed it out then. Then I decided to publish it.”

The idea for the book was a long time coming, as Shelton said he continues to reflect of a life raised in far East Texas by his grandparents, his college years and a 30-plus-year career in the U.S. Army. Feeling like he had some truth to share, he set out to write his story.

“I wanted to be an inspiration for young people of all races because my grandmother inspired me to study for my education, do good in school and not get into trouble, and make something of myself,” he says. “The focus is on young people who for some reason believe because of their socioeconomic background or they don’t have parents to push them, that they can’t do something. I am here to tell them they can make it.”

Shelton said growing up in a low-income setting where he had to learn responsibility and a strong work ethic shaped him greatly. He worked through a speech impediment that taught him resilience. Though he says his grandparents did not have much money, they were faithful to instill some strong values.

“We didn’t have running water inside the home, so I had to draw water from a well for cooking, drinking water, washing clothes and taking a bath. For the most part, I enjoyed those chores and washing my clothes on a rub-board,” he said. “I had a simple but beautiful life. There were things I had to do and didn’t complain about them; I just did them.”

Shelton began running track and field in junior high in the small town of Chapel Hill and continued through his high school years. Noting once that he was not performing as well as he should, he

approached a coach for advice on how to improve. That led to weekend workouts, and his determination paid off, earning him a recruiting visit from Wayland coach Dr. Bill Hardage and a track scholarship to the Plainview-based university of which he had never heard.

On faith, Shelton came to Wayland to run and enjoyed his years both on the track with Hardage and with teammates he has continued to keep in touch with over several decades. He came without a vehicle that first year, but returned as a sophomore in one of his most prized possessions, a 1965 Ford Galaxy his grandparents bought just before his senior year of high school in 1972. Shelton still owns the car, which he has kept in pristine condition and was featured on the cover of his autobiography. College was also a time of maturing.

“When you are on your own for the first time, you have to discipline yourself to get up early for classes and such, and I matured in that way. I always went to class and studied my lessons,” he said. “When I graduated from Wayland, it was May 14, 1977, which was my grandmother’s birthday. I wasn’t aware of that until a few years later. And that was real cool.”

Shelton followed his Wayland stint by joining the Army as an enlisted man, not an officer though he could have done so as a college graduate. While he took some ribbing from fellow Soldiers on that decision, he enjoyed the challenge of working his way up the ranks by his hard work and leadership, and he did just that. Military service exposed him to some new skills – like proficiency with firearms since he worked as a military policeman – as well as some new experiences around the world, though one of his first was not as positive as he had hoped.  

“When I got to Germany, I was homesick and had put in for a compassionate reassignment to come back to the United States. My grandfather told my grandmother to let me stay over there, and that was a growing up point for me,” he recalled. “After that, I was able to get me a little car, a German driver’s license and was about to get out of the barracks and move into white-hat Military Police (MP) where you could ride around like a regular police officer. And that was a lot better for me. The basic thing I learned from the military is to do a lot of things I thought I couldn’t do.”

Shelton noted that while the military did enhance his discipline, he credited his home life with

steady grandparents who taught prayer and reading God’s word as the real source of his self-discipline. But he also took those leadership lessons and honed them to advance in the Army.

“I learned how to do a lot of things, and as I developed in my career I became a leader of Soldiers. Anything I told them to do something I had to know how to do it like staying in height and weight standards, and passing the physical training tests. If the leader couldn’t pass that, you were not qualified to be a leader. The Soldiers are going to be looking at you,” he said.

“Having success stories for your Soldiers meant the world to me. It’s my responsibility to take care of Soldiers and solve their problems, not pass it on to someone else. I took those things very seriously,” he continued. “I always wanted them to know I was going to give them all the knowledge I had. I figured if someone took my job it was time for me to go. So I always wanted them to be as knowledgeable as possible and get themselves ready, taking civilian education and military education courses as well. I still have Soldiers I served with that call me from time to time." 

Shelton retired at age 57 in July 2012 after serving 35 and 1/2 years, the last 14 and 1/2 as a Command Sergeant Major, the highest enlisted rank.

“Some people when they get to the top of the hill they forget that somebody helped them get there, and they don’t help others trying to get there. That was the difference with me; I helped all of them,” he said.

 

Devotional: Shining the Light of Christ

2 Corinthians 4:3-6 (NIV)
"And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For what we preach is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as

 Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, 'Let light shine out of darkness,' made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ."

We live in a world filled with distractions—voices that pull us away from the truth, burdens that dim our hope, and temptations that seek to blind us. 

Paul reminds us in 2 Corinthians that the gospel is not hidden, but there are those who cannot see because their minds are clouded by the influence of the world. However, just as God spoke light into the darkness at creation, He has also placed His light within the hearts of believers.

As followers of Christ, we are called to be vessels of that light, not proclaiming ourselves but proclaiming Jesus Christ as Lord. The world needs to see His glory, His truth, and His love through us. When we walk in faith and share His gospel, we help remove the veil, allowing others to see the radiance of Christ.

Let this be an encouragement to you—whether you’re in your workplace, among your family, or within your community, let His light shine. Speak truth with love, extend grace, and live in such a way that others may come to know the beauty of Christ.

Reflection:

• • Are there areas in your life where you feel the world's distractions dimming your focus on Christ?
  • How can you be intentional this week about sharing the light of the gospel with someone in need?

 

In the mix

 

At Wayland Baptist University (WBU), the Catholic Student Association (CSA) plays a pivotal role in enriching the spiritual and communal experiences of its members. The CSA is dedicated to fostering a deep love for Jesus Christ and glorifying Him in all endeavors, aligning with the scriptural call to "Love the Lord your God with all your heart" (Deuteronomy 6:5) and to "do everything for the glory of God" (1 Corinthians 10:31b).

Mission and Objectives

The CSA's mission is multifaceted, focusing on spiritual growth, service, and fellowship:

• Spiritual Growth: Members are encouraged to deepen their faith through activities rooted in Catholic teachings, reflecting the exhortation to "grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ" (2 Peter 3:18a).
• Service: The association actively serves the WBU campus, the Plainview community, and the Diocese of Lubbock, embodying the principle to "serve one another humbly in love" (Galatians 5:13).
• Fellowship: Providing a platform for Christian fellowship, the CSA fosters meaningful relationships among students, as emphasized in "We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us" (1 John 1:3).

Activities and Events

The CSA organizes a variety of events to engage students spiritually and socially. One notable event is the annual "Rubber Chicken Volleyball" tournament, a lighthearted gathering that promotes community and camaraderie among participants.

Integration within WBU's Spiritual Life

WBU offers a diverse array of student organizations, including the CSA, which contribute to a vibrant campus life. These organizations provide students with opportunities to explore their interests, develop leadership skills, and build lasting friendships.

Benefits of Catholic Campus Ministries

Engagement in Catholic campus ministries like the CSA has been shown to have a lasting positive impact on students' faith lives.

Additionally, strong campus ministries contribute significantly to the spiritual development of students, fostering a lifelong commitment to their faith.

Conclusion

The Catholic Student Association at Wayland Baptist University stands as a testament to the enriching role of faith-based organizations in higher education. By promoting spiritual growth, service, and fellowship, the CSA not only enhances the university experience but also prepares students for a life of faith and service beyond their college years.

For more information about the CSA, you may email sponsors at the WBU-Plainview campus: Dr. Brent Lynn (lynnb@wbu.edu) and/or Dr. Joshua Mora (moraj@wbu.edu)

 

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