Innovating Credentialing and Data Management in Higher Education With Blockchain and AI

Ahmad Tasnim Siddiqui is a scholar and educator specializing in the application of emerging technologies in higher education, with a particular focus on IOT, Artificial Intelligence, Web Application Development, Credentialing, Digital Learning Systems, and Data Governance. He serves as a faculty member at Horizon University College, where he contributes to academic development, research, and technology-driven educational innovation. Dr. Siddiqui holds a PhD in Computer Science, and his research interests span AI-driven learning analytics, decentralized credentialing, e-learning, e-commerce and mobile commerce, Internet of Things (IoT), Health IT, educational data management, and technology-enhanced pedagogy. He has played an active role in curriculum design, faculty development initiatives, and institutional digital transformation efforts, collaborating with interdisciplinary teams to advance modern pedagogical and administrative practices. A committed researcher and academic leader, Dr. Siddiqui has authored and presented work on the integration of disruptive technologies into higher education, with an emphasis on transparency, learner mobility, and sustainable innovation. His professional engagement includes membership in the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), reflecting his dedication to contributing to scholarly and professional communities in computing and technology. As the editor of Innovating Credentialing and Data Management in Higher Education with Blockchain and AI, Dr. Siddiqui brings together global perspectives to explore cutting-edge advancements and promote strategic, responsible digital transformation across higher education systems.

Manas Ranjan Pradhan received his Ph.D. degree in computer science from the University of Mysore, India. He has vast experience in teaching, research, and academic administration in India and abroad. He is currently working as Professor and Program Chair -Computer science at Horizon University College, Ajman formerly known as Skyline University College, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates. As an Academic Leader, he has worked as the Head of Program at UPES, India, and the Dean-Faculty of IT and science at INTI International University, Malaysia. He has been associated with the IT industry for industry-academic collaboration, internships, placements, and workshops. He executed the IBM Center of Education for Cloud Computing and Business Analytics at INTI International University, under Laureate International Universities, USA. He has presented and published many research papers in various conferences and journals. He has sixteen patents from India, Australia, Germany and UK. His research interests include data science, datamining, data warehouse, retail/ecommerce analytics, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and business process modeling. He has got the Mentor Award for the i-talent project contest from Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). He has got Research Excellence Award for exceptional Achievement in research by EUMMAS (European Marketing and Management Association), Outstanding Leadership Award-from Education 2.0 and Overall Excellence in Academics- 2022 by Skyline University College. He has played a vital role in organizing three international conferences, such as NGCT-2015 (UPES, India), ICQMOIT-2008 (ICFAI, India), and ICD-2019 (SUC, United Arab Emirates).

Valentina E. Balas is currently Full Professor in the Department of Automatics and Applied Software at the Faculty of Engineering, “Aurel Vlaicu” University of Arad, Romania. She holds a Ph.D. Cum Laude, in Applied Electronics and Telecommunications from Polytechnic University of Timisoara. Dr. Balas is the author of more than 400 research papers in referred journals and International Conferences. Her research interests are in Intelligent Systems, Fuzzy Control, Soft Computing, Smart Sensors, Information Fusion, Modelling and Simulation. She is the Editor-in Chief to International Journal of Advanced Intelligence Paradigms (IJAIP) and to International Journal of Computational Systems Engineering (IJCSysE), member in Editorial Board member of several national and international journals and is evaluator expert for national, international projects and PhD Thesis. Dr. Balas has edited or co-authored more than 200 books with Elsevier, Springer, CRC Press, and other publishing houses. She is the Series Editor for two book series with Elsevier: Advances in Biomedical Informatics and Advanced Studies in Complex Systems. Dr. Balas is the Head of the Intelligent Systems Research Centre at Aurel Vlaicu University of Arad. She is a member in the specialized committee “Computers, Information Technology, and Systems Engineering” of the National Council for Attestation of University Titles, Diplomas, and Certificates (CNATDCU) for the 2024-2028 term. She served as General Chair of the International Workshop Soft Computing and Applications (SOFA) in ten editions organized in the interval 2005-2022 and held in Romania and Hungary. Dr. Balas participated in many international conferences as Organizer, Honorary Chair, Session Chair, member of Steering, Advisory or International Program Committees and Keynote Speaker. Recently she was working on a national project with EU funding support: BioCell-NanoART = Novel Bio-inspired Cellular Nano-Architectures - For Digital Integrated Circuits, 3M Euro from National Authority for Scientific Research and Innovation. She is a member of European Society for Fuzzy Logic and Technology (EUSFLAT), member of Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM) and a Senior Member IEEE, member in Technical Committee – Fuzzy Systems (IEEE Computational Intelligence Society), chair of the Task Force 14 in Technical Committee – Emergent Technologies (IEEE CIS), member in Technical Committee – Soft Computing (IEEE SMCS). She is member in the Committee of IEEE Romania Section as Volunteers Training Coordinator and vice chair of IEEE Computational Intelligence Society Chapter – CIS 11. During the interval 2021-2022 she was a member of IEEE European Public Policy Committee Working Group on ICT. From May 2023 Dr. Balas is associate member of Romanian Academy of Scientists and from 2025 is corresponding member. Dr. Balas was past Vice President (awards) of IFSA - International Fuzzy Systems Association Council (2013-2015), is a Joint Secretary of the Governing Council of Forum for Interdisciplinary Mathematics (FIM), - A Multidisciplinary Academic Body, India. She is the recipient of the “Tudor Tanasescu” Prize from the Romanian Academy for contributions in the field of soft computing methods (2019) and “Stefan Odobleja” Prize from Romanian Academy of Scientists (2023 and 2024) and Diploma – Section Information Technology from The General Association of the Engineers in Romania (AGIR) 2023.