Purpose
The purpose of this taskforce is to explore the impacts of generative artificial intelligence (AI) on teaching and learning at our college. AI is already transforming the educational experiences of our students. It is incumbent on the college to manage this transformation while maintaining the integrity of our academic mission. To realize the potential gains to student learning that integrating and leveraging AI offers, this group will explore the risks, opportunities, and best practices that surround this quickly evolving technology.
Objectives
- College Policy: Identify areas of college policy that need to be reviewed, revised and possibly created.
- Faculty Development: Recommend faculty development programming to equip faculty with essential AI skills and its application in the classroom.
- Pedagogical Integration: Investigate how generative AI can enhance teaching and learning practices and increase student engagement.
- Curriculum Integration: Identify opportunities to teach AI skills in appropriate places within the college’s curriculum.
- Other Applications: Identify potentially beneficial uses of AI in areas outside the classroom such as academic support, advising and other student service areas.
Members
B Bagby, Co-Chair – STEM
Tyler Byrne, Co-Chair – STEM
Chris Porter, Administrative Co-Chair – Learning Resources
Yassine Abdelkader – Student
Tara Alatorre – BTT
Tommy Amos – IET
Christ Cummings – IET
Jason Garnett – Media Geeks
Carrie Halpin – OLIT
David Kasperski – Student
Erin Leftwich – OLIT/STEM
Joe Nguyen – HP
Brian Roberts – BTT
Leisa Snidow – HP
George Studtmann – STEM
Bryan Walke – Workforce
Mallory B. White – STEM
Ray Wickersty – Student Affairs
Bill Work – LASS
Arnold Yim – STEM
Guiding Principles for AI Implementation
- Human-Centric Approach: AI should enhance human capabilities and prioritize human health, dignity, safety, privacy, and security.
- Ethical Use: Implement rigorous ethical standards and maintain human oversight to ensure AI is used responsibly, addressing concerns such as bias, fairness, and privacy.
- Transparency and accountability: Encourage robust transparency about all uses of AI. Ensure that AI systems are transparent in their operations and decisions, with clear accountability mechanisms in place.
- Digital Inclusion: Promote equal access to AI tools and resources within and beyond educational institutions to ensure no one is left behind.
- Enhancing Education: AI should enrich the educational experience, making learning more accessible and equitable while protecting the interests of both learners and educators.
- Lifelong Learning: Encourage continuous learning and adaptation to new technologies, helping students gain hands-on skills and stay updated with AI advancements.
- Collaboration: Work with our community partners to increase public awareness and understanding of AI technologies through education and engagement initiatives, ensuring that our community is well-informed about the benefits and risks of AI.
- Interdisciplinary Approach: Foster collaboration across various disciplines to integrate diverse perspectives and expertise in AI development and implementation.
OLIT InfoGuide with AI Guidance and Resources for Faculty
As Generative AI continues to evolve and proliferate, it will probably be difficult if not impossible to restrict student access to this technology. It is therefore necessary to consider how student learning opportunities could benefit by the integration of AI in our teaching practice so that academic integrity and the quality of student learning environments is maintained. This resource is intended to offer some guidance around how to approach the use of such tools in your teaching practice.
Contact Us
Chris Porter, MS
Dean of Learning Resources & Online Learning
Brown Library B105
cporter@virginiawestern.edu
540-857-6697