Opportunity: Lead with clarity and institutional support. Consistency across courses and programs will reduce confusion, promote ethical AI use, and strengthen trust between faculty and students.

Here’s how to get started:

• Form an institution-wide AI policy task force to develop clear, adaptable guidelines. If a group already exists, contribute to identifying gaps, aligning practices, and updating guidance as tools and use cases evolve.
• Review policies, examples, and training resources to support appropriate implementation across courses and programs.
• Create FAQ documents, workshops, or videos to explain AI boundaries.

Institutions can take the lead in promoting ethical AI literacy, fair access, and creative teaching methods by presenting AI challenges as opportunities for development. This method preserves fundamental educational principles, such as justice, integrity, and critical thinking, while equipping students with the tools they need to succeed in an AI-integrated world.

Opportunity: Model responsible AI use. Build a secure learning environment that prioritizes student data protection and trust.

Here’s how to get started:

• Evaluate both institution-approved tools and the external tools students are likely to use, and align guidance with applicable student data privacy requirements (e.g., FERPA, GDPR).
• Work with campus leadership to provide clear guidance on safe AI use: which platforms are approved, what data can be shared, and what risks exist.
• Educate students about protecting their own privacy when using AI tools.

Opportunity: Bridge the digital divide. The digital divide shouldn’t determine student success. How can you ensure all students, regardless of background, have equitable opportunities to learn and use AI responsibly?

Here’s how to get started:

• Identify tools that are reputable, accessible, and affordable for student use, including institutionally supported options that reduce dependence on paid premium tiers.
• Determine what institution-sponsored, vetted AI tools all students will have access to and require those for your course.
• Provide tutorials to improve students’ digital literacy and AI proficiency.
• Advocate for grants, licensing models, or partnerships that expand access for under-resourced student populations.

Opportunity: Communicate expectations. Today’s successful institutions provide clear, nuanced guidance about AI. To maintain academic integrity in an AI-saturated environment, institutions need policies that distinguish ethical assistance from misrepresentation.

Here’s how to get started:

• Advocate for clear definitions of acceptable AI use across common academic contexts, such as brainstorming, outlining, editing, coding, research support, and content generation.
• Create transparency by revising academic honesty policies to address AI use directly, emphasizing ethical AI practices.
• Provide acceptable use case scenarios. Educate students on assistance versus misuse.
• Determine what your policy is for your courses.

Opportunity: Use AI as a catalyst for critical thinking. Students should learn to use AI as a supplement to their own problem-solving, critical thinking, and creativity: preparing them for modern workplaces.

Here’s how to get started:

• Redesign assessments to integrate AI while requiring students to critically analyze and edit outputs. For example, “Evaluate AI-generated arguments for bias, clarity, and accuracy.”
• Create reflection tasks where students explain their decisions when using AI tools.
• Introduce scaffolded assignments that combine AI support with personal skill-building.
• Consider flexible assignment designs so students who choose not to use AI still have a clear and equitable path to success.

Want more ideas? Check out our Creative outputs and real-world deliverables for ideas on how to get started.

Opportunity: Foster AI literacy and critical awareness. Students need to become critical users of AI who understand model limitations, recognize bias and omissions, and evaluate outputs against credible sources and diverse perspectives. 

Here’s how to get started:

• Work with campus leadership to develop standardized content on identifying and addressing AI biases, highlighting diverse perspectives often underrepresented in models.
• Encourage students to evaluate AI tools for fairness, transparency, and inclusivity and analyze how an AI model reflects biases or excludes certain viewpoints.
• Partner with experts to evaluate and promote tools that are culturally responsive, accessible, and multilingual.