Artificial intelligence (AI) and its associated applications hold incredible potential for all institutions of higher education, including Washington University in St. Louis. But WashU’s leaders note that AI cannot replace the academic community’s creativity, disciplinary expertise and guiding values.
Striking a vital balance between AI and commitments to student formation, knowledge development and discovery across the university’s research and education enterprises is the focus of a new universitywide academic initiative called +AI. Led by Provost Mark D. West, the initiative strives to fuel student success, transform teaching and learning, accelerate world-class research, and support our region while also acknowledging the challenges AI will create for students, the institution and society.
“AI has the power to influence and disrupt higher education in the unpredictable ways only digital technologies can,” Chancellor Andrew D. Martin said. “Our challenge is to ascertain the appropriate fit of AI in our research and educational mission. The +AI initiative will move WashU thoughtfully forward while centering the unique talent and knowledge of our students and faculty, which AI can never replicate.”
West directed a faculty leadership team to begin and advance the work of +AI. They include Betsy Sinclair, assistant vice provost for digital transformation, chair of political science and the Thomas F. Eagleton Professor of Public Affairs and Political Science in Arts & Sciences; Jen Smith, vice provost for educational initiatives and a professor of earth and planetary sciences in Arts & Sciences; Nathan Jacobs, assistant vice provost for digital transformation and a professor of computer science and engineering at the McKelvey School of Engineering; and Peter Boumgarden, assistant vice provost and the Koch Family Professor of Practice in Family Enterprise at Olin Business School.
Since +AI’s launch, the faculty team has worked closely with WashU’s Digital Intelligence and Innovation (DI2) Accelerator. The accelerator’s leadership team is charged with expanding the university’s work in the digital domain across WashU’s campuses and helping shape policy and protocols as the technology evolves.
“Our students are already experimenting with AI, and faculty are finding creative new ways to apply it to their research,” said Sinclair. “The question isn’t whether it will be part of academic and professional life, it’s how we as a university can use it with purpose. That responsibility feels urgent, but it’s also an incredible opportunity.”
+AI is advancing quickly:
- A new learning module was launched. Designed for undergraduate students, “AI Literacy for the WashU Scholar” introduces a shared foundation for understanding, critically evaluating and using generative AI responsibly. Students can choose to self-enroll and faculty can assign the module in their classes.
- Gemini for Education and NotebookLM have been added to the suite of university-supported generative AI tools available to the Danforth Campus, with an additional, advanced option, ChatGPT Edu, forthcoming. Copilot is available to the full WashU community.
- AI Curriculum Corps has launched to provide faculty with support in developing AI-integrated assignments and courses, with a call for proposals open through March 30.
- Faculty insight groups have formed and are charged with identifying opportunities and considerations to help inform future planning.
- And the week of March 23, the university will host +AI Perspectives Week. Nicholas Thompson, CEO of The Atlantic, will provide a perspective on AI’s influence on graduates and the job market. The week also will include sessions and forums hosted by campus partners to explore the role of AI in higher education.
“New technologies often arrive faster than institutions are ready, and AI is no exception. At WashU, our task is to react neither with alarm nor unexamined enthusiasm, but with inquiry and a sense of discovery,” West said. “How does this technology change how our students learn? How does it expand our research? When does it challenge assumptions that we should examine carefully? And how do we ensure that what results aligns with human values? We do our best work when we ask the hard questions, test new tools thoughtfully and put human judgment at the center of what we do. That approach will guide us here as well.”
