By Jack Leal
Since OpenAI released ChatGPT into the mainstream in 2022, the integration and regulation of artificial intelligence have become an ongoing topic of debate at universities nationwide. To address these policy questions, the University of Puget Sound has commissioned the AI Working Group, an advisory committee established last fall. Dean of Operations Gareth Barkin and Chief Information Officer Francisco Chavez lead the project for the group. President Crawford wrote in a campus-wide email on Nov. 11 that the group “will establish robust ethical standards and ‘guardrails’ to guide AI use.”
The group, composed of nine staff and faculty members, reports to the president and cabinet through executive sponsors Provost Drew Kerkhoff and Chief Financial Officer Kim Kvaal. Based on the charter outlining the committee’s purpose and responsibilities, Barkin explained that the group intends to explore questions like, “What’s our relationship to artificial intelligence? How are we going to deal with the challenges it presents while at the same time taking advantage of the opportunities it offers? And how are we going to teach our students to have the skills and awareness they need to graduate into a world where AI is ubiquitous?” He also noted that students will be involved in the group later in the process.
Developing an integration strategy involves paying special attention to the risks AI poses to the quality of higher education, Barkin noted. “Students need to develop critical thinking skills, contextual awareness and collaborative skills that AI doesn’t have,” he explained. “The challenge is finding a balance where students can hone these foundational skills while also recognizing appropriate uses of AI.”
Some faculty are already integrating AI into their classes. Economics Professor Matthew Warning is applying a proactive approach by developing a ChatGPT tutor, Ren, to assist students with homework assignments in ECON 284, Introduction to Econometrics.
Warning informed The Trail that he uses an AI tutor outline created by Ethan Mollick, a Faculty Scholar and Associate Professor at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Mollick recently developed a crash course for educators on effectively integrating AI into an academic environment to enhance student learning, provide feedback, create study plans and adapt to different teaching methods.
Warning explained that students often found the class intimidating, especially if economics isn’t their major. “So I created an AI tutor, which is extremely friendly and encouraging. I had my students work with the tutor before the start of class — particularly those who were nervous — to refresh what they learned in Math 160 (Introduction to Applied Statistics) and to ask questions.”
Warning hopes the AI tutor will help clear up minor confusions that might otherwise stall a student’s progress on homework assignments. “There can be just a very small misunderstanding, and they have no choice but to call you at 10 o’clock to get this assignment in on time.” He explained that applying the AI tutor will give the student a “way to get unstuck if it means they’d spend the rest of the night unable to get anything done because they’re stuck on that one issue.”
Still, Warning understands that while his AI approach works well in his class, it may not be as effective in other academic fields. “I’m very aware that the challenges we face in economics are very different from those in other disciplines, like English,” he said. Nonetheless, Warning remains optimistic about this new technology and believes it is unrealistic to resist its integration into higher education. He emphasized the importance of identifying “what pedagogical strategies are going to be most effective at using AI to enhance learning rather than substitute for it.”