Selected Topic: The Impact of Generative AI on the Faculty Experience
For the Faculty Academy’s inaugural year, the school deans collectively selected the topic of Generative AI as a key issue impacting the faculty experience. The interdisciplinary cohort of faculty fellows met throughout the academic year and engaged in deep critical thinking sessions to consider how increased Generative AI use would impact different disciplines and pedagogical approaches. The discussions led the group to develop a list of key questions, with the hope the questions would support Duke faculty to identify entry points to the Generative AI discourse in ways that align with their personal thoughts and experiences. The cohort culminated their experience with a capstone event to share their efforts with the broader campus community. They also developed Entry Point resource videos that reflect the rich interdisciplinary discussions that emerged from their list of key questions.
2024-2025 Cohort of the Duke Faculty Academy
Katherine Brading, Professor of Philosophy
David Brown, Snow Family Business Distinguished Professor of Business
Michael Cary, Associate Professor in the School of Nursing
Eileen Cheng-yin Chow, Associate Professor of the Practice of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies
Michael Murphy, Clinical Professor of Law (Teaching)
Ronald Parr, Professor of Computer Science
Carlo Tomasi, Iris Einheuser Distinguished Professor of Computer Science
Alex Zhang, Archibald C. and Frances Fulk Rufty Research Professor of Law
Subject Matter Experts
Yakut Gazi, Vice Provost for Learning Innovation and Digital Education
Jon Reifschneider, Executive Director of Pratt AI for Innovation Master’s Program
Complete Video
Discussions by Topic
Project Introduction and Acknowledgments
Ron Parr
Key question addressed:
How should faculty approach AI literacy?
Eileen Chow and Carlo Tomasi
Key questions addressed:
- Can knowing how AI systems work affect how much we trust them?
- Is it useful to promote AI literacy broadly in society? How?
- How much can we trust AI systems today?
- What does it mean to be human (e.g., uniqueness, creativity) in the age of AI?
- Why are we asking about using Generative AI more and not less?
David Brown and Alex Zhang
Key questions addressed:
- When and how do we teach responsible AI in the classroom?
- What is acceptable use of Generative AI in the classroom?
- How should students use it?
- What boundaries should we as faculty put on student use?
Michael Cary and Michael Murphy
Key questions addressed:
- What does it mean to be human (e.g., uniqueness, creativity) in the age of AI?
- How do we navigate the bias that is inherent in Generative AI? What should we consider, and can we use this to our advantage?