Empowering Future Professionals: Stevenson AI Initiatives for Academics and Career Readiness

Stevenson is working to enhance student learning and career preparation for the emerging AI-driven economy through the University's first Generative AI Summer Fellowship. The new program is supporting 21 faculty-led projects-including the development of a new AI-focused Professional Minor-that will ensure students gain practical, discipline-specific experience with artificial intelligence and are prepared to succeed in an evolving workforce.

"Stevenson's Generative AI Faculty Fellows are integrating AI into coursework and academic programs across all of our schools to prepare students for their future careers," said Meredith Durmowicz, Ph.D., Stevenson's Executive Vice President, Academic Affairs and Provost and head of the Generative AI Summer Fellowship. "These projects will help students develop the skills to use, evaluate, and apply AI effectively within their professions while advancing Stevenson's career-focused mission."

Established by academic leadership and the Faculty Council, participating faculty are revising courses, creating new modules with discipline-specific AI applications, and developing a new minor and certificate programs in AI-all of which will be implemented during the 2026-27 academic year.

One project led by Matthew Hudson, Associate Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry, is redesigning a foundational chemistry laboratory course for Nursing and other health majors to help future healthcare professionals become informed and responsible users of generative AI.

"Students will use AI to generate lab conclusions, then critique and revise those conclusions using their experimental evidence," Hudson said. "This approach teaches students to critically evaluate AI-generated scientific content and become active reviewers rather than passive consumers of information. Those skills are increasingly important as healthcare and scientific professionals work with AI-assisted diagnostics, technical reports, and data analysis."

Another Fellow, Christopher Ernst, Associate Professor in Stevenson's Film and Moving Image (FMI) program, is revising the curriculum of multiple courses and developing new course modules that incorporate training in AI tools used by the media production industry, including Kling, Google Veo, LTX Studio, Colourlab, Cubric, and Adobe Firefly.

"The FMI curriculum is built around preparing adaptable creators who can navigate evolving technologies and platforms," Ernst said. "These new modules will help students use emerging generative AI tools, understand their implications, and adapt to a rapidly changing media landscape while remaining career competitive."

A team of eight faculty members is developing the new Professional Minor in Generative AI. The interdisciplinary minor will provide foundational knowledge in the practical use of AI tools and technologies, including AI agent development.

"This project prepares Stevenson students for a rapidly evolving workforce where AI is increasingly embedded in nearly every industry," said Sarena Schwartz, Department Chair of Information Systems and a member of the committee developing the minor. "The minor will provide practical skills that will help graduates use AI responsibly and adapt to evolving professional environments. We want students to graduate with both foundational AI literacy and hands-on experience applying AI to real-world professional contexts."