Volunteered for Chaos: When AI Pilot Initiatives Go Awry
Event Type
Presentation
Start Date
25-7-2025 10:40 AM
End Date
25-7-2025 11:10 AM
Description
AI in this day and age is ubiquitous, and so are vendors claiming to have the perfect solution for AI and student learning. Two instruction coordinators, new to their roles and their respective campuses, discuss their experiences in being volun-told to pilot an AI-powered guided reading tool for discipline faculty. When a well-known library vendor approached a consortium of interconnected campuses, three campuses embarked on piloting an AI-powered learning tool. The presenters will reflect on managing a pilot program with minimal support, the undervaluing of librarian-led instruction, and technology pilots as extractive endeavors. They will discuss successes and failures in managing a multi-campus pilot program, recruiting pilot participants, and evaluating the impact of AI tools. The presenters will provide suggestions to library managers and early career or non-tenured library faculty who may find themselves in a similar situation.
Outcomes
- Understand various strategies and structures for partnering with campus departments in introducing AI products to teaching faculty.
- Reflect on where the responsibility lies in purchasing, evaluating, and piloting emerging learning technologies.
- Navigate best practices, pitfalls, and competing goals when taking on (or being volun-told to lead) new products or cross-departmental projects.
Volunteered for Chaos: When AI Pilot Initiatives Go Awry
AI in this day and age is ubiquitous, and so are vendors claiming to have the perfect solution for AI and student learning. Two instruction coordinators, new to their roles and their respective campuses, discuss their experiences in being volun-told to pilot an AI-powered guided reading tool for discipline faculty. When a well-known library vendor approached a consortium of interconnected campuses, three campuses embarked on piloting an AI-powered learning tool. The presenters will reflect on managing a pilot program with minimal support, the undervaluing of librarian-led instruction, and technology pilots as extractive endeavors. They will discuss successes and failures in managing a multi-campus pilot program, recruiting pilot participants, and evaluating the impact of AI tools. The presenters will provide suggestions to library managers and early career or non-tenured library faculty who may find themselves in a similar situation.
Outcomes
- Understand various strategies and structures for partnering with campus departments in introducing AI products to teaching faculty.
- Reflect on where the responsibility lies in purchasing, evaluating, and piloting emerging learning technologies.
- Navigate best practices, pitfalls, and competing goals when taking on (or being volun-told to lead) new products or cross-departmental projects.
