As artificial intelligence continues to\u00a0impact\u00a0higher education, the University of Georgia launched a new faculty initiative designed to explore how the technology could enhance teaching and learning across disciplines.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Generative AI & Teaching Faculty Fellows program brought together 15 faculty members during the 2025-2026 academic year to develop,\u00a0test\u00a0and assess innovative classroom applications of generative AI. Through workshops, collaborative sessions and individualized support from teaching and learning specialists, fellows created AI-supported teaching projects aimed at improving student learning and engagement.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Each fellow received a $3,000 stipend to support professional development or teaching resources, and the program culminated in the Generative AI and Teaching Colloquium, where participants shared their projects and sparked broader conversations about the future of AI-enhanced education at UGA.\u00a0<\/p>\n
UGA\u2019s first class of\u00a0GAIT Fellows are:\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Mishra Abhinav, associate professor in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences\u00a0<\/p>\n
Alison Morrison, clinical associate professor in the Mary Frances Early College of Education\u00a0<\/p>\n
Candice Hollenbeck, senior lecturer in the Terry College of Business\u00a0<\/p>\n
Cindy Dixon, academic professional in the College of Veterinary Medicine\u00a0<\/p>\n
Daniel Gibbs, assistant professor in the School of Social Work\u00a0<\/p>\n
Drew Benson, associate professor in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences\u00a0<\/p>\n
Hind Azami, clinical associate professor in the College of Veterinary Medicine\u00a0<\/p>\n
Julie Dangremond Stanton, associate professor in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences\u00a0<\/p>\n
Kun Yao, senior lecturer in the College of Engineering\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lauren Housley, clinical associate professor in the College of Family and Consumer Sciences\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lindsey Harding, senior academic professional in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences\u00a0<\/p>\n
Michael Oliveri, associate professor in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences\u00a0<\/p>\n
Mohammad Rifat Haider,\u00a0assistant professor\u00a0in the College of Public Health\u00a0<\/p>\n
Noel Card, professor in the College of Family and Consumer Sciences\u00a0<\/p>\n
Qiong Wang, assistant professor in the College of Environment and Design\u00a0<\/p>\n
Zhai Xiaoming, associate professor in the Mary Frances Early College of Education\u00a0<\/p>\n
Yoo-Kyoung\u00a0Seock, professor in the College of Family and Consumer Sciences\u00a0<\/p>\n
A look at three of the projects\u00a0<\/p>\n
The resulting projects offered a wide range of ideas for using AI in the classroom.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lindsey Harding\u00a0in\u00a0the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences\u00a0developed\u00a0ArchPal,\u00a0an AI-powered writing companion designed to support students throughout the writing process while reinforcing critical thinking and authorship. Co-created with\u00a0Jared Holton,\u00a0Annika Kappenstein\u00a0and seven\u00a0students,\u00a0the platform helps\u00a0users\u00a0brainstorm ideas, stay organized, reflect on their writing process\u00a0and connect with campus resources such as the Jill and Marvin Willis Center for Writing and UGA Libraries. Rather than generating papers for students,\u00a0ArchPal\u00a0acts as a coach and thought partner, guiding students through planning,\u00a0drafting\u00a0and revision. Piloted in spring 2026 across humanities, social\u00a0science\u00a0and science courses,\u00a0ArchPal\u00a0has already drawn interest from other institutions across the University System of Georgia.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lauren\u00a0Housley\u00a0in the College of Family and Consumer\u00a0Sciences\u00a0used generative AI to transform exam review into an interactive learning experience through Fog of Fad, an AI-powered fantasy game.\u00a0Set in a medieval-inspired world, the game guides students through creative challenges and scenarios\u00a0designed to help students master foundational concepts in nutritional science.\u00a0By blending AI with storytelling and game design, Housley created an engaging alternative to traditional study methods that\u00a0allows\u00a0students to review and practice concepts before exams in a more immersive way.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Qiong Wang in the College of Environment and Design,\u00a0integrated generative\u00a0AI use with 3D\u00a0printing for her undergraduate course in landscape ecology\u00a0by\u00a0teaching\u00a0her students to use generative AI to make 3D models of shoreline structures that improve the shoreline ecosystem. The generative AI-enhanced design made it possible for all students, regardless of their background in architecture and design, to create a 3D model\u00a0of\u00a0their design. She also held an event where students\u00a0showcased\u00a0their work through poster presentations, and\u00a0several\u00a0of her students\u00a0presented their work at\u00a0the GAIT Colloquium.\u00a0 <\/p>\n
The GAIT Faculty Fellows projects illustrate how generative AI can begin to reshape teaching and learning in practical, discipline-specific ways. Across projects, a consistent theme\u00a0emerged: AI is most powerful when it supports critical thinking, creativity and human judgment rather than replacing them.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"As artificial intelligence continues to\u00a0impact\u00a0higher education, the University of Georgia launched a new faculty initiative designed to explore…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":63651,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[24,25,34159],"class_list":["post-63650","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ai","tag-ai","tag-artificial-intelligence","tag-columns"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63650","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=63650"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63650\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/63651"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=63650"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=63650"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ai\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=63650"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}