Penn State Makes Strategic Investments to Prepare Students for an AI-Driven Future

Penn State to adopt human-centered vision for artificial intelligence with student learning and literacy, employee skill-building and research central to the University-wide approach

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Penn State has announced several strategic investments to help position the University as a leader in artificial intelligence education, cross-disciplinary research and innovation. As AI technologies rapidly reshape the workforce, economy and society at large, Penn State is well positioned to equip students with the skills, knowledge and judgment needed to thrive.

Penn State’s AI Transformation initiative builds upon an existing foundation. Over the next three years, central investment will expand enterprise tools, accelerate faculty cluster hiring and new AI leadership roles, provide upskilling and training for employees, and help ensure students graduate with essential AI literacy skills. Individual units will support additional course development, hiring, professional development and more across colleges, campuses, and administrative and academic units.

“Artificial intelligence already represents one of the most profound shifts in higher education in generations. As Pennsylvania’s only land-grant institution, we have a responsibility to advance human-centered innovation and inspire learning that lasts a lifetime,” Penn State President Neeli Bendapudi said. “I am pleased that Executive Vice President and Provost Fotis Sotiropoulos will spearhead our continued efforts to shape the academic experience, equip our people with the knowledge and skills to use AI responsibly and ethically, and enable Penn State to serve as a model for how higher education can drive innovation in the AI era.”

As a signature priority for Sotiropoulos, which he discussed with the Board of Trustees this past fall, Penn State will move forward with a unifying vision centered on investing in the future of AI across strategic focus areas, which include strengthening AI literacy and the future of learning, advancing experiential and work-integrated education, increasing interdisciplinary research and innovation, modernizing the University’s infrastructure, and promoting human and civic flourishing.

“By investing in human-centered AI literacy, interdisciplinary research and advanced AI infrastructure, Penn State is not simply preparing our students and employees for the workforce of tomorrow. We are defining what an inclusive and forward-looking public university can achieve in an AI-propelled era, reflecting our commitment to the public mission that has defined Penn State for more than 160 years,” Sotiropoulos said.

The Penn State AI Transformation investment and educational commitments include:

• University-wide AI literacy and transformation of teaching and learning: The University has developed an AI literacy framework to guide learning and expectations for students, faculty and staff. Penn State will launch an AI Literacy learning program, including learning modules for students and employees that span all degree programs and disciplines. The literacy program will focus on issues such as understanding how AI works, its responsible use, and how to think critically about its impact in the classroom, the workplace and community at large. As part of this program, all undergraduate students will be introduced to foundational AI literacy, preparing them to graduate with the skills needed to thrive in their professional careers. This work will be supported by the creation of a new AI Center of Excellence, which in addition to its literacy work, will also focus its efforts on creating and implementing a strategy to assist faculty with re-imagining courses and programs in the age of AI.
• AI-focused faculty hiring: Building upon proven strengths and established research expertise in AI, Penn State is advancing a broad, multi-pronged investment to expand interdisciplinary innovation, translational impact and educational leadership in AI by actively recruiting dozens of new faculty members focused on expanding expertise in foundational AI, data science, material science, rural health, human-centered computing, education, creative arts and applied AI fields, including an interdisciplinary AI cluster hire. This expertise will further expand research capacity, support curricular innovation, and strengthen hands-on student learning opportunities and collaboration across colleges and departments in this rapidly evolving field.
• AI tools, infrastructure and resources expansion: Penn State will deploy a secure enterprise AI platform available to all students, faculty and staff across the University this year. The platform will augment the University’s current Microsoft Copilot deployment to support research, academic and administrative needs. An additional pool of pro licenses for generative AI tools to support specific groups and needs also is being explored. Additional investments to be shared in the coming months include new AI research resources, high-performance computing capacity, interdisciplinary labs, and experiential learning.
• Centralized AI leadership: Penn State is creating a new role, the vice provost for AI, who will be instrumental in shaping and advancing Penn State’s AI strategy, fostering a culture of ethical innovation, and helping to position the University to lead in AI-driven research, education, and societal impact. The vice provost will help to catalyze interdisciplinary collaboration and drive the integration of AI across academic programs.

Additionally, a committee dedicated to AI ethics has developed a guidance document to help individuals reason through specific ethical dilemmas in the use of AI. This guidance builds upon Penn State’s ethical decision-making framework, applicable University policies, and best practices for both research and academic work.

AI vision

“Student success and academic excellence in the AI era are inseparable. Preparing students to thrive in a rapidly changing world requires us to rethink how we teach, how we assess learning, and how knowledge itself is created and applied,” Sotiropoulos said. “As educators, we know that AI can’t replace the critical foundational knowledge and skills that our students must develop and hone while they pursue a Penn State education. That’s why we will continue to prioritize teaching and learning that equips our students to build the soft skills and core knowledge base in their fields, and that simultaneously empowers them to use AI in ways that augment and enhance their human abilities.”

Beginning in 2026, the University will work toward the following goals:

• AI literacy for all: Equip every Penn Stater — students, faculty and staff — with foundational AI literacy and advanced upskilling pathways tailored to discipline and career stage.
• Transform teaching, learning and assessment: Reimagine pedagogy for the AI era by redesigning teaching, assessment and academic integrity frameworks, supported by a Center of Excellence for AI in Education.
• Experiential and innovation-driven education: Empower students through hands-on, AI-enabled learning — including research, industry partnerships, entrepreneurship and real-world problem solving — accessible across Penn State’s statewide ecosystem.
• Ethical and human-centered AI leadership: Graduate students who are grounded in ethical reasoning and societal understanding, and position Penn State as a national model for responsible, human-centered AI governance.
• AI-driven research and convergence: Lead nationally in AI-augmented research, accelerating discovery across disciplines and advancing convergence science.
• Infrastructure, ecosystem and workforce impact: Build a modern AI ecosystem — tools, secure infrastructure, data governance and strategic partnerships — leveraging Penn State’s statewide footprint to power Pennsylvania’s AI-ready workforce and economy.

“First and foremost, maintaining the human element and an ethical approach in all facets of our work will be at the core of our focus at every stage. Considering the societal, ethical and environmental impacts of AI will only serve to improve our approach now and in the future,” Sotiropoulos said. “These tools can help us to explore new possibilities, be more efficient and inspire connections we might not otherwise have made, but they cannot and should not replace the human pursuit of knowledge, or the creativity and thoughtfulness everyone at Penn State brings to the classroom and to work every day.”

Penn State’s AI Transformation initiative maximizes the University’s scale, breadth and history of innovation to impact the educational experience across the commonwealth, undergraduate and graduate degree portfolio, and a community of nearly 87,000 students and 37,000 faculty and staff.

To learn more about the University’s AI vision, visit psu.edu/ai.

Contacts

Erin Colbourn
Assistant Vice President | Strategic Communications
Penn State
814-470-6232