Building the AI-Infused University: UGA’s Strategic Path Forward
By: Timothy M. Chester, Ph.D., Vice President for Information Technology, University of Georgia
The pace of change around artificial intelligence has never been faster, and the University of Georgia is moving with focus and purpose. Over the last 18 months, UGA has laid the foundation to become an “AI-infused university,” weaving AI into research, teaching, and operational life. But we’re doing it our way, by emphasizing human development, shared infrastructure, and strategic discernment over hype.
Across campus, faculty are integrating tools from Microsoft and Google into their work. Our research teams are leveraging AI capabilities to explore the cosmos, accelerate genomic breakthroughs, and reinvent online instruction. And perhaps most importantly, we are redefining how student learning is captured and recognized in an AI-driven world.
This is more than digital transformation. It’s a cultural transformation, one grounded in purpose, guided by a thoughtful strategy, and powered by a community ready to lead.
What It Means to Become an “AI-Infused University”
An AI-infused university is one where artificial intelligence is thoughtfully embedded into the core of how we teach, discover, and operate. AI is not a separate initiative; it’s a catalyst: helping faculty create more engaging instruction, empowering researchers to move faster, and streamlining administrative work in ways that free up human capacity.
But this integration begins with trust. Our top priority is privacy. Through campus-wide agreements with Microsoft and Google, we’ve ensured that tools like Copilot, Gemini, and NotebookLM are deployed with clear safeguards. Data shared through these platforms, provided you log in with your UGA MyID, is never used to train external models.
With that protection, we’re focused on more than just tools; we’re building the leadership, infrastructure, and culture needed to make AI work for our people. That means knowing where to adopt quickly, where to move cautiously, and how to help our students, faculty, and staff thrive in an AI-powered world.
Everyday Tools, Game-Changing Impact: UGA’s AI Investment Strategy
At UGA, our AI strategy rests on a critical distinction: everyday AI and game-changing AI.
Everyday AI includes the tools already reshaping daily work: writing assistants, chatbots, and summarization tools. These are affordable, accessible, and improving fast. That’s why we’ve scaled campus-wide access to Microsoft Copilot, Google Gemini, and NotebookLM. These tools help faculty, staff, and students boost productivity, streamline tasks, and collaborate more effectively, without requiring major investment or technical overhead.
Game-changing AI, on the other hand, demands strategic commitment. These are the big bets that redefine how we conduct research and run institutions. UGA is investing heavily in this space: committing over $8 million to build a robust research backbone that includes GPU-powered desktops and our central high-performance cluster at the GACRC. These resources power faculty breakthroughs across disciplines, from genomics to astrophysics.
We’re also helping to lead the USG’s Unified ERP implementation, bringing Workday to 26 institutions. Here, agentic AI, AI that can act on behalf of users, has the potential to transform finance and HR operations through smart automation and adaptive workflows.
The key is knowing when each approach makes sense. Not every challenge calls for a major commitment. But when scale, complexity, or research demands are high, targeted investment can unlock transformative results. At UGA, we’re building an environment where both everyday and game-changing AI can thrive.
A Community Learning Together
We know technology adoption is not just about access. It’s about capability and culture. That’s why UGA is emphasizing communities of practice, structured workshops, and shared platforms that encourage faculty collaboration across disciplines.
At our recent senior leadership retreat, we highlighted several examples of how faculty are already pioneering the use of AI in instruction:
- Stephen Balfour and Dr. James Castle showcased a ChatGPT-based course design tool that turns a syllabus into a scaffolded learning experience, freeing up faculty time to focus on human connection and pedagogical depth.
- Megan Mittelstadt and Dr. Drew Benson demonstrated how course-specific AI chatbots are giving students tailored study aids and just-in-time support.
- And Dr. Kyle Tschepikow’s insights on workforce readiness showed how these tools are becoming not just instructional assets, but career-building essentials.
These efforts reflect a powerful truth: UGA isn’t waiting for AI to arrive. We’re already living into its promise: responsibly, creatively, and collectively.
Recognizing Student Growth with the CLR
Perhaps the most visible sign of our cultural transformation is UGA’s launch of the Comprehensive Learner Record (CLR).
The CLR redefines what a transcript can be. Instead of merely listing grades and course titles, it captures student growth across six core competencies: Critical Thinking, Analytical Thinking, Communication, Social Awareness & Responsibility, Creativity & Innovation, and Leadership & Collaboration.
Students co-author this record by linking their coursework, co-curricular involvement, and experiential learning to these competencies. It’s a living, visual portfolio, and it includes AI.
As our faculty integrate AI tools into their courses, students will have the opportunity to reflect on, document, and showcase how they’ve become AI-capable, not through a standalone certificate, but as part of the larger story of their education.
This reflects a deeper shift. We’re moving from a “What grade did you get?” model to a “What did you build, learn, and master?” mindset. In an age of intelligent systems, human creativity and judgment matter more than ever. The CLR gives our students a way to show that, not just to UGA, but to the world.
The Road Ahead
Becoming an AI-infused university is not a destination. It’s an ongoing posture: one of readiness, collaboration, and curiosity. It’s about building the scaffolding now so that we’re prepared for the breakthroughs to come.
We’re proud of how far UGA has come. But we’re even more energized by what lies ahead. New partnerships, new instructional designs, new forms of research and outreach: all shaped by faculty who see AI not as a threat, but as a tool to deepen their work.
If you’re a faculty or staff member who hasn’t yet explored the AI tools available to you, now is the time. Start with Copilot. Try Gemini or NotebookLM. And if you’re a student, take time to explore the CLR. Use it to tell your story: to connect the dots between what you learn, how you grow, and the world you’re preparing to lead.
At UGA, we’re not just using AI. We’re shaping our future with it.
