Foreword
As Provost Liaison to the SUNY Faculty Advisory Council on Teaching and Technology (FACT2), it is my pleasure to present AI in Action, a new SUNY FACT2 Guide to Optimizing Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Higher Education, which was developed by the 2025 FACT2 Task Group. This guide both builds on and moves beyond the work of two previous guides, published in 2023 and 2024, addressing the ways in which AI has become increasingly integrated into teaching and learning in higher education and providing guidance to support faculty and administrators in navigating this continuing changing landscape.
Similarly to the two previous FACT2 Guides, the quality of work in the pages to follow represents the talent and expertise of the individuals who served on the FACT² AI in Action Task Group over the past year. The result is a focused resource designed to support faculty across the SUNY system in making informed decisions about the role of AI in their teaching and in contributing to institutional level decisions about AI.
The FACT² Council Task Group on AI in Action, representing faculty and staff from a range of SUNY institutions, brought depth and focus to this guide on three current areas of interest and concern with AI in higher education. Their collective expertise and collaborative spirit have produced a resource for both administrators and educators who are seeking to develop effective policies, make decisions about implementing AI tools, and implement AI to support more personalized learning for their students within their courses. The Provost’s Office is extremely grateful to the entire Task Group for contributing their time and energy to this important work.
This guide would not have been possible without the exceptional leadership of the FACT² Task Group Chair and the subcommittee co-chairs who guided the writing of each chapter of the guide: Billie Franchini (University at Albany), Task Group Chair; Meghanne Freivald (Alfred University) and Dana Gavin (Dutchess County Community College), AI Policy subcommittee co-chairs; Nicola Marae Allain (Empire State University) and Shyam Sharma (Stony Brook University), Evaluating AI Tools subcommittee co-chairs; Keith Landa (SUNY Purchase) and Carrie Solomon (Binghamton University), AI Tutor subcommittee co-chairs). Their work in ensuring that this this new Guide moved to publication during the Fall 2025 semester is timely as many campuses are actively engaged in discussions and decision-making processes around the very issues addressed in the Guide.
The work of SUNY FACT2 Task Groups re generally designed to serve SUNY faculty and campuses; however, in many cases, their work is applicable beyond SUNY. That is also the case with AI in Action, and we hope it will serve as a resource for faculty everywhere, providing guidance, insights, recommendations, and practical tools to enhance teaching and learning. We hope this work will support educators in making sound decisions about the role of AI in teaching and learning to harness the potential of AI while recognizing the need to address the ethical, legal, and societal implications it brings.
My sincere thanks to everyone who contributed to this Guide. It reflects work you and we at SUNY can all be proud of, shaping what AI in higher education looks like today and what it can become tomorrow.
Kim A. Scalzo
Senior Associate Provost for Digital Innovation and Academic Services
SUNY System Administration
