Setting Expectations for Student Use

Authors: Katie Hamilton, Chief of Staff – Office of the Provost, and Jonathan Hill, MD, PhD, Faculty Training and Development Specialist.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has brought unique challenges and opportunities to higher education. Like institutions nationwide, faculty and leaders at Joyce University of Nursing and Health Sciences (Joyce) sought to develop a policy that ensured responsible and ethical student use of the emerging and evolving technology. In this post, we share the process our university took to develop the Artificial Intelligence Use Policy and Procedure for students, and what’s next for AI policy.

Artificial Intelligence Position Statement

Prior to the policy work, a Joyce Artificial Intelligence taskforce contributed to the development of the following statement, which guided the work to follow.

At Joyce University of Nursing and Health Sciences, we recognize that Artificial Intelligence (AI) represents a transformative force with potential to shape the future. As an Institution dedicated to education and innovation, we are committed to harnessing the power of AI in a way that aligns with the University’s mission and vision.

As guided by the University’s values, we will navigate the possibilities that AI presents, striving to create an academic and healthcare education landscape that is inclusive, empowering, and enriched by the responsible and ethical use of AI.

AI Use Policy Development

1. Policy Purpose
   Prior to the AI Use Policy, Joyce faculty observed an uptick in student coursework submitted that reflected the use AI for completion. Without clear guidelines, faculty and administration lacked a complete toolbox to support responsible and ethical student AI use. The taskforce developed the policy to provide clear expectations for students’ acceptable and unacceptable use of AI and an avenue for reporting violations.
   
   
2. Artificial Intelligence Use Policy
   Our policy authors developed guidelines for the acceptable use of AI for student coursework while ensuring faculty remained empowered to guide the use of AI in their courses and to reduce sole dependence on AI percentage reports provided by plagiarism checkers (e.g., Turnitin). The policy outlines three categories of AI use cases: Authorized Use, Unauthorized Use, and Prohibited Use, as summarized below.
   
   
   1. Authorized Use
      • Faculty permission is granted to use AI in the course.
      • Use of AI to edit and/or expand upon student authored work.
      • Use of AI to generate ideas (not content) towards the application of coursework.
      • Use of AI to assist in the organization and collection of research related materials.
        
        
   2. Unauthorized Use
      • Absence of faculty permission to use AI in the course.
      • Absence of student contribution in the coursework.
      • Absence of the acknowledgement of AI use.
        
        
   3. Prohibited Use
      • Input of documents or information proprietary to the University.
      • Input of identifying or confidential information without permission.
        
        
3. Policy Enforcement
   We have had success at Joyce including the AI Use Policy violation reporting within the Student Code of Conduct reporting process to ensure equitable, consistent sanctions and effective support for faculty and students. The authors accomplished policy accountability through the procedure below.
   
   Students that violate the Artificial Intelligence Use Policy will be considered in violation of the Student Code of Conduct Policy, specifically the Academic Integrity Standards, and will be subject to disciplinary action in accordance with the Student Code of Conduct Policy and Procedure as published in University Catalog.

What’s next for AI Policy at Joyce?

1. AI Use Policy Effectiveness Evaluation
   Joyce recently implemented a policy evaluation process for recently published policies. The AI Use Policy has been in place for a semester and is ready to undergo this evaluation to inform any revisions. Through this evaluation, we will also explore additional AI policy needs, AI governance frameworks, and consider broadening the policy scope to address emerging technologies and applications using AI.
   
   
2. Faculty AI Training and Education
   The Joyce Faculty Academy will begin offering a course on AI in healthcare and education to increase AI literacy at Joyce.

Recognition: A special thank you to the policy authors, Dr. Jonathan Hill, MD, PhD, Faculty Training and Development Specialist, and Tricia Kingsley, Director of Legal Affairs and Associate Counsel, for their commitment to the development of the Artificial Intelligence Use Policy.