How Two Colleges Continue to Become One in a Pandemic

My last blog post occurred in June, about three months into the 2020 pandemic. Institutionally, we were already experiencing a sea of change as having merged with another college forming a branch to the main campus location. At the time, the merger was just eight months old with a new name, a new identity as one college and two distinct cultures.

In March, we were well into our spring semester, when the State of New Jersey’s governor mandated by executive order for its citizenry to stay at home due to the pandemic. This created a perfect storm of events that intensified the velocity of change, necessitating the college to refocus its energy toward switching face-to-face classes to an entirely online environment during spring break so that returning students could finish out their semester online. This mandate was the most restrictive of the governor’s executive orders. Other mandates have since followed guided by the state’s The Road Back plan structured in four stages, with the last stage titled, “New Normal.” As of this writing, New Jersey remains in stage two, so we have a way to go before hitting the last stage and can move on to experience whatever the “new normal” brings.

Based on fluctuations in New Jersey’s COVID-19 health data, the leadership of the college made the decision to continue conducting all classes online through the fall semester and intends to reevaluate the plan for the 2021 spring semester at a later date. With state-approved protocols in place regarding social distancing, capacity considerations, face coverings, and heightened cleaning, employees are now able to return to both campuses to keep vital services operational, while those who are able to perform their job functions remotely can do so in a combination of in-person and telecommuting designed to reduce overall campus population during this stage of The Road Back plan. Only classes that entail hands-on skill development as required by accrediting bodies and/or for credential completion are being offered in a hybrid format with a combination of online and face-to-face classes adhering to all mandated protocols.

Needless to say, how policy development and/or revisions are handled has changed dramatically. We were just getting started on collective policy review with our branch colleagues when the pandemic changed how we would proceed to conduct business. Understandably, most of our requests for policy assistance revolve around current policy revision and procedural addenda specifically related to the impact of COVID-19, which by necessity is a fluid process as existing mandates change in response to the pandemic situation.

In addition to keeping up with the evolving policy changes, our office was in the midst of completing the last aspects of our three-year strategic plan with an assortment of internal and external events planned. Like every in-person event or meeting planned across the college, everything became virtual almost overnight and old processes needed to be adapted quickly to work effectively in an online environment. After a bit of a virtual platform learning curve, many dropped calls, delayed internet audio and garbled responses, we have fortunately developed a sort of “new normal” rhythm, while at the same time, maintaining a sense of humor as dogs, cats or kids add their special magic to our work sessions. On a positive note, we were able to complete the strategic plan and it will head to the printer this week, and of course, our policy work continues.

As I reflect on where we were going into March and where we are now – it remains a huge challenge with plenty of uncertainty. However, I also marvel at what has been accomplished in the interim through sustaining open minds, the spirit of collaboration, respect, and no end of hard work.

Oh, and when we get to the other side of this pandemic, we will need to gather up all our notes and be poised and ready to overhaul our emergency operational plan to add a detailed section on global pandemics, while simultaneously pondering the “new normal” in which we find ourselves.

The Impact of Automation and AI

One aspect of my job is to research emerging issues for my campus and make recommendations for how we should be preparing for them.  This post evolved from a policy and practice brief I recently wrote for my institution on the role of automation and artificial intelligence (AI) on the economy and the subsequent challenges for how we prepare students and operate as an organization. 

While campus traditions and cultures vary, most of us have experienced—and currently work in—an educational system that prepares workers for an Industrial Revolution-based economy.  Our modern economy, however, is changing in ways that will likely affect both the way we prepare students and our own workplaces; one of the drivers of that change is automation and AI. 

Most people are familiar with the impact of automation on factory and blue-collar jobs that began to speed up in the 1970s.  What many don’t appreciate is that increasing numbers of white-collar professions, such as radiology, accounting, stock trading, paralegal work, and even some aspects of journalism, have already been significantly influenced by machines that can do the work as effectively as humans.[i]  Yes, some of the news stories you are currently reading are written by nonhumans.  A 2013 Oxford University study predicted that nearly half of all jobs will be in danger of automation in the next two decades,[ii] and a 2015 McKinsey report predicted that 45% of all work can be automated by technology that’s currently available.[iii]A survey found that most researchers believe that AI systems will probably (i.e., more than 50% likelihood) achieve the ability to work at the same level as humans beginning around 2040.[iv]  Even more moderate predictions see a large impact on the workplace, with 9% of the workforce being displaced.[v]

Skeptics say that the world economy has previously experienced several major technological disruptions—such as the power loom that displaced weavers and the car that eliminated most of the relevant products and services for horse-drawn carriages—and each time the economy recovered as people reskilled. Several experts say, however, that the disruption caused by AI is different because it is exponential in its ability to change and adjust.[vi]

Even if the more dire predictions don’t come to pass, it’s certain that AI and automation will impact our lives as workers, as well as those of our graduates. While it’s unlikely that instruction and service units will be completely automated, technology is currently in use that automates important functions like grading, tutoring, and answering basic inquiries from students. 

Because so much is unknown about the impact of AI on education, there are more questions than answers at this point, but it’s important, nevertheless, that campuses begin to engage these coming changes and, as part of that process, give thoughtful consideration to what they mean for our own campuses as workplaces.  Has your institution begun thinking about these issues?  Has your institution begun using AI to perform functions that were previously done by humans, such as chatbots to answer basic student questions? In an era of scarce budget resources, what stance, if any, does your campus take on preserving the jobs of human workers versus using technology that can perform some or all of their functions?What policy and ethical implications do you foresee, as AI becomes more integrated into the work of education?