Sep. 24, 2025

 

Dear University Community,

UNLV has been exploring the potential for artificial intelligence to advance learning, teaching, and working since long before ChatGPT became part of everyday conversation.

Over the past several years, the university has piloted practical projects, built a values-driven AI framework, hosted cross-campus learning communities, and launched an AI Hub to make resources easy to find. 

Last year alone, more than 200 faculty and staff participated across all colleges in a Generative AI Fellows program, redesigning assessments, enhancing ethical literacy, developing clinical and creative simulations, and improving workflows.

Now, with an expanded UNLV Rebel AI Initiative, we’re clarifying, focusing, and coordinating our path forward for 2025-26 and beyond. Our goals are straightforward: prepare students to thrive in an AI-enabled world, empower faculty innovation in teaching and research, and strengthen services and operations across the university – always keeping human judgment, ethics, and equity at the forefront of everything we do.

What Students Can Expect in 2025-26

  • AI Literacy Badge – Short modules on how learning works, AI fundamentals, and recognizing when AI helps or hinders learning. These include ethical use of AI, citation practices, and drafting a personal AI-use plan. A companion instructor guide helps faculty see how to incorporate the materials into their courses.
  • Introductory AI Course – EGG 116X, designed for engineering technology students but open to all students who are seeking a solid introduction to AI.
  • UNLV Libraries AI Starter Guide – A companion UNLV Libraries AI starter guide introduces core AI concepts and campus resources.
  • Career Services Support – Guidance to use AI and generative tools ethically, safely, and effectively in pursuit of career goals.

Our priority is better learning – not AI for its own sake. We want to help students use AI thoughtfully and responsibly, verify information, and rely on human insight.

What Faculty and Instructors Can Expect

  • Teaching with AI Series – The Teaching & Learning Commons will offer monthly sessions (first Wednesdays, 12–1:30 p.m., BEH 240) and hands-on labs (third Wednesdays, CHB 145) throughout the academic year. Fall topics include AI 101, ethics, how students use AI, and meaningful assessment. Spring sessions will feature discipline-specific applications, innovation, and empowering students with AI.
  • Faculty Development Communities – Theme-based learning communities will convene again this year. Applications are being accepted through Oct. 1 for learning community facilitators. An optional virtual course on teaching with generative AI is available to learning community participants.
  • Practical Guides – In addition to the AI Hub, instructors can access plug-and-play syllabus language, checklists, and assignment design tips that reduce misuse. 

Guidance for All Employees

Protecting UNLV data and using AI responsibly are critically important for all employees and are essential to our success. Through student and instructor resources, ongoing programming and training for administrative staff and researchers, our goal is to offer continuous opportunities and staff support to make the most of emerging technology and help you identify the right tools for your needs.

This fall, we’re pleased to offer paid, enterprise accounts for ChatGPT and Gemini Pro, with built-in safeguards that help keep your work secure and productive. We’ll maintain an evidence-based approach as we continually evaluate and support these and other AI tools, always offering clear pathways for review and adoption. 

To guide and sustain UNLV AI strategy, we’ve also created an AI Oversight Group to align AI use with institutional goals and champion ethical and equity-centered adoption. A complementary AI Ecosystem Committee will drive infrastructure, policy, training, and adoption frameworks. These groups include representatives from IT, Teaching and Learning Innovation, Research, Academic Affairs, Libraries, Faculty Senate, Faculty Affairs, students, and other campus partners.

How to Get Involved

To be successful in adopting and leading with AI will require all of us at UNLV working together to share best practices, lessons learned, and innovative use cases. 

We encourage you to start by exploring the AI Hub to find resources for teaching, research, and operations. RSVP for monthly sessions, join or form a learning community, or pilot a small, reversible AI application in your course, lab, or unit, measure the impact, and share results. And send your ideas, needs, and success stories to aifeedback@unlv.edu. 

Together, we’ll ensure UNLV remains a student-serving, research-strong university that uses AI responsibly and in innovative ways to continually enhance human insight, creativity, and service.

Sincerely,

Chris Heavey
Interim UNLV President

Kate Hausbeck Korgan
Acting Executive Vice President and Provost