Transformation through Artificial Intelligence in Learning

Overview

The Transformation in using Artificial Intelligence in Learning (TRAIL) program aims to support innovative approaches in applying artificial intelligence (AI) technologies into various aspects of our academic enterprise, including applications in teaching and learning and research and scholarship.

Goals and areas of interest

In support of our academic excellence and impactful scholarship goals, our aims with this program are to: (a) Enhance our teaching and learning by increasing the use and adoption of AI technologies across our curriculum, expanding the career-readiness of our degree programs through the infusion of AI expertise, and identifying efficiencies through the use of AI that enable faculty to better direct their efforts toward activities that have the highest positive impact on students; (b) Support innovative approaches by our faculty to use AI technologies that support their scholarly and research approaches through the creation of novel workflows, development of efficiencies in integrating and summarizing information, or other applications of AI that enhance research and scholarly productivity.

Faculty with a TRAIL award will receive support to assist them in developing course-based interventions and research and scholarship approaches that meet the goals of this program and to disseminate the outcomes of their work to the institutional community. Areas of interest include, but are not limited to, the application of AI technologies across many types of instructional activities, such as improving student learning outcomes through the application of AI to learning designs, revising courses to infuse applied AI expertise into learning outcomes, supporting research and scholarship endeavors, and facilitating and optimizing faculty work through the application of AI. The program is intended to encourage novel approaches to instructional research and scholarly activities, rather than developing AI-based analysis tools tailored to specific research questions.

Award information

All full-time teaching, clinical, practice, lecturer, research, tenure-track, and tenured faculty, at any rank step, are eligible to apply for support under the TRAIL program, under either the instructional or research and scholarship track. Awardees will receive $5,000 to engage in the development of their proposed activities. Awardees also commit to showcase their work during the spring of the award year as part of our institutional professional development activities.

Upon request, awardees will additionally receive access to elevated tiers of service with the Microsoft Copilot suite of technologies to support their work. Faculty applying under the instructional track of the program must have assigned courses in the fall term of the award year and meet the expectation that proposed interventions be piloted in at least one of their assigned fall courses. Faculty applying under the research track of the program must commit to the expectation that the AI-based techniques will be used to complete one or more discipline-appropriate scholarly product (e.g., journal or conference publication, grant proposal, book chapter) during the award year.

Applications for each track will be separately assessed and prioritized for funding according to the following criteria:

Innovation and originality of the proposed intervention and its potential to contribute to an improved understanding of possible applications of AI in the program’s areas of interest;
Feasibility and methodological soundness of the proposed intervention, including the proposer possessing the necessary expertise to successfully complete the work;
As appropriate to each respective track, (a) potential for positive impact on students, including considerations of enrollments in targeted courses, and across disciplines or (b) potential for positive impact on the research or scholarly field and the generation of opportunities for scholarly dissemination or extramural funding support;
Potential for the sustainability of the proposed intervention beyond the scope of the award; and,
Rigor in considering ethical implications of the proposed work and mitigating relevant risks, including data privacy of student information and transparency for students.

Application information

Applications for academic year 2025-2026 awards will be accepted until February 17, 2025 (updated on 1/23/25), with award notifications announced by March 14, 2025 (updated on 1/23/25). Eligible faculty are invited to submit their applications, consisting of a single PDF file, and containing:

A proposal of no more than 750 words that identifies which track it is being submitted under (i.e., instructional or research and scholarship), offers a title for the proposal, introduces the proposed work, outlines the challenges it will address, and presents the proposed intervention or research and scholarship contribution.
- Instructional track applications: Explicitly identify the courses and numbers of enrolled students the work will impact, and address how the proposal aligns with the program’s goals, areas of interest, and assessment criteria.
- Research and scholarship track applications: Explicitly identify the scholarly contribution and challenges addressed and demonstrate the potential for the work to generate opportunities for scholarly dissemination or extramural funding support.
A current curriculum vitae.

Proposals should be submitted over email to vpao@nau.edu with the subject of the email containing the applicant’s last name, “TRAIL proposal”, and the track being submitted to (e.g., “Georgas TRAIL proposal, Instructional” or “Georgas TRAIL proposal, Research and Scholarship”). Incomplete applications, applications not meeting program requirements, or applications submitted after the deadline may not be reviewed.

Prior awardees

By sharing information on prior awards made through this program we hope to inspire other faculty to engage with the program, celebrate the work of our TRAIL-blazing faculty awardees, and collectively accelerate our institution’s progress in the applications of AI.

2025-2026 awardees

Sarah Bolander, Department of Physician Assistant Studies: Integrating AI into Graduate Health Education: A Workshop Series
Marti Canipe, Department of Teaching and Learning: Using GenAI in Lesson Planning
Ana Paula Chaves, School of Informatics, Computing, and Cyber Systems: Enhancing CS136 Lab Learning with an AI-driven Conversational Agent
Amy Dryden, School of Communication: AI as a Creative Partner: Teaching Scalable Content Production in Strategic Communication
Marco Gerosa, School of Informatics, Computing, and Cyber Systems: LLM-Generated Feedback for Reflecting Upon Design Trade-offs in Software Engineering
Sara Kien, Department of Psychological Sciences: Developing an AI Chatbot to Support Critical Thinking in a Research Methods Course
Jermaine Martinez, School of Communication: From Perils to Pedagogy: Generative Artificial Intelligence as Forms of Visual and Verbal Communication
Nick McKay, School of Earth and Sustainability: Instructional-Track: Scaling Socratic Learning with AI: Enhancing Engagement in Large Classes
Michelle Miller, Department of Psychological Sciences: Interactive Tools for Enhancing Critical Thinking Across Disciplines
Michael Morgan, Department of Physical Therapy and Athletic Training: See, Touch, Learn: Enhancing DPT Students’ Palpation Skills and Anatomical Knowledge with AI Musculoskeletal Ultrasound
Landi Morris, Department of Economics, Finance, and Accounting: Career-Ready Skills in Accounting and Finance: Validating Generative AI’s Interpretation of the Internal Revenue Code
Viktoria Tidikis, Department of Psychological Sciences: The Future of Learning: Integrating AI into Teaching Cognition and Psychology of Creativity Courses
Derek Uhey, School of Forestry: Conversations with Conservationists: AI-Simulated Dialogues for Environmental Education
Yichuan Wang, Department of Management, Marketing, and Information Systems Management: Empowering Business Students to Thrive in the AI Era: A Practical and Research-Driven Approach

2024-2025 awardees

Yuly Asención-Delaney, Department of Global Languages and Cultures, College of Arts and Letters: Using chatbots to increase language learners’ willingness to communicate in Spanish as a second language
Jeff Berglund, Department of English, College of Arts and Letters: The Possibilities and Perils of Using Generative Artificial Intelligence in Indigenous Literature Classrooms 
Blue Brazelton, Department of Educational Leadership, College of Education: Generative AI and Organizational Leader Development
Marco Gerosa, School of Informatics, Computing, and Cyber Systems, College of Engineering, Informatics, and Applied Sciences: Leveraging Large Language Models to Boost Students’ Software Design and Architecture Skills 
Kiley Huntington, Department of Social Work, College of Social and Behavioral Sciences: Improving Student Learning Outcomes with a Generative AI Peer Review Partner 
Alana Kuhlman, Department of English, College of Arts and Letters: An AI Literacy Module for Students Across the Disciplines
Nick McKay, School of Earth and Sustainability, College of the Environment, Forestry, and Natural Sciences: Integrating Generative AI in Environmental Science Education: Enhancing Fieldwork, Data Analysis, and Technical Writing
David Politzer, School of Art, College of Arts and Letters: Tackling AI Anxiety with Art Students: Using Role-Playing, Visual Analysis and Experimentation to Ease into Artificial Intelligence
Janice Sweeter, School of Communication, College of Social and Behavioral Sciences: AI in the Strategic Communication Classroom and Industry
Jonna Vance, Philosophy Department, College of Arts and Letters: Dialogues with Generative AI: Exploring Human-AI Adversarial Collaborations

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