Department of English

Today the School of Arts & Sciences announces the launch of the AI & Data Collaborative, articulating its vision for integrating the use and study of artificial intelligence into research, teaching, and engagement. 
 
A new SAS AI Advisory Group made up of three faculty with vast experience in these areas will lead the coordinated, strategic effort: Bhuvnesh Jain, Walter H. and Leonore C. Annenberg Professor in the Natural Sciences, Co-Director of the Data Driven Discovery Initiative (DDDI), and Co-Chair of the University’s AI Council; Whitney Trettien, Associate Professor of English and Faculty Director of the Price Lab for Digital Humanities; and John Lapinski, Robert A. Fox Leadership Professor of Political Science, Faculty Director of the Robert A. Fox Leadership Program and Fels Institute of Government, and Director of the Penn Program on Opinion Research and Election Studies. 
 
SAS Horizons: Pathways for a Changing World, released in February, solidified artificial intelligence and data science as priority areas for the School. “These are fundamentally reshaping the parameters of culture and knowledge and are vital for both research and teaching,” says Mark Trodden, Dean of Penn Arts & Sciences and Thomas S. Gates, Jr. Professor of Physics & Astronomy. “Thanks to the strong foundation established by the Data Driven Discovery Initiative, the School is already at the forefront of this work. The new AI initiative, led by this fantastic team, will increase exposure for students and create new avenues of expertise.” 

Jain—who has helmed DDDI with Greg Ridgeway, Rebecca W. Bushnell Professor of Criminology, since it started in 2021—will be the School’s AI lead and Advisory Group Chair. “This new initiative reflects our expansive and ambitious vision around AI, a strong complement to work ongoing at the University level,” he says. “Our goal is to support cutting-edge work in research and teaching across SAS while also helping to shape it, through innovation, collaboration, and an eye toward the future.”
 
Part of that undertaking centers around research, both about AI and the effective and responsible use of these technologies. A series of projects, from a faculty fellows program to one focused on humanities-led initiatives, will address these questions. 
 
“In the digital humanities, we’ve been developing new methods that take advantage of AI’s possibilities while advocating for clear, thoughtful policies around its use and integration into our classrooms,” says Trettien. “It’s exciting to connect this work to the larger effort across Penn Arts & Sciences.”
 
In the setting of a university, that naturally translates to how these technologies have been and will continue to influence education. For that reason the AI Advisory Group’s second main focus is on integrating AI into both undergraduate and graduate-level curricula, to increase data and AI fluency with disciplinary depth, critical analysis, and experiential learning grounded in inquiry.
 
As Co-Director of the Data Science and Analytics Minor, Lapinski understands this charge. “Our undergraduate programs in data science have been actively evolving alongside a changing world, and integrating AI into that learning process is crucial,” he says. “Students are already developing a powerful combination of analytical, technical, and critical thinking skills that will serve them in any field. This work strengthens our ability to prepare students in all disciplines to appropriately integrate AI into their toolkit, both now and in the future.” 
 
As this work gets off the ground, the AI & Data Collaborative will continue evolving, too. The AI Advisory Group will take the lead, helping Penn Arts & Sciences maintain its role as a leader in this space, and positioning the School to grow how it understands and uses artificial intelligence in research, education, and public life.

See this post as it originally appeared: https://www.sas.upenn.edu/news/school-arts-sciences-launches-ai-data-col...