Building an AI-Ready University

Building an AI-Ready University offers step-by-step guidance for higher education leaders and administrators throughout the entire artificial intelligence (AI) adoption cycle-from initial readiness checks and stakeholder interviews to long-term governance, scenario planning, and continuous improvement. Grounded in design thinking, bottom-up engagement, and scenario-based strategy, this book provides the roadmaps, pilot toolkits, and decision templates necessary to deploy AI responsibly, address real campus challenges, and safeguard institutional integrity. Readers learn to set clear objectives, such as improving student retention, expanding research capacity, or advancing equity, and then select, pilot, evaluate, and refine AI solutions that address these needs without losing sight of academic freedom or ethical standards. Presidents, provosts, deans, faculty champions, senior administrators, and others will be better prepared to rally stakeholders, mitigate risks, measure impact, and adapt as conditions change.

Ruopeng An advances the responsible use of artificial intelligence to reduce health disparities and social inequities. He holds the Constance and Martin Silver Endowed Professorship in Data Science and Prevention at New York University and directs the Constance and Martin Silver Center on Data Science and Social Equity. His research has been supported by federal agencies and public/private partners, including OpenAI and Amgen.

About the Author Preface Acknowledgments Chapter 1: Understanding the Imperative of AI in Higher Education Chapter 2: Establishing Your Baseline Through Interviews and Focus Groups Chapter 3: Crafting a Strategic AI Plan with Design Thinking Chapter 4: Unifying Infrastructure, Data Governance, and Ethical Oversight Chapter 5: Integrating AI into Faculty Development and Learning Design Chapter 6: Driving Research and Innovation with AI Chapter 7: Sustaining Stakeholder Engagement and Future-Readiness Chapter 8: Final Thoughts