General Education in an AI-Empowered University: Humanities Faculty at the CSU Respond to ChatGPT

Thursday, January 22, 2026

5:00 PM - 5:30 PM East Coast USA Time

Location: Capitol - Level M4

Primary Presenter(s)

Bridget Ford

Professor of History
California State University, East Bay, United States

PDF

Co-Presenter(s)

KB

Katie Bramlett

Assistant Professor of English and Director of Writing Across the Curriculum
California State University, East Bay, United States
SN

Sarah Nielsen

Professor of English
California State University, East Bay, United States
Michelle St. George

Lecturer, English
California State University, East Bay, United States
Jessica Weiss

Professor of History
California State University, East Bay, United States

In February 2025, the California State University launched an ambitious initiative “to become the nation’s first and largest AI-empowered higher education system.” In response, Cal State East Bay’s English and history faculty—serving a larger proportion of low-income students—secured grant funding to integrate artificial intelligence (AI) into general education (GE) courses. This panel will present faculty and student perspectives on implementing AI-assisted instruction in highly regulated writing, critical thinking, and civic engagement GE curricula. Amid rapid institutional change, faculty presenters seek to preserve human-centered writing and critical reasoning while responsibly introducing AI literacy to students. Four micro-presentations will address faculty collaboration models, revised course and assessment designs, student surveys and classroom feedback, and broader implications for humanistic study and AI readiness in work and civic life.