Seton Hill Faculty Share Values-Driven AI Approach at National Conference

When Associate Professor of English Emily Wierszewski, director of the AI Academy at Seton Hill, spotted a call for presentations for the “Reimagining the Liberal Arts in the Age of AI,” a conference hosted by the University of Mary Washington (UMW) in Fredericksburg, Va., she saw an opportunity to showcase Seton Hill’s focus on values-driven AI education, which places human values and thoughtful pedagogy at the center of technological innovation.

Participants in Seton Hill’s AI Academy during the 2025-26 academic year had the task of revising or creating learning assignments and activities that were grounded in the values they identified early in the course. They thought through the most appropriate way to adapt to AI, given their values and goals: Should AI be a thinking partner? An object for critique? Or is a human centered approach most appropriate? The “students” then created projects based on their work and had the opportunity to showcase them during the Celebration of Scholarship on campus in the spring.

Several faculty members who participated in Seton Hill’s AI Academy joined Wierszewski at the UMW conference this summer and took part in a national conversation about artificial intelligence, sharing how a values-driven approach can help liberal arts institutions thoughtfully integrate AI into the classroom.

“The goal of the AI Academy is not just to teach faculty how to use AI tools, but to help them think critically about how these technologies align with their values as educators,” said Wierszewski. “When we begin with what matters most in teaching and learning, we can make more intentional decisions about where AI belongs in the classroom and where human connection remains essential.”

The conference brought together educators to explore an urgent question: How can liberal arts institutions integrate AI in ways that complement, rather than undermine, their teaching and learning practices? Attendance was limited to 100 participants for two days of keynote presentations and breakout sessions.

For their breakout session, titled "A Values-Focused Approach to AI Integration in the Liberal Arts Classroom," Wierszewski was joined by Professor of English Christine Cusick, Associate Professor of Sociology Susan Eichenberger and Professor of Spanish Debra Faszer-McMahon.

The session opened with an interactive exercise in which attendees drew cards representing professional values, then swapped and discarded them to identify the principles most important to their teaching. Participants next considered ethical scenarios, including whether using AI to generate feedback on student essays aligned with their professional commitments. The Seton Hill faculty then introduced tools to help educators communicate their expectations and boundaries for AI use to students.

Throughout the session, the faculty emphasized a central question guiding Seton Hill’s AI Academy: What do liberal arts educators value, and how can their approach to AI reflect those commitments?

In the liberal arts, the learning process matters as much as the final product. Rather than adopting AI tools simply because they are available, the AI Academy encourages faculty to begin with their educational goals and consider how technology might support meaningful learning while keeping the human person at the center.

The projects developed by the Seton Hill faculty illustrated how this approach translates into classroom practice while giving conference attendees ideas to consider in their own disciplines.

Cusick’s project invited students to reflect on what distinguishes humans from artificial intelligence through digital and analog activities. One particularly meaningful component involved handwriting letters to loved ones about the texts students were reading. For many, it was their first time handwriting a letter. The assignment offered an opportunity to consider the patience, intentionality and emotional connection associated with handwritten communication as compared to digital or AI-assisted work.

Eichenberger explored how AI affects different communities, focusing on power dynamics, equity and algorithmic bias. Her project encouraged students to consider the broader social implications of these technologies and the ways AI systems can reflect or reinforce existing inequalities.

Faszer-McMahon examined how AI can help reduce the anxiety novice language learners may feel when asked to speak spontaneously. AI chatbots, which are available around the clock, remove the fear of human judgment and can give students a place to practice and build confidence before engaging in authentic conversations with native speakers.

Together, the projects demonstrated that thoughtful AI integration looks different across disciplines. Whether examining human communication, social equity or language learning, the faculty began with the needs of their students and the values underpinning their teaching.

For the Seton Hill team, the conference also offered an opportunity to connect with colleagues who share a commitment to human-centered education. Their participation underscored the important role liberal arts institutions can play in the national conversation about AI by asking meaningful questions about when and how it can best serve students.

At a time when conversations about AI often emphasize efficiency and the production of finished work, Seton Hill’s faculty offered a different perspective: Technology should support the learning process, deepen reflection and strengthen human connection. By grounding AI integration in the values of a liberal arts education, they demonstrated how innovation and intentional teaching can work together.