Artificial Intelligence for Academic Affairs: What Innovation Means for Students, Faculty, and Administrative Processes

Key Takeaways: Nuventive’s sixth webinar in our AI series explores how artificial intelligence is reshaping academic leadership, student success, research, and strategy in academic affairs.

Webinar Details: Artificial Intelligence for Academic Affairs: What Innovation Means for Students, Faculty, and Administrative Processes

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Featured Speakers:
• Dr. Rebecca Hoey, Provost/Senior Vice President for Academic and Student Affairs, Dakota State University
• Dr. Ranjit Koodali, Dean of the Graduate School and Associate Provost for International Affairs, New Mexico State University
• Dr. Melissa Hortman, Education Strategist, Microsoft

Moderated by: Dr. Jim Moran, Advisor to Nuventive

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Each week, we distill key takeaways and share short clips from our conversations with presidents, provosts, and leaders in institutional research, assessment, and technology—turning big ideas into practical steps for improvement.

This week, we look at how provosts and graduate leaders are approaching AI with grounded awareness, ethical responsibility, and a focus on strengthening—not replacing—the human relationships at the heart of higher education. From personalized learning and advising to research acceleration and strategic planning, our expert panel offers a view of how AI can enhance academic work while ensuring faculty, staff, and students remain empowered and supported.

One of the first topics addressed was whether academic leaders must become AI experts to guide their institutions. Dr. Melissa Hortman, Education Strategist, Microsoft, emphasized education and awareness over expertise:

“For the majority of academic leaders, it’s really about being aware of this changing landscape, which we know is changing very quickly, and understanding generative AI and how it impacts education.”

Leaders can develop a broad understanding of AI by:

• Staying connected to diverse peer perspectives
• Listening to internal stakeholders
• Using AI tools regularly
• Creating space for innovation on campus

She highlighted a key insight from Harvard Business Review: “70 percent of organizational transformation fails because organizational change can’t happen if leaders cannot change with it.”

AI is expanding the ways students learn—not by replacing human instruction, but by strengthening it. Dr. Rebecca Hoey, Provost/Senior Vice President for Academic and Student Affairs, Dakota State University, noted that early computer-assisted tools like Pearson’s MyMathLab were precursors to today’s AI-enhanced learning. What’s different now is the scale and speed at which AI can support students.

Examples from Dakota State University:
• AI tools that help students practice and refine mathematical proofs
• A “digital personality” avatar that supports students with questions about academics, financial aid, and registration
• Emerging opportunities for individualized, 24/7 tutoring and feedback

These tools personalize learning by identifying where students struggle, adapting support, and offering targeted guidance that helps them progress with greater confidence.

AI-embedded academic systems are reshaping how institutions identify needs and support students throughout their learning journey.

Examples shared:
• LMS systems that analyze login patterns, detect at-risk students, and prompt about missing assignments
• Camtasia automatically generating captions
• Library chatbots helping students locate resources
• AI-powered lecture capture that creates flashcards

Dr. Hoey sees this as a major opportunity: “Our existing tools are embedding AI … they’re really morphing and changing to support degree attainment.”

Dr. Hortman added: “AI is allowing professionals that work alongside students to really, truly be alongside them and to be able to see those patterns and use those patterns to have intentional conversations with them. I think this can be really powerful for students; it personalizes the experience.”

Dr. Ranjit Koodali, Dean of the Graduate School and Associate Provost for International Affairs, New Mexico State University, highlighted three research priorities:

1. Enhancing literature reviews: AI helps navigate scholarly databases and identify emerging trends
2. Accelerating data analysis: High-performance computing + models = faster, clearer insights
3. Predictive modeling: AI enables simulation of complex phenomena and forecasting outcomes

Dr. Hortman noted that AI changes the researcher’s role: “From being in the trenches to being the conductor of the tools.”

Even with AI, students must critically evaluate sources. Dr. Koodali emphasized the importance of knowing:

• Who produced the information?
• Are the authors credible?
• Are claims supported by raw data?
• Are methods transparent?
• Are there citations or retractions?

Dr. Hortman highlighted the importance of humanity and critical thinking: “We’re putting so much trust in AI to be the expert. When we anthropomorphize AI as the expert in research and forget all those amazing steps and the critical thinking that happens, going back to the source, understanding the information, knowing if it’s valid or not. Those pieces cannot be forgotten in research. AI is not the expert.”

At Dakota State University, advisors use AI-embedded tools to:

• Automate registration reminders
• Generate communications
• Flag non-program course selections
• Prevent financial aid compliance issues

Dr. Hoey explained: “I don’t see a place where AI will replace human advisors. It takes away those more menial tasks and frees up time for the more complicated, rich, mentoring work.”

Hear it from Dr. Hoey here

Dr. Hortman outlined how generative AI aligns with core institutional work:

Key capabilities:
• Content generation
• Summarization
• Cohort comparisons
• Real-time KPI tracking
• Semantic search
• Translation into leadership-ready language

“Strategic plans used to be made and then put on a shelf … now we can bring data in to inform what we do next.”

Dr. Hoey added excitement about mining data across academic and student systems: “AI is allowing us to ask specific research questions that will help us identify solutions that will help our students.”

As independent colleges navigate this evolving landscape, community remains their greatest strength. “We often find that the best way we can serve our members is through the creation of networks … to create shared communities of practice,” Hass said

Dr. Koodali

• AI accelerates discovery and research
• Protect data privacy
• Ethics must guide implementation

Dr. Hortman

• Lead with responsible AI
• Build a sustainable, ethical culture
• Empower faculty, staff, and students

Dr. Hoey

• Use AI intentionally
• Co-create institutional guidance
• Prepare students for an AI-shaped workforce

Across roles — provosts, deans, industry partners — the message is clear:
• AI is already embedded in higher education operations
• Human expertise remains the centerpiece
• Institutions must adopt ethical, shared frameworks
• Student success and strategic planning will increasingly rely on AI-driven insights
• Faculty and leaders will do less repetitive work, but more high-value work

Artificial Intelligence for Institutional Research: New Tools, New Strategies, New Questions

Featured Speakers:

Dr. Jason Simon, former Associate Vice President – Data, Analytics and Institutional Research, University of North Texas

Dr. Eric Zeglen, Executive Director of Institutional Research, Assessment and Planning, Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania

Moderated by: Dr. Randy Swing, Advisor to Nuventive and former Executive Director at the Association for Institutional Research

Recorded: March 19, 2024
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