Last updated January 2024


The Task Force on Guidelines for the Use of Generative AI Tools for Teaching and Learning at Amherst convened on Sept 8, 2023. On December 4, 2023, they presented a set of guidelines around the use of AI at Amherst College. 

Please see “The Charge” section below for details about the goals and scope of these guidelines. 

Task Force Members

Scott Alfeld Assistant Professor of Computer Science

Riley Caldwell-O'Keefe Director of Center for Teaching and Learning

Pawan Dhingra Associate Provost and Associate Dean of the Faculty; Aliki Perroti and Seth Frank '55 Professor of U.S. Immigration Studies, in American Studies

Carmen Granda  Senior Lecturer in Spanish

Jaya Kannan Director of Technology for Curriculum and Research (Task Force Co-Chair)

Chris Kingston Richard S. Volpert '56 Professor of Economics (Task Force Co-Chair)

Kara McGillicuddy Academic Technology Specialist 

Martha Umphrey Bertrand H. Snell 1894 Professor in American Government In the Department of Law, Jurisprudence and Social Thought

The Charge

MEMBERSHIP OF THE TASK FORCE

The task force, which will be co-chaired by the chair of the Committee on Educational Policy and the director of technology for curriculum and research, will comprise four faculty members (including the faculty co-chair), an associate provost and associate dean of the faculty, the director of the Center for Teaching and Learning, and an academic technology specialist in Academic Technology Services, who will support the work of the task force.

CHARGE

Generative AI tools promise to continue to result in opportunities, as well as challenges, for teaching and learning at institutions of higher learning.  The pace at which these technologies are evolving suggests that having guidelines in place for their use would be helpful for many within the Amherst community—contributing to greater understanding about the implications of engagement with these tools in an educational context, and serving as a source of best practices for faculty and students.  At the same time, it is clear that any guidelines that are developed will themselves need to evolve over time—as the terrain of AI continues to shift, and navigation must be adjusted accordingly.

The task force is charged with developing guidelines that will address the areas listed below, as well as any others that the members feel would be useful.  In undertaking this work, the task force should consult with students, faculty, and staff, as needed, and, potentially, with colleagues at peer institutions that have already put guidelines/best practices in place, as well as drawing on other external resources.  In creating guidelines, providing specifics will be particularly welcome.  

  • Approaches/best practices for integrating AI tools into teaching (e.g., assignments, readings, reports, feedback to students, assessment)  
  • Responsibilities of the instructor to make expectations clear to students about the permissible use of AI tools for coursework and about course-specific policies that instructors may wish to use.
  • The implications of AI tools in the area of academic integrity and recommendations on whether updates to current policies are needed and, if so, what these updates would be.  Related issues to address might include guidance about the verification of sources, attribution, documentation, and ethics.
  • The faculty’s responsibilities when publishing content that includes AI-generated material in course materials. 
  • Attention to issues relating to equity and accessibility  
  • Strategies to inform the Amherst community about the use of AI tools and to generate discussion that will highlight salient issues.

These are large and complex questions.  Nevertheless, it is essential that the task force develop draft guidelines by December 4, 2023, so that some guidelines can be put in place expeditiously.  Once completed, the document will be forwarded to the Faculty Executive Committee.