The current college student’s education is being shaped by artificial intelligence, whether they actively use AI tools, professors incorporate it into their classroom, or their classmates rely on it. The workforce is also rapidly evolving, with employers expecting staff to be familiar with AI to increase their productivity and improve their work.
Oglethorpe students will have the opportunity to learn about AI’s innovation at this semester’s On Mutual Ground event, a campus community dialogue series for Petrels to explore challenging topics. The event will specifically explore the ethical responsibility around AI and its implications for learning, work and society through multiple perspectives.
Attendees will hear from two experts in artificial intelligence: Dr. Edward L. Queen, the director of the D. Abbott Turner Program in Ethics and Servant Leadership at Emory University, and Avoilan Bingham, the Atlanta Seed General Manager at Drive Capital and president of Atlanta Tech Week.
Queen has dedicated most of his work to developing and implementing ethics programs in businesses, non-profits and government agencies. Through training and advising, he aims to mold ethically informed and engaged citizens. He is an expert in many areas, including the ethics of artificial intelligence and machine learning, and serves as an advisor on this topic for Merlynn Intelligence Technologies.
Bingham is one of the most prominent champions of artificial intelligence in Atlanta and the southeast, serving as an organizer of the AI Tinkerers Atlanta chapter, a global community of engineers, researchers, developers and tech experts who are active builders of generative AI. He focuses on how industries can adapt and develop business solutions as the world becomes more digitized.
Dr. Jamie Iredell, lecturer in Core studies and a committee member for the On Mutual Ground event series, was a strong advocate for discussing this topic with students to help them become better informed about the emerging tool.
“According to a number of studies, AI use is most prevalent in the ages of people who match our student population, but there is little to nothing in the way of training or education on how to use AI in an ethical or helpful—as opposed to AI doing all of the work for someone—way,” said Iredell. “We wanted a discussion that was student-focused, and that could help our students navigate this new and potentially problematic territory.”
On Mutual Ground is a campus community dialogue series that creates space for Petrels to learn about challenging topics in a format that educates and fosters inclusive conversations on the Oglethorpe University campus—our mutual ground, our shared connection.
On Mutual Ground: Ethics and the Future of AI will be held in Lupton Auditorium on February 26 at 1:00 p.m. RSVP here.
