About The Initiative for Human Formation in an Age of AI
On Aug. 18, 2026, Saint Joseph’s University President Cheryl A. McConnell, PhD, announced The Initiative for Human Formation in an Age of AI, a funded, multi-year commitment to prepare students, faculty and staff to lead in an AI-shaped future.
The Initiative takes shape in three interconnected areas: faculty development and pedagogical innovation; a deepened student experience grounded in core human competencies; and investment in institutional capabilities that allow faculty and staff to use AI thoughtfully, responsibly and effectively.
The Initiative for Human Formation in an Age of AI was inspired by Magnifica Humanitas: Pope Leo XIV’s encyclical on safeguarding the human person in the time of artificial intelligence. Published in May 2026, the encyclical describes a “magnificent humanity” that no machine can replace, and calls for technology that serves human beings rather than displaces them.
“We must lovingly safeguard the grandeur of humanity bestowed upon us and revealed in its fullness in Christ, the splendor of which no machine can ever replace,” Pope Leo XIV writes.
The Initiative is Saint Joseph’s response, and guides what we teach, how we learn and who our students become.
Leading the Work
The Initiative is spearheaded by a Guiding Coalition to ensure that the University’s response to artificial intelligence is aligned, mission-driven and centered on human formation. The coalition provides direction and oversight across three interconnected areas of focus, each of which is led by University leaders whose expertise shapes the work.
Focus Area 1:
Faculty Development and Pedagogical Innovation
The Faculty Development and Pedagogical Innovation focus area will lead a faculty-driven examination of how curriculum, pedagogy and learning experiences should evolve to prepare students to flourish as whole persons in a world shaped by AI. Each school and college will establish a committee — informed by its disciplines, professions and educational traditions — to consider how human formation should be reflected in the classroom and what AI means for its academic programs.
The focus area will provide shared direction, faculty development and opportunities for cross-disciplinary learning, while recognizing that meaningful innovation must be grounded in the disciplines and professions.
Faculty Development and Pedagogical Innovation is led by Jean McGivney-Burelle, PhD, provost and senior vice president of academic affairs; Clint Springer, PhD, professor and president of Faculty Senate; and Kristin Burr, PhD, associate provost for faculty and academic support.
Faculty Development and Pedagogical Innovation Projects
Faculty Innovation Grants
Faculty Innovation Grants will fund proposals that explore new approaches to courses, programs and curriculum; interdisciplinary work; and emerging opportunities and creative ideas to advance faculty learning and pedagogy. These grants will support work done by individual faculty, faculty teams and interdisciplinary collaborations across schools.
Horizon Series
The Horizon Series will bring industry leaders and experts to campus for discipline-focused conversations about how AI is reshaping the workforce, professional practice and society. Each conversation will explore the emerging opportunities, challenges and ethical implications AI presents across fields. The series aims to foster dialogue about what an AI-shaped future means for Saint Joseph’s graduates and the professions they will be entering.
This series will be open to the public, including University constituents, Saint Joseph’s regional higher education network, organizational leaders across the area, government representatives, industry-specific media and the broader community.
Focus Area 2: Student Experience
The Student Experience focus area builds the Jesuit college experience around what students need to develop as whole persons in an age of AI. Guided by the University’s mission, it ensures technology expands students’ capacities and deepens human connection.
The work centers on the development of ethical decision making, critical thinking, resiliency, empathy and personal relationships, all grounded in mission and preparing students for meaningful careers and lives of purpose. By developing students' human capacities, the University graduates students who possess the experiences and advanced judgment that AI cannot replicate.
Student Experience is led by Ross Radish, JD, vice president of student life and dean of students; Ashwin “Ash” Puri, vice president and director of athletics; and Jill Welsh, MSW, director of Faith Justice Institute.
Student Experience Projects
Discussion and Feedback
Saint Joseph’s is committed to meeting students where they are. Ongoing feedback, gathered in a variety of ways, will help the University understand what students want and need, and keep them engaged at a high level. Regular discussion groups will give students the time and space to share their perspectives, which will inform the University’s work and progress.
Student Experience Navigator Program
The Student Experience Navigator Program is an initiative designed to help students build meaningful connections and grow as whole persons. The program brings students together in small peer cohorts led by a faculty or staff navigator to engage in purposeful dialogue around their development and engagement while at Saint Joseph's University. A pilot program is scheduled to launch for interested students in spring 2027.
Formation Framework
A formation framework will transform unstructured student experiences into intentional, transformational growth that impacts students both personally and professionally. This initiative will integrate with the Navigator and Compass programs to assist students in understanding their developmental trajectory and discerning their professional call to action.
Focus Area 3: Organizational Development
The Organizational Development focus area guides the University's adoption of artificial intelligence to strengthen human judgment, institutional mission and the dignity of work — rather than diminishing them. Its goal is to build technical capabilities alongside human formation, equipping employees to use emerging technologies responsibly while strengthening ethical discernment, empathy and mission-centered decision-making.
The result is technology that advances the University's mission and keeps human responsibility at the center of every consequential decision.
Organizational Development is led by Jill Dougherty Cleary, BS ’00, EdD ’23, vice president of administration and operations, Allyson Mullin, MBA, PHR, SHRM-CP, vice president of human resources; and Tracey Pachman, JD, senior vice president and general counsel.
Organizational Development Projects
AI Skills Pilot 2.0
Saint Joseph’s AI Skills Pilot seeks to expand foundational AI literacy while embedding responsible AI practices, structured reflection, and mission-centered application among faculty and staff. Following its launch with a cohort of employees in May 2026, the pilot expanded to a second group of faculty and staff through the AI Skills Pilot 2.0, which will conclude in November 2026.
AI Innovation Studio
The AI Innovation Studio will be a collaborative space where faculty, staff, students and community partners come together to explore how AI and human ingenuity can address complex real-world challenges. The studio will foster interdisciplinary and community collaboration, experimentation, and the development of practical solutions that put human needs and values at the center. Planning is now underway to shape the studio’s governance, spatial and technical requirements, and partnership model. The AI Innovation Studio is expected to open for the fall 2027 semester.