{"id":608,"date":"2025-12-08T09:33:58","date_gmt":"2025-12-08T09:33:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.lboro.ac.uk\/vice-chancellor\/?p=608"},"modified":"2025-12-08T09:33:59","modified_gmt":"2025-12-08T09:33:59","slug":"ai-at-loughborough-building-confidence-capability-and-responsibility","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.lboro.ac.uk\/vice-chancellor\/2025\/12\/08\/ai-at-loughborough-building-confidence-capability-and-responsibility\/","title":{"rendered":"AI at Loughborough \u2013 Building confidence, capability and responsibility"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Co-authored by Prof. Nick Jennings<\/strong> <strong>and Vipin Ahlawat<\/strong>.<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Artificial Intelligence (AI) is transforming how we live, learn, and work &#8211; and Loughborough is taking a thoughtful, people-centred approach to this rapidly changing landscape. From supporting learning and research to enhancing everyday productivity, AI has the potential to make a positive difference <strong>to all of us<\/strong>. We do, however, need to make sure we use AI in a responsible way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We\u2019re responding to AI opportunities with purpose: building the right foundations, supporting our community, and ensuring that innovation goes hand-in-hand with responsibility. One of us (Nick) has written about these issues for universities in general in a previous <a href=\"https:\/\/blog.lboro.ac.uk\/vice-chancellor\/2023\/04\/13\/ai-powered-universities\/\">blog post<\/a>, but today we want to focus on Loughborough and challenge you all to think about this technology and how you can use it<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Our foundations: Responsible, inclusive and human-centred<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Over the past year, we\u2019ve been putting in place a strong framework to guide how AI is explored and adopted across the University. This includes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>AI Governance Model<\/strong> \u2013 overseen by the IT Governance Committee (ITGC), ensuring AI projects are well-managed, risks are identified early, and activity aligns with our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lboro.ac.uk\/strategy\/\">University strategy<\/a>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>AI Principles for Loughborough<\/strong> \u2013 a set of commitments approved by ITGC that guide how we design, deploy and use AI tools. These principles focus on:\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Human-centred design<\/strong> \u2013 keeping people at the heart of every AI decision.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Academic integrity<\/strong> \u2013 ensuring AI supports, not undermines, assessment and research standards.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Skills and confidence<\/strong> \u2013 helping staff and students build their AI literacy.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Access to tools<\/strong> \u2013 promoting fair, inclusive access to secure AI technologies.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Safety and ethics<\/strong> \u2013 encouraging responsible and transparent use.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Sustainability<\/strong> \u2013 considering the environmental and social impact of AI.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Ongoing review<\/strong> \u2013 keeping our approach under regular evaluation as technology and expectations evolve.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Putting principles into practice<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>AI is becoming part of how we all work and learn.\u00a0This is why we have made <a href=\"https:\/\/m365.cloud.microsoft\/chat\/\">Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat<\/a> available to all staff and students, as well as providing everyone with free credits for <a href=\"https:\/\/new.express.adobe.com\/a\/lboro.ac.uk\">Adobe Firefly for AI image generation and editing<\/a>. Other recent developments include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Secure tools<\/strong> \u2013 promoting trusted options like <strong>Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat<\/strong>, integrated into the University\u2019s Microsoft environment to keep AI use secure and compliant with data protection policies.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Ethical guidance for learning and assessment<\/strong> \u2013 including <strong>AI responsible use declarations<\/strong>, <strong>staff training<\/strong>, and a <strong>three-tier assessment model<\/strong> to ensure transparency and fairness in how AI is used in coursework and exams.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>AI Communities of Practice<\/strong> \u2013 over 300 colleagues from across academic and professional services collaborating to explore AI opportunities and share best practice.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Pilot projects<\/strong> \u2013 departments are identifying pilot use cases for AI in both education and operations, supported by a structured <strong>AI Pilot Framework<\/strong> to manage risk and learning.&nbsp; For example, we are exploring how we can use Copilot to automatically create meeting summaries, as well as AI-powered tools like Studystash for more personalised, adaptive learning.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>A challenge for everyone<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We know AI will have profound implications for the future, but it\u2019s also changing how we work <strong>right now<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We both use AI systems regularly and think you should as well. So here\u2019s our challenge to you:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Try using AI in your daily or weekly routine. And if you\u2019re not using it yet \u2014 ask yourself <em>why not?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Even small tasks can benefit from AI support. You could try using:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/m365.cloud.microsoft\/chat\/\">Copilot Chat<\/a> to summarise documents or reports.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Copilot or <a href=\"https:\/\/new.express.adobe.com\/a\/lboro.ac.uk\">Firefly<\/a> to generate ideas or create visuals for social media.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Copilot in Word or Outlook to polish or draft documents and emails.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Copilot in Excel to analyse data or spot trends.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>These tools are available to everyone and every experiment helps you learn how to use AI effectively and responsibly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Building AI literacy<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Understanding how to use AI responsibly is as important as the tools themselves. Over the coming months, we\u2019ll be focusing on <strong>AI literacy for staff and students<\/strong>, including:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Practical sessions on using generative AI effectively and responsibly.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Further guidance on when (and when not) to use AI tools in learning and research.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Case studies showcasing staff who are using AI to save time, improve workflows, or spark creativity.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>How to make more informed and sustainable choices when using AI.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>If you\u2019re new to AI, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lboro.ac.uk\/services\/it\/responsible-ai\/\">Responsible AI Guidance site<\/a> is a great place to start &#8211; it offers guidance, \u201cdos and don\u2019ts\u201d, and links to useful <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lboro.ac.uk\/services\/it\/responsible-ai\/ai-training-and-development-for-staff\/\">training resources<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Get involved<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>AI is a collective opportunity. Whether you\u2019re a colleague or student, there are many ways to engage:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Visit:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lboro.ac.uk\/services\/it\/responsible-ai\/\">Responsible AI Guidance site<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Join:<\/strong> one of our AI-focused <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lboro.ac.uk\/internal\/news\/2025\/april\/joining-the-ai-conversation-at-loughborough\/\">Communities of Practice<\/a>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Try:<\/strong> approved AI tools such as <a href=\"https:\/\/m365.cloud.microsoft\/chat\/\">Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/new.express.adobe.com\/a\/lboro.ac.uk\">Adobe Firefly<\/a>, available to all staff and students.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Learn:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.lboro.ac.uk\/services\/it\/responsible-ai\/ai-training-and-development-for-staff\/\">find out more<\/a> about AI and look out for more guidance on responsible AI use coming soon.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Our goal is simple:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To harness the potential of AI in ways that enhance human creativity, uphold academic integrity, and strengthen our community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Together, we can make AI work <strong>for people, with purpose, and guided by our values<\/strong>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Co-authored by Prof. Nick Jennings and Vipin Ahlawat. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is transforming how we live, learn, and work &#8211; and Loughborough is taking a thoughtful, people-centred approach to this rapidly changing landscape. From supporting learning and research to enhancing everyday productivity, AI has the potential to make a positive difference to all of us. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":727,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"lboro_blog_alternative_thumbnail_image":"","footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-608","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-articles"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.lboro.ac.uk\/vice-chancellor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/608","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.lboro.ac.uk\/vice-chancellor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.lboro.ac.uk\/vice-chancellor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lboro.ac.uk\/vice-chancellor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/727"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lboro.ac.uk\/vice-chancellor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=608"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lboro.ac.uk\/vice-chancellor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/608\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":615,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lboro.ac.uk\/vice-chancellor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/608\/revisions\/615"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.lboro.ac.uk\/vice-chancellor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=608"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lboro.ac.uk\/vice-chancellor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=608"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lboro.ac.uk\/vice-chancellor\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=608"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}