TU Faculty member awarded Elkins Professorship

As technology continues to evolve, so must academia's relationship with it. Through the Elkins Professorship for Academic Transformation, Amanda Jozkowski, Ph.D., Program Director of the M.S. in Occupational Therapy, is piloting the "GenAI Learning Partner" to help students use generative AI ethically and professionally.

Awarded by the University System of Maryland, the Elkins Professorship for Academic Transformation enables faculty members to conduct transformative projects focused on the use of generative AI to enhance teaching and learning. 

Meet the "GenAI Learning Partner" 

Over the course of three semesters, Jozkowski developed and piloted the "GenAI Learning Partner" model in a graduate-level course on occupational therapy research methods.

The model helps students utilize AI as a study companion, rather than a shortcut. Through Microsoft Co-Pilot the model guides them through structured prompts and reflections that encourage critical thinking and confidence.

Building on the model, Jozkowski proposed the AI-Responsive Instruction and Student Engagement (ARISE) Project when she applied for the Elkins Professorship. 

The project brings together faculty in nursing, public health, occupational therapy, audiology and related programs in TU's College of Health Professions to explore how AI integration can improve teaching and learning in graduate research instruction. Funds for the project will also support student researchers facilitating participant focus groups and surveys.

"This project has so much promise for increasing accessibility, improving efficiency and helping students develop a depth of understanding that they may not have simply from textbook or classroom interactions," Jozkowski says. "They can apply it to their own personal interests and learning styles, which improves connection.” 

ARISE is the signature initiative of the PREP-AI Lab (Pedagogy and Research for Educational Partnership with Artificial Intelligence), which supports the preparation of educators and future health care professionals for ethical, critical and reflective engagement with generative AI. 

Once focus group data of the first set of faculty members and students involved is collected, it is Jozkowski's hope that its insights will help students develop transferable skills in research reasoning, ethical AI use and digital professionalism that are aligned with graduate competencies and licensure expectations.

"Our next steps will really be to answer the question of 'Does using generative AI to facilitate learning actually make a difference in grades/course performance?'" Jozkowski says.

Generative AI as a companion to health studies

By providing students with generative AI literacy opportunities, they will be able to use these tools ethically and strategically to assist them in their learning—not as a replacement to studying and information retention but as a thoughtful tool.

One of Jozkowski's primary goals in training faculty members on the "GenAI Learning Partner" is to provide reusable curriculum tools and implementation frameworks that improve instructional efficiency and student support.

With AI literacy becoming an essential skill across disciplines and industries, the reusable curriculum toolkit Jozkowski develops will enable faculty members across the USM to design responsible, student-centered AI pedagogy for the health and human services fields. 

“We can't afford to stick our heads in the sand. If I can help students use [generative AI] in a way that is thoughtful and strategic, what they will produce using GenAI is going to be much stronger and more helpful to them and their learning," Jozkowski says.

Remaining open-minded 

As recent data indicates, 90% of college students incorporate the use of artificial intelligence into their studies. So, it is more important now than ever to invest in GenAI literacy among faculty and students.

“I want to make sure I am always thinking about the ethics and long-term implications [of this technology] while also trying to be as creative as possible," Jozkowski says. "We don't know what higher education is going to look like in 50—let alone five—years. We need to be open but cautious and thoughtful and ensure we are prioritizing student learning—in my case, patient safety."

Within the College of Health Professions at TU, faculty members like Jozkowski continue to push the boundaries of experiential and innovative learning methods for students.