Faculty, staff invited to generative AI workshops
Learn how generative artificial intelligence tools can ease your workflow and tackle tedious tasks in an interactive, two-part professional development series hosted by Administrative Senate and the Center for Teaching, Learning, and Assessment.
February 17, 2025
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Do you want to stop wasting time on mundane or repetitive tasks that slow down your workflow and drain your creative resources? Administrative Senate and the Center for Teaching, Learning, and Assessment (CTLA) are teaming up to present a pair of professional development workshops in February and March demonstrating how Ohio University faculty and staff can save time by integrating powerful generative AI tools into their workflows. Both workshops will have Q&A components, with attendees invited to submit questions before and during the events.
“Whether you’re a classified employee, administrator or faculty member, generative AI tools can help lighten your load,” said Jenn Bennett , Administrative Senate chair and executive director of WellWorks and Healthy OHIO. “It’s a powerful tool that can be intimidating if you’re not familiar with it—that’s why we’re offering these workshops to all OHIO employees, not just administrators.”
When used responsibly, generative AI can assist with everything from summarizing long documents and meeting minutes to drafting Excel formulas or brainstorming content topics and beyond.
“CTLA has developed a comprehensive position statement on generative AI and teaching and learning,” said Melinda Rhodes-DiSalvo , executive director of the CTLA. “We all should be considering how AI fits into our work; ignoring it would be a huge failing. We can’t avoid it, nor should we.”
The first workshop, OHIO Generative AI Foundations, will take place on Feb. 26 from 2-3 p.m. The hybrid format will take place in Alden Library’s Friends of the Library Room and on Teams. Rhodes-DiSalvo will discuss the University’s stance on AI tools, key principles and considerations to keep in mind (including privacy and accuracy concerns), potential use cases, tips for prompt engineering, and more. Rhodes-DiSalvo will also answer pre-submitted questions and open the floor for additional questions that arise during the presentation.
The second, AI in Action: A panel of administrators currently using genAI, will take place virtually on March 17 from 2 to 3:30 p.m. as a panel discussion featuring:
- Erin Morgenstern
, assistant to the vice president for priority projects, Division of Student Affairs
Morgenstern has played a key role in supporting initiatives that enhance teaching and learning in higher education, including facilitating workshops and learning communities for educators and administrators. Her interest in leveraging technology for efficiency drives her advocacy for thoughtful AI integration in academic and administrative spaces. - Sunil Narasimhan, information security analyst, Office of Information Technology
As a cybersecurity professional specializing in data correlation and analysis, Narasimhan brings his unique perspective on generative AI’s potential and pitfalls to the evaluation of generative AI technologies for the University, with a focus on protecting sensitive data. - Jane Van Tassel, manager of IT business analysis, Office of Information Technology
Van Tassel has played a key role in developing the University’s AI strategy and Microsoft Copilot rollout. A founding member of OHIO’s AI Community of Interest group, she’s focused on AI’s potential to enhance operational efficiency, strengthen campus partnerships and drive collaboration and innovation within the University. - Hanna Schmillen
, assistant dean of Research and Education Services, University Libraries
In her previous role as head of the Libraries’ Research Services Department, Schmillen was a key collaborator and innovator in the Libraries’ exploration of generative AI for the University community, including co-authoring the Libraries’ AI guide and co-organizing AI exploration and training series.
“AI isn’t about replacing higher education employees,” Morgenstern said. “It’s about giving them back time to focus on what truly matters—engaging with the students that fill our campuses every day.”
Whether you’ve held back on using Microsoft Copilot , ChatGPT or another generative AI tool or are a prompt-writing pro, the complimentary workshops will offer opportunities to learn about and discuss the nuances of this fast-developing technology.
“I hope attendees will come away with a fuller understanding of AI’s connection to what they’re doing now, and that they wrestle a bit with their own ethical compass around AI,” Rhodes-DiSalvo said. “AI is all around us—on our phones, in our computers—and we need to use it to increase connections with one another. Yes, it can make life easier and more efficient, but beyond that, I don’t see any point to using AI if it doesn’t make us more human and more thoughtful.”
Both workshops are free to attend, but registration is required. Attendees can submit questions about generative AI when they register.