Local SUNY schools have entered into partnerships with other institutions to advance AI research and programming for students and faculty.
Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Friday, Jan. 30 that SUNY schools across the state would be partnering with SUNY’s four university centers — University at Albany, Binghamton University, University at Buffalo and Stony Brook University — for AI research and education purposes. Empire AI, a partnership of New York campuses bolstered by $500 million, will support the collaborations.
“SUNY is proud to leverage the largest statewide comprehensive system of public higher education in the country to ensure that more students are able to drive research and move innovation forward,” SUNY Chancellor John King said in a news release.
University at Albany is partnering with SUNY Oneonta, SUNY Cobleskill Ag & Tech and Hudson Valley Community College to offer AI-related research opportunities for both students and faculty through programs like the co-development of microcredentials and courses, the release stated.
Binghamton University is partnering with SUNY Cortland, SUNY Delhi, SUNY New Paltz, SUNY Oneonta, Broome Community College, and Tompkins Cortland Community College, according to the release, to jumpstart the Advancing AI for the Public Good initiative, which will include an online microcredential, teaching students core principles of AI, ethics and professional applications.
Steve Maniscalco, chief information officer at SUNY Oneonta who oversees Information Technology Services, said Wednesday, Feb. 4 that he hopes the partnerships will help the school expand AI opportunities for students, connecting them to research-level resources and expertise, considering the college’s “strong, undergraduate focus.”
SUNY Oneonta spokesperson Jill Shea-Feury said the institution will receive $150,000 from Empire AI funding as part of the Albany partnership.
The school’s partnership with Binghamton University will focus on the AI prep for careers microcredential, a program that would “connect AI literacy directly to workforce skills” and real world applications, Maniscalco said. SUNY Oneonta did not receive direct funding for this partnership, only training and research access.
Binghamton University announced Wednesday, Jan. 21 that it received $25 million in state funding, in addition to a $30 million gift to establish a Center for AI Responsibility and Research.
“The idea is a collaboration across the SUNY institutions,” Maniscalco said, “That’s a collaboration in sharing faculty expertise, sharing infrastructure, like a research center, and even ideas for curriculum.”
Another priority of the Albany partnership is called AI for Good, he added, an annual hackathon bringing students and faculty together to tackle a problem related to AI, like societal impact, and work through solutions.
Oneonta faculty will travel to Albany to participate in AI initiative programs, like building AI literacy, to gain expertise in those subject areas and bring that learning back to their own students, Maniscalco said. He said the goal is to have about 20 faculty members involved in the partnership over the next three years.
“AI for the good has a lot to do with being aware of what the ethical issues are surrounding AI and working to really balance that out,” Maniscalco said. “One of our values is sustainability. It’s a core value here at SUNY Oneonta.”
SUNY Delhi also entered into the partnership with Binghamton University.
“The initiative will allow us to introduce students to foundational AI principles and ethical considerations while providing internships and applied learning opportunities,” said Riikka Olsen, SUNY Delhi spokesperson.
Cobleskill Ag & Tech Dean of Faculty Ian MacDonald said Wednesday Cobleskill leadership seeks to prepare students for a future that harnesses the power of AI while appreciating its limitations.
As an agriculture and technology-focused school, MacDonald said Cobleskill compliments the other institutions involved in the Albany partnership.
The first year of the three-year funding period starts now and ends June 30, making it an “abbreviated” year, MacDonald said. He said the partnership consists of four main pillars, including the creation of an AI preparedness academy, to exchange expertise and best practices between faculty.
Additionally, it includes an “affiliated faculty program,” where experts from Albany will visit campus and work with instructors to integrate components of AI into courses. The third pillar, MacDonald said, is the AI for Good challenge, and the fourth contains collaborative research opportunities for students, especially across campuses.
AI can apply to students in a realm of majors, MacDonald said, from those taking cybersecurity courses to those studying canine training and management.
“We are really interested in seeing how our students can use it to benefit themselves in their careers,” MacDonald said. “We have a very diverse set of careers that our students go into.”