Academic campuses that are proponents and enthusiastic adopters of AI do not always create space for the range of nuanced conversations and perspectives on AI that allow faculty to thoughtfully consider its integration into their teaching and research. Academic libraries are centers of research and connection across disciplines and can serve that need for their campus community.

Learn how one academic library at a large R1 institution developed a series of in-person gatherings to create a safe space for faculty to learn about AI as it relates to research and speak freely about their experiences, successes, concerns, and everything in between. The series began with a meetup that allowed faculty to explore and share feedback on the AI integrations in library databases that they and their students would encounter. Next in the series was a meetup that allowed faculty to highlight how they were able to integrate AI in their research processes. Most recently, a panel discussion with campus journal editors was hosted to dive into opportunities and challenges around AI in scholarly publishing. The in-person events were well-attended and feedback suggests that libraries can carve out a space for themselves in AI discussions on their campuses through their unique ability to host and moderate nuanced conversations around AI use in faculty research. Our expertise in information literacy, practice of faculty relationship building, and teaching skills make librarians uniquely qualified to lead more critical and human-centered conversations with faculty on generative AI and the research process.

Presenters: 

Amanda Binder, Social Sciences and History Librarian, UNC Charlotte

Amanda Binder is the Social Sciences and History Librarian and an Associate Professor at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. She holds an MLIS from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and B.A. in Sociology from Bard College.

Natalie Ornat Bitting, Humanities Librarian, UNC Charlotte

Natalie Ornat Bitting is the Humanities Librarian and an Associate Professor at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. She holds an MSLS from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a B.A. in History from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

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