This month, we are sharing something we built because we saw a problem coming and did not want campuses facing it alone.
Presidents, chancellors, and senior leaders are under increasing pressure to make high-stakes decisions about enterprise AI agreements, most often with OpenAI or Google Gemini. These decisions are not technical alone. They carry long-term implications for student data, intellectual property, academic creativity, governance, and procurement risk. The technology is evolving faster than institutional decision-making structures were designed to handle. Under-resourced institutions and students will feel the consequences most if these choices are rushed or poorly scoped.
After conversations with leaders at the forefront of AI in higher education, including Lev Gonick, CIO of Arizona State University, and Erin Mote of InnovateEDU and the Ed SAFE Alliance, we identified a core set of questions leaders should ask as they consider enterprise AI solutions. We then built a short, easy-to-use vendor diagnostic to help leaders and their teams interrogate these decisions with greater clarity and confidence.
The goal is not to push a single answer or vendor. The goal is to help leaders ask better questions, support their teams, and make decisions that align with their institutional values, capacity, and long-term responsibilities to students.
No one paid us to do this. No one sponsored it. We saw a shared challenge, shared learnings, and drafted something useful to help. That is the UIA model. We try to identify and solve problems early, work together, and share what we learn openly so others do not have to reinvent the wheel.
Everything we do is built in the spirit of "yes and". We expect this tool to get better as others adapt it, add questions, and build on it. Please do.
One small request. Because we share our tools and learning openly, we do not always see where or how they are used. If a UIA tool, framework, or idea has been helpful to you or your campus, the most useful thing you can do is let us know. One sentence is enough. Hearing where our work is being used helps us focus our efforts and make the case for continued investment in shared solutions.
If you have feedback, improvements, or examples of how you riffed on something we shared, we want those too. That is how we get better and how this work stays grounded in real campus needs.
We built this for you. We are sharing it openly. And we hope it helps you navigate a fast-moving moment with more confidence. How would you make it better? Do you have a resource or tool we can share that will help others navigating this moment?
In partnership,
Bridget
Network Updates
- Dr. Caitlyn Lippitt has joined the University of New Mexico as a UIA Fellow. A Senior Lecturer in the Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, Caitlyn leads institution-level efforts to strengthen student success, curriculum design, and teaching excellence.
- Download our latest network resource on scaling what works. Drawing on our experience across campuses, systems, and governing boards, we’re sharing a new toolkit focused on what it takes to move student success efforts from pilot to practice. The resource is designed to help leaders assess readiness, align stakeholders, and build the conditions needed for lasting impact.
- We had the pleasure of hosting the UIA Presidents, Chancellors, and Provosts for the annual leadership retreat in Phoenix, AZ, Jan. 24-26. It was energizing to witness the collaboration, quality time, and innovation happening in action. One participant shared that the time spent together “felt rare and deeply valuable."
Learn with Us
- [Toolkit] A practical framework for scaling innovation in higher education by aligning leaders, faculty, and stakeholders around shared goals and sustainable change.
- [YouTube] Satish Tripathi, President at University of Buffalo, reflects on sustained higher education leadership, from long-term vision and patient change to risk-taking and resilience.
- [Blog] A clear-eyed look at why change efforts stall in higher education, and what effective change management actually requires to move institutions forward.
- [Video] A rebroadcast of a candid ASU+GSV debate on whether higher education is delivering on its promise.
Want more? Check out all of our blog posts and podcast episodes.
Must Reads
- What we’re learning about this month at the UIA:
- Federal grants back new accreditation efforts centered on civic discourse (Inside Higher Ed)
- NYU and SUNY partner to launch a higher education design lab focused on access and innovation (NYU News)
- Purdue becomes the first U.S. university to require AI literacy for graduation (Washington Times)
- State government opens paid summer internships to college students statewide (NC Department of Administration)
Events to Put on Your Radar
- February 2-4, 2026, ASA’s Work-Based Learning Forum, Phoenix, AZ
- February 8-11, 2026, NASFAA Leadership & Legislative Conference & Expo, Washington, D.C.
- February 18-20, 2026, ACAD Annual Conference, Phoenix, AZ
- February 25-28, 2026, American Council on Education (ACE) Experience, Washington, D.C.
- March 2-5, 2026, Achieving the Dream Annual Conference, Portland, OR
- March 9-12, 2026, SXSW EDU Austin, Texas
Stuff We Love
- This magnetic pen can be transformed into various shapes according to your imagination.
- Increase any office or home space’s natural background music with this soothing tabletop fountain.
- Achieve perfect slices and dices every time with this kitchen gadget.
- Beat the winter cold with these rechargeable hand warmers.
“Real change happens when leaders invite others into the hard conversations, not after the answers are polished, but while the work is still unfolding.”
