The California State University (CSU) announced the winners of its first-ever Artificial Intelligence Educational Innovations Challenge (AIEIC). Sixty-three faculty-led projects were selected for their potential to enable
transformative teaching methods, foster groundbreaking research and address key concerns
about AI adoption within the academic environment. 
“CSU faculty and staff aren’t just adopting AI—they are reimagining what it means to teach, learn and prepare students for an AI-infused world,” said Nathan Evans, CSU deputy vice chancellor of Academic and Student Affairs and Chief Academic Officer. “The number of funded projects underscores the CSU’s strong commitment to innovation and academic excellence. These initiatives will explore and demonstrate effective AI integration in student learning, with findings shared systemwide to maximize impact. Our goal is to prepare students to engage with AI strategically, ethically and successfully in California’s fast-changing workforce.”
The CSU Channel Islands project selected was Communication courses that will ask students to analyze AI-generated messages, reflect on media bias and use AI to draft—but not complete—assignments. Generative AI will be a mirror held up to human reasoning, not a replacement for human judgment.
A full list of funded projects is available on the CSU AI Commons website. Projects launched in June 2025 and will continue through June 2026.