Dear Center for Academic Innovation Community,
Over the past month, I’ve had the opportunity to connect with educators and innovators across the country—from Palo Alto to Ann Arbor to New York. Whether in higher education or industry, the challenge voiced by leaders is strikingly similar: “We know we need to upskill in AI—but how do we make it meaningful? How do we make it relevant? How do we make it stick across all levels of our organization?”
We’re at a critical inflection point. The AI conversation has progressed from awareness to attention. Now, we must move into action. But embracing action without reflection can be just as dangerous as leaving our heads buried in the sand. That’s why our experimentation and activity at the Center for Academic Innovation are focused on aligning change with both science and meaning. AI fluency must go beyond one-off trainings and episodic hackathons. It must be embedded in everyday workflows. And like any transformative skill, it only becomes powerful when it’s tethered to a shared sense of purpose.
In Palo Alto earlier this month, U-M Professor Vic Strecher shared with those of us attending Coursera’s Future of Higher Education gathering that purpose without skills leaves us helpless, and skills without purpose leave us aimless. But when we have both, we are hopeful. As educators and creators of lifelong learning experiences, our role is to help learners at every level of an organization pause, reflect, and regularly renew their sense of purpose and capability. We aim to design experiences that meet people where they are, sparking agency, not anxiety. Sustained progress requires more than just information and surface-level exposure to emergent ideas and technology. It requires a clear direction and the belief that change is possible.
We also need to change the narrative. Too often, the story sounds like this: you could be replaced by AI, or more likely by someone who knows how to use it. That fear-based framing stifles curiosity, learning, and agency. What if, instead, we told a different story? One where AI skills are seen as enablers, not threats. One where technology deepens our sense of contribution and expands our collective capacity for impact. That’s the message we want to share.
Clarify your purpose. Build the skills to pursue it with confidence, creativity, and impact.
Organizations that will thrive in this moment are those that connect their learning culture to their strategic goals. That means moving beyond buzzwords and embedding AI as a core capability. For employers, it means building AI fluency across teams. Not just in traditional tech roles, but across operations, customer service, HR, marketing, compliance, and leadership.
In conversations with a number of large employers in New York last week, it was clear that we need to ask:
- What does meaningful AI integration look like across functions and roles?
- How do we design systems that reward experimentation, support champions at every level, and align learning with outcomes?
- How do we build the capacity to adapt, in this moment and continuously?
These are the questions we’re asking at the center. And I’m proud of how far we’ve come. We’ve launched pioneering learning experiences on Michigan Online to help learners and organizations gain AI fluency and expertise. We’re investing in faculty and staff readiness. We are designing scalable, professional learning experiences for learners across sectors. We’re approaching this moment with compassion, urgency, humility, and rigor.
We also recognize that the AI landscape is evolving rapidly. Recent breakthroughs in agentic AI present an opportunity to unlock scalable, personalized impact across industries. But that potential comes with responsibility. There is real promise, and there is plenty of hype. Are we building the discernment and skill to tell the difference and act accordingly?
That’s why we’re doubling down on our commitment to empower both learners and organizations to lead, not just react. If you’re looking for partners to support AI fluency, build strategic alignment, and deliver real value through learning—we invite you to explore our growing collection of AI learning experiences and engage with campus through Michigan Online.
The future isn’t pre-written. It will be shaped by those who choose to learn with intention, align learning with purpose, and lead with courage.
Go Blue,
James DeVaney
Special Advisor to the President
Founding Executive Director of the Center for Academic Innovation
Associate Vice Provost for Academic Innovation