With Students Shifting Study Habits, One Jewish University Is Building Smart AI Into Everyday Learning
Rachel Dahari returned to grad school for social work thinking AI wouldn't touch her field. Within weeks, she was practicing client interactions using AI simulations and using CoPilot to surface referrals for services on the spot. The shift made her a convert. "My brain opened up," she said. "Now I tell my care managers to use CoPilot."
That change wasn't accidental. Touro University, a Jewish institution serving 19,000 students across 30-plus programs, has made practical training a core value - and AI is now part of that playbook. The goal: improve teaching and job readiness while staying grounded in ethics and community values.
What a university-wide commitment to AI looks like
- Leadership: Touro appointed computer scientist Prof. Shlomo Argamon as its first associate provost for artificial intelligence and added Dr. Jamie Sundvall as assistant provost for AI.
- Policy: University-wide guidelines encourage AI use when students do the substantive work and clearly disclose tool usage.
- Faculty support: About 85 professors received grants to integrate AI into coursework and assessment.
- Programs: A master's degree in AI studies is live, AI is embedded across computer science, and an undergraduate AI course is being developed for all STEM majors.
"AI is increasingly central to how we learn and work," said Touro President Dr. Alan Kadish. "We want to use it in ways that improve society."
AI in practice: what students actually do
- Social work: Students use simulation tools to practice conversations with virtual clients, get coaching on substance use cases, and generate referral options through CoPilot.
- Law: A new course studies how AI may pressure legal and political institutions - and what that means for policy and practice.
- Medicine: In a multiculturalism course, students test AI systems for cultural bias and learn how to spot and correct it.
- Dentistry: Students analyze tooth decay, assess potential TMJ issues, and produce crowns, bridges, and implants with more speed and accuracy.
- Computer Science: Faculty teach AI as a "chavruta" - a study-partner model - where students interact actively with the system rather than passively accept outputs. Israeli entrepreneur and researcher Navot Akiva teaches predictive AI and AI systems in the AI master's program.
"AI has been integrated into everything we do," said dental student Bryan Dovi Teigman. Dr. Ben Schwartz added that this puts Touro dental students ahead of many peers and even some practicing dentists.
Ethics first - and explicit
Touro's approach pairs adoption with caution. "Generative AI is not moral," said Dr. Sundvall. Students review recorded counseling notes to make sure tools don't expose private information, misread cases, or recommend poor treatments. This aligns with strict privacy practices consistent with regulations like HIPAA.
That ethical stance reflects the university's Jewish character: observant-friendly scheduling, kosher availability, and flexible programs that fit students' lives. The result is a culture where tech supports human dignity - not the other way around.
Assessment without shortcuts
Faculty are redesigning assignments to reduce AI misuse and keep learning authentic. Think in-class writing on paper, personal video submissions, or process-focused tasks where students show their work. Argamon cautions against overreliance on AI detectors that can mislabel honest students. "Catching a student using AI is the beginning of a conversation," he said - not an automatic penalty.
What education leaders can copy right now
- Set clear AI norms: Encourage tool use with disclosure. Define "substantive work" so students know the line.
- Fund small experiments: Micro-grants help faculty test AI activities and share what works.
- Teach with AI, not around it: Use AI as a thinking partner, then require students to validate and improve outputs.
- Build ethics into workflow: Add privacy checks, bias reviews, and model validation steps to assignments.
- Redesign assessments: Favor authentic, process-heavy work that's hard to outsource.
- Prepare for jobs, not just grades: Show students where AI boosts entry-level productivity and where human judgment still wins.
Student outcomes and the job market
Graduates report that AI enhances their work without replacing them. Deloitte's Yonatan Katz used AI throughout his studies and now on the job. His takeaway is simple: "At the end of the day, we're still going to need our brains."
Why this matters for your campus
Students are already using these tools. Institutions can either set standards and teach responsible use, or let habits form in the dark. Touro's approach - leadership, policy, practice, ethics, and better assessment - offers a clear model any school can adapt.
Want to skill up your team?
If you're building AI capability across faculty or staff, explore structured learning paths by role and skill level here:
Key voices
- Dr. Alan Kadish: "Use AI to improve society, not just efficiency."
- Prof. Shlomo Argamon: "AI can revitalize higher education - if we do it right."
- Dr. Jamie Sundvall: "Treat privacy, accuracy, and harm prevention as non-negotiable."
- Dr. Ben Schwartz: "Dental students with AI experience are ahead of the curve."
- Rachel Dahari and peers: AI helps them serve people faster and with more confidence.
Bottom line: This isn't about chasing trends. It's about clear policies, hands-on practice, and ethical guardrails that let people do better work. That's how AI becomes useful - and stays human-centered.
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