AI Literacy and Ethics
Artificial intelligence is becoming part of how we learn, work, research, communicate and make decisions. At SDSU, ethical and responsible AI use is a shared responsibility.
Six Principles for Ethical and Responsible AI Use
AI can enhance productivity, improve access to information, support creativity and streamline routine tasks.
Our approach emphasizes ethical decision-making, transparency, accountability, accessibility and human judgment. Individuals remain responsible for evaluating AI-generated content, verifying accuracy, protecting sensitive information and ensuring outputs align with university values, policies, course expectations and professional standards.
Use AI to support people, not to replace critical thinking, expertise or decision-making. AI should assist people without manipulating, dehumanizing or unnecessarily replacing meaningful participation. Human judgment remains essential. Respect autonomy, voice, rights and lived experience.
Be open about when and how AI is used, especially when AI-assisted content influences decisions, communications or published work. Disclose material AI assistance when appropriate. Be prepared to explain the purpose, information considered, review performed and limitations.
Review AI-generated outputs for accuracy, relevance, bias, accessibility and appropriateness before sharing or acting on them. Assign clear human responsibility for reviewing outputs and making final decisions. AI does not hold professional, academic, legal or ethical accountability.
Protect confidential, sensitive and regulated information. Follow university data requirements and use institutionally supported tools when appropriate. Minimize data collection, protect confidential and regulated information, and respect consent and reasonable expectations of privacy.
Use AI in ways that promote accessibility while reducing barriers for learners, employees and community members. Test AI-supported experiences with people and assistive technologies.
Consider possible physical, emotional, financial, academic, reputational and social harms. Use more review when consequences are greater.
Before publishing or acting, ask yourself:
- Is AI appropriate for this purpose, audience and level of consequence?
- Is the information accurate and supported by reliable evidence?
- Are privacy, consent, confidentiality and data-minimization expectations met?
- Have bias, stereotypes, exclusion and unequal impacts been considered?
- Have foreseeable harms and safeguards been documented?
- Can affected people question, correct or appeal a consequential outcome?
Faculty
- Design meaningful learning experiences.
- Communicate course-specific expectations regarding AI use.
- Encourage critical evaluation of AI-generated content.
Students
- Use AI to support learning rather than replace original work.
- Follow instructor and assignment guidance.
- Verify information and cite or disclose AI assistance when required.
Staff
- Use AI to improve efficiency and service quality.
- Protect institutional and personal data.
- Review outputs before sharing information or making decisions.
Faculty AI Resources
- AAC&U 2026 AI Challenge Faculty Concerns About Generative AI in Higher Education
- SDSU Faculty AI Resources Highlights
- Self-Paced D2L Course: AI in Teaching and Learning
- Thirty Days AI Journey (Forthcoming)
- Syllabus Word Template
- Syllabus HTML Template
- AI National Repository Statement Templates
- Four Principles of Microsoft Copilot Prompting
- Microsoft Copilot Tutorial
- AI Prompts for Teaching: A Spellbook
- Microsoft AI Training Module
- AI Teaching Assistant Pro (in D2L)
- AI Tutor Pro (in D2L)
- Show Your Work: Assessment in the Age of AI
- AI Digest in Higher Education
- AI Use Cases in Higher Education
- MIT Report on AI and Education
- AI Leaderboard: Comparison of AI Models
- DEC Global AI Faculty Survey 2025
- Coursera: Prompt Engineering Basics Course (IBM)
- Coursera: Trustworthy Generative AI Course (Vanderbilt)
Faculty AI Pedagogy Checklist
- Post a clear AI statement with rationale in every syllabus
- Review and refine learning goals before AI decisions
- Design assignments where AI augments, not replaces, student thinking
- Pair AI use with reflection, critique or explanation tasks
- Avoid AI detection tools — design around the problem instead
- Use only SDSU approved AI tools for course tasks
- Address accessibility — ensure AI use doesn't disadvantage students
- Revisit your AI approach every semester
Student AI Resources
Three checks for your use of AI
Check permission
Read the syllabus and assignment directions. Ask your instructor when expectations are unclear.
Check accuracy
Verify claims, calculations, quotations and sources. AI-generated output can be incomplete or incorrect.
Check transparency
Document and cite AI assistance when required. Make sure the final work reflects your own learning and judgment.
Student AI Resources
- South Dakota Board of Regents AI Ready Policy
- SDSU Academic Integrity Policy
- Fifteen Days AI Journey (Forthcoming)
- 2026 Student Guide to AI (AAC&U)
- Briggs Library AI Research Guide
- Microsoft Copilot
- Four Principles of Microsoft Copilot Prompting
- Microsoft Copilot Tutorial
- Microsoft AI Training Module
- AI Tutor Pro (in D2L)
- Student Spaces in Adobe Acrobat
- Coursera: Prompt Engineering Basics Course (IBM)
- Coursera: Trustworthy Generative AI Course (Vanderbilts)
Staff AI Resources
Staff AI Use Cases
- Report summarization
- Meeting briefings
- Communication drafting
- Knowledge base creation
- Resource discovery
- Procedural documentation
- Training development
- Workflow automation
- Data interpretation
- Budget summaries
- Trend analysis
Responsible Staff AI Checklist
- Use approved AI tools.
- Protect sensitive and regulated data.
- Verify AI-generated information.
- Maintain transparency and accountability.
- Apply human judgment to all decisions.
Staff AI Resources
- Board of Regents AI Ready Policy
- Self-Paced D2L Course: AI in Teaching and Learning
- Thirty Days AI Journey (Forthcoming)
- Four Principles of Microsoft Copilot Prompting
- Microsoft Copilot Tutorial
- AI Prompts for Teaching: A Spellbook
- Microsoft AI Training Module
- Microsoft Copilot Create
- Microsoft Copilot Notebooks
- Adobe Generative AI
- Briggs Library AI Research Guide
- SDSU AI and Accessibility
- Educause Current State of Play: AI in Higher Education
- 2025 EDUCAUSE AI Landscape Study
- AI Leaderboard: Comparison of AI Models
- Coursera: Prompt Engineering Basics Course (IBM)
- Coursera: Trustworthy Generative AI Course (Vanderbilt)
- AAC&U AI Guidance
Data Classification Guidance and Appropriate AI Use Cases
Understand what data can and cannot be used with AI tools, and how to match AI capabilities with appropriate, compliant use cases at SDSU based on the SDSU Data Classification framework and the draft GenAI Acceptable Use Policy.
Never enter restricted or sensitive data into unapproved AI tools.
- Restricted, confidential, and Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act- and Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act-protected data must never be entered into consumer-grade AI tools such as ChatGPT or other unapproved platforms.
- Always verify the data level before using any AI tool.
- See SDSU AI policy for more details.
Publicly available information with no access restrictions. Freely shareable without impact.
Examples: published research, marketing materials, public course content.
For internal university use. Unauthorized disclosure could cause moderate adverse impacts.
Examples: internal reports, draft policies, general employee information.
Sensitive data with restricted access. Disclosure could cause significant harm.
Examples: personal records, financial records, Institutional Review Board data.
Highly sensitive — personally identifiable information, Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, research data. Limited authorized access only.
Examples: student records, health data, Social Security numbers, financial aid data.
Appropriate Uses
- Draft communications using general (nonpersonal) information
- Summarize publicly available research or documents
- Generate course content with nonsensitive instructional data
- Analyze deidentified or anonymized data sets
- Create presentations with publicly available or SDSU-branded content
- Brainstorm ideas, outlines and creative content
Inappropriate Uses
- Uploading student grades, records or identifiable information
- Entering health, medical or Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act-protected data
- Sharing proprietary or unpublished research data
- Processing Social Security numbers or financial account data
- Entering personnel or human resources-related confidential information
- Using unapproved tools for any university-related data
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act Considerations
Student educational records are protected under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act. Never enter identifiable student data into AI tools without proper data use agreements in place.
Institutional Review Board and Research Data
Consult SDSU's Institutional Review Board before using AI tools to process, analyze or generate research data involving human subjects.
Copyright and Intellectual Property
AI-generated content may include copyrighted material. Review all AI output for copyright compliance before sharing, publishing or submitting.
Responsible AI and Acceptable Use Guidance
Clear principles, institutional expectations and ethical frameworks should guide every member of the SDSU community in the responsible use of AI — all aligned with SDSU and South Dakota Board of Regents policies.
Board of Regents and SDSU Policies
- Board of Regents 7.9 AI Policy – most recent Board of Regents AI policy.
- SDSU 7:16 AI Policy – SDSU policy on AI use.
- Student Academic Misconduct and Academic Appeals (SDSU Policy 2.4).
Use of AI Images
Accessibility
