Day:
Wednesday, November 6, 2019
Time:
8:45 AM - 9:45 AM
Location:
Monet, Mezzanine Level
First Learning Outcome: Gain an understanding of the use of artificial intelligence (AI) to support higher education initiatives.
Second Learning Outcome: Engage with Spirit, DetroitEd411’s chat bot, to attain hands-on knowledge of how chat bots work.
Third Learning Outcome: Begin to create a vision and a “pitch” for utilizing AI at your home institution, regional higher education consortium or Talent Hub.
Core Competencies: Diversity and Inclusion, Holistic and Systemic Thinking
Proficiencies: Admissions: Utilizing Social Media, Enrollment Management: Enrollment Technology
Intended Audience: General Audience
Conversations with the Spirit (of Detroit): Utilizing AI and Facebook Messenger to Engage Comebackers
Category
Session
Description
As a member of the Detroit Lumina Foundation Talent Hub, Wayne State University (WSU) is committed to finding ways to increase the number of residents who have achieved credentials beyond a high school diploma of any sort – a vocational certificate, an associate’s or bachelor’s degree, etc. With over 690,000 students that have some college and no degree in the metro Detroit area, this is no small task. Undeterred by local statistics and a dwindling state population, WSU set out to invent creative ways to work with students who want to reengage in their educational journey, in a welcoming and judgement free environment. With these goals in mind WSU started the DetroitEd411 project and created “Spirit,” named after the famous Spirit of Detroit iconic bronze statue.
Spirit is a chat bot powered by artificial intelligence (AI) that is accessed through Facebook Messenger. Anyone with a Facebook account and questions about education can engage with Spirit 24 hours, 7 days a week. The Messenger format provides free access to people who need assistance navigating the educational system, as the only thing needed is access to Wi-Fi and a Facebook profile. The DetroitEd411 project will grow as public engagement with Spirit increases. Our knowledge of returning student needs will be made known by the questions posed to Spirit, which gives us the extremely fortunate chance to create new helpful content, based on real time data. WSU has an eye to the future as it navigates the same changing waters all institutions face - we plan to share this platform so that other regions can benefit. Join us to hear more!
Submission ID:
7726
Presenter(s):
Amanda Rosales Wayne State University
Dawn Medley Wayne State University
Winner Status
- Session