Unfixed: How AI Is Reshaping the University

In this episode of Unfixed, we unpack what it actually means to run AI retrofit workshops—where faculty redesign assignments and learning outcomes for a world shaped by generative AI. Rather than hype or quick fixes, this work starts from disruption: courses no longer behave as intended, and instructors are left to figure out what still holds. We explore the emotional and intellectual reality faculty face, and why time, structure, and trust—not tools—are the real interventions. Retrofit emerges not as innovation, but as necessary maintenance for teaching that still has to function.

In this episode of Unfixed, we sit down with William Hardaway and Jason McGensy from CSU Fresno to explore how institutions are actually implementing AI in higher education. The conversation moves from the practical—faculty training, instructional design, and scaling AI initiatives—to the emotional, including the idea of “grief” as faculty confront rapid technological change. We also examine how this work connects to broader efforts around equity and institutional transformation. The episode closes by interrogating the limits of using therapeutic metaphors to understand AI adoption in academia.

Generative AI is transforming how students write and how professors teach writing. In this episode of Unfixed, we’re joined by Stephanie Tran (Cypress College) and Tamara Tate (UC Irvine Digital Learning Lab) to explore what AI means for composition, academic writing, and digital literacy in higher education. Together, we examine the scale of the challenge facing writing instructors as AI models become increasingly proficient at generating polished text. What does “writing” mean across disciplines? And how can educators integrate AI into writing instruction without offloading the essential cognitive work that writing is meant to develop? Stephanie shares her work leading district-wide faculty development on equitable and human-centered AI practices. Tamara discusses her leadership at UC Irvine’s Digital Learning Lab and her experience developing AI-based writing tools designed to support — not replace — student skill building.

Dr. James Frazee, CIO of San Diego State University, joins Unfixed to discuss AI strategy in the CSU system, academic–IT collaboration, and how campus AI culture has shifted since the CSU–OpenAI agreement. The conversation covers intentional AI planning, rural access challenges, and lessons from regional efforts like the Equitable AI Alliance for scaling responsible AI in public higher education.

In this episode of Unfixed, Nik and Zach take on a difficult but necessary conversation about nostalgia in higher education. Using real media headlines, faculty experiences, and their own teaching histories, they explore how AI panic taps into a deeper longing for a pre-pandemic, pre-ChatGPT past that may never have been as stable as we remember. The discussion unpacks what nostalgia is, why it’s so powerful right now, and how scapegoating AI can obscure long-standing challenges around reading, writing, and motivation. Rather than a call to “go back,” this episode walks the line between insight and wake-up—arguing that AI often reveals what’s already broken and, in some cases, opens space to fix it.

Dr. Shelley Hart joins Nik and Zach to explore how children and adolescents are forming relationships with generative AI. We discuss what “too young” means in an AI-saturated world, and how parents, teachers, and caregivers can responsibly shape norms, boundaries, and ethics around AI use. Drawing on her expertise in child development, Dr. Hart offers practical insights for guiding kids through emerging technologies.

California State University leaders Emily Magruder and Leslie Kennedy join Unfixed to discuss how the CSU–OpenAI partnership is reshaping conversations about teaching, technology, and faculty work. They share lessons from system-level innovation, union tensions, and the future of AI in higher education.

In this episode of Unfixed, Nik and Zach explore the rise of AI agents—autonomous, goal-driven systems that can research, plan, and even collaborate with learners. From inbox triage and coding prototypes to the not-yet-ready world of full computer control, they unpack where agents are already useful on campus and where hype outpaces reality. The conversation turns to higher ed implications: assessment, advising, operations, and governance. Tune in for a clear look at how AI agents are reshaping student learning, faculty work, and the future of universities.

Zach and Nik brings you the biggest AI-in-education headlines shaping higher ed this fall—from ChatGPT’s new Study Mode and Canvas integrations to Microsoft’s agents, Big Tech partnerships, and Grammarly’s AI grade oracle.

In this episode of Unfixed, “Ready for a Fight?”, we explore the growing resistance to generative AI in higher education. While we don’t adopt the “Fight AI” stance ourselves, we take it seriously—as a revealing response to the rapid automation of knowledge work. Drawing from educators, artists, organizers, and labor movements, we unpack what motivates this rejection of AI, what it’s defending, and where it might lead. Featuring references to union actions, institutional policy shifts, and structural critiques of tech power, this episode sheds light on the values and vulnerabilities animating the pushback.

Advising is part mentorship, part logistics—and often a confusing mess. In this episode, we explore how AI might help (or hurt) students and advisors trying to navigate course selection, degree requirements, and policy mazes. We share what happened when we built our own advising bot and tested it in the wild. Could this be the future of student support, or just another edtech fantasy?

Generative AI is upending higher education but can the university keep up? In this episode, we explore why institutional change in academia is so slow, even as AI accelerates disruptions across academic integrity, tenure, curriculum, and writing. From campus bureaucracy to the post-COVID pivot, we ask: what happens if we don’t adapt? And what would it take to respond differently, before the university becomes obsolete?

In this special breaking-news episode of Unfixed, Nik and Zach dive into urgent headlines warning that AI could eliminate millions of entry-level white-collar jobs. They unpack what this means for students, the public perception of higher education, and what colleges must do now to stay relevant. Featuring insights from Kevin Roose, Dario Amodei, Hard Fork, and more, the episode explores how universities can reposition themselves in an era of accelerating automation and economic uncertainty.