A new online course is helping students across North Carolina understand the everchanging landscape of artificial intelligence (AI).

“Foundational Generative AI Literacy and Responsible Use” became available to students across the University of North Carolina (UNC) System in the spring 2026 semester. 

Meagan Kittle Autry, director of professional development and associate teaching professor in the Department of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering (CCEE), contributed to the development of the course.

According to Kittle Autry, the introductory curriculum answers fundamental questions about generative AI:

• How does generative AI work? 
• How might you use it in school or the workplace? 
• What are the benefits and the drawbacks? 

As the course title suggests, the modules also discuss how to use AI responsibly.

“We talk a lot about professional responsibility, and that what you produce is your reputation, your name,” Kittle Autry said. 

Fifteen faculty members and one instructional designer spent months planning the educational modules, ensuring that students from a variety of academic backgrounds could learn from them. 

“A student who might be a chemistry major would interact with this course differently than a writing major, for example, or an engineering major,” Kittle Autry said. “So there are different modules that are tailored to what coursework a student might be engaged in.”

The inaugural course opened to students this spring, with dozens of faculty members across the UNC System’s 17 institutions teaching the modules.

“It was a great experience to bring people together from all the different schools to try to deliver a really great learning experience for all of the students collectively,” Kittle Autry said.

Peter Hans, president of the UNC System, thanked Kittle Autry for her leadership in developing the course.

“​​This project represents a significant milestone for the UNC System,” Hans wrote in a letter to Kittle Autry. “Through your diligent work, we are advancing a shared, scalable course that prepares students to engage thoughtfully and responsibly with artificial intelligence. Your collaboration across institutions and roles, including faculty, librarians, and instructional designers, reflects the very best of our System’s commitment to innovation, academic quality, and student success.”

We are proud of NC State’s contributions to this course, including College of Education Professor of Social Studies Education Meghan Manfra, who co-led the course development.

“Foundational Generative AI Literacy and Responsible Use” will be available to students again in the fall.