As the old saying goes, being in the right place at the right time has its benefits.
This couldn't be truer for Auburn University's Asim Ali, who seems to have a knack for seizing opportunities.
“I feel like I was made for this moment,” said Ali. “The vowels in my first name and my last name are both ‘AI.’"
As Executive Director of the Biggio Center for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning, Ali oversees a team of more than 90 professionals. Their main mission – provide professional development programs, services and resources to enhance instructional innovation.
“At the heart of what we do is educating and empowering faculty, staff and students to do their best work possible," said Ali.
At nine years old, Ali moved with his family from New Jersey to Alabama after his father was hired at Tuskegee University to help spearhead the college’s aerospace engineering program.
“I remember telling my cousins that we're moving to a place called Alabama,” Ali recalled. “They were like, ‘where is that?’”
In Auburn, Ali flourished.
He graduated from Auburn High School and went on to earn his undergraduate degree in software engineering at Auburn. He took a full-time position in 2004 as an information technology specialist in Auburn’s College of Education. He held that role for ten years, during which he earned his master’s in information systems management and a Ph.D. in adult education.
Eleven years ago, Ali founded Auburn Online for enhancing online and hybrid teaching methods. This initiative proved to be exceptionally timely when COVID-19 struck in 2020.
“After the pandemic, then right along came AI,” Ali said.
Today, Ali co-leads work on artificial intelligence (AI) for the Office of the Provost.
“We can't ignore it, it's going to be here,” said Ali. “So, let's be dang good at it – that's the approach we're taking.”
Thanks to the partnership with Auburn’s Office of Information Technology, the Biggio Center is fully funded to build a framework for how to engage the entire campus on AI research, infrastructure, ethics and cultural impact.
Ali says the Auburn Creed with its emphasis on human touch uniquely positions the land-grant institution to be a groundbreaking leader in defining the use of AI.
“We don't want a chatbot replacing people – that's not Auburn, that's not who we are or how we operate,” he said.
Numerous Auburn instructors and students are taking full advantage of AI technology in virtually every college. The Biggio Center has created Teaching With AI and How To AI courses and has even launched a new AI course for K – 12. They’ve also developed a course for the Southeastern Conference AI Consortium, making it available for all 16 universities in the SEC to use, as well as the Alabama Community College system.
For Ali, his job remains all about paving the way for students and colleagues to blaze their own trail to success – one byte at a time.
“It’s a blessing to be at this institution that I love, working alongside incredibly talented people who are invested in the work they're doing,” he said.
Visit Auburn’s Biggio Center website for a list of AI resources.
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