In November 2022, ChatGPT was dropped on academia like a massive boulder, without warning, to earth-shattering effect. Even the bright minds at the University of Colorado Boulder (CU or CU Boulder) did not see it coming, which is why it took some time for school leadership to unveil its comprehensive AI-centric guidelines.

If CU leadership thought it had wrangled the problem of artificial intelligence, they were mistaken. Even the Ralphie Handlers would struggle to get a grip on the ever-evolving, multi-faceted artificial intelligence.

The truth is that many Buffs still struggle to understand what, exactly, they can and can’t do with respect to AI. We hope to provide clarity on Colorado’s AI use rules on this page.

At the same time, there is some unavoidable ambiguity whenever we discuss this topic—in part because there is no single, broadly applicable AI policy governing every student at CU. With instructors dictating the rules, students must work to balance a handful of distinct AI policies.

This ever-present unpredictability within CU’s patchwork of AI policies places students at risk. In some cases, it even exposes students to the risk of being blindsided by a serious AI misconduct allegation. If you face such an allegation, call the LLF National Law Firm Student Defense Team right away at 888-535-3686 or contact us online to discuss our time-tested student advocacy strategies.

What CU Boulder Policies Say About Buffaloes Using Artificial Intelligence

CU’s leadership had to piece together AI-specific guidelines for students practically on the fly, as the technology emerged with the suddenness of a flash flood. Here are some of the guidelines they provided:

  • Become a savvy student of artificial intelligence: CU literature treats instructors’ syllabus statements as the authority on how students can use AI (or not). Yet, the university encourages students to become students of AI, including identifying “when and how it can augment your work and when your unique human expertise and creativity is invaluable.”
  • Be wary of AI’s hallucinations: Even in a state where recreational cannabis has long been legal, AI has a hallucinogenic effect that no serious student can tolerate. CU’s AI policies urge students to be on guard against fabricated AI-generated outputs, as reliance on such false information can have negative consequences.
  • Approach an instructor when AI-related rules are unclear: While every instructor at Boulder should work to provide clear, consistent instruction to students, artificial intelligence is synonymous with nuance. CU policy is that “If it is ever unclear to a student what level of AI use is acceptable, it is recommended to reach out to the course instructor to clarify.” That said, an instructor’s failure to provide adequate instruction to students could be a valid defense in a misconduct case.

If you could only read one sentence about CU’s AI guidelines, it is this: “There is no one-size-fits-all approach to using AI tools on our campus.” Instead, there is a tapestry of individual instructors’ AI usage rules.

Leading the Herd: How CU Instructors Formulate Their AI Rules

Students at CU Boulder, and most American universities, can only process so much information. For most, it is impractical to synthesize and memorize each of the university’s general AI guidelines. Instead, CU students are better served by focusing on their instructors’ AI usage rules.

A Buffalo might better understand each of their instructors’ AI policies if they understand how many CU instructors contribute to shaping those policies. The university’s guidance for instructors in crafting AI rules includes:

  • Professors should be the ones to communicate with students about AI tools and use cases, rather than relying on students to initiate the conversation
  • Instructors generally have three options when addressing students’ possible use of artificial intelligence: To “prohibit, allow, or conditionally permit” its use
  • CU instructors typically communicate their elemental viewpoints on AI use in a syllabus statement
  • Even with an explanation of AI rules and viewpoints in a syllabus, instructors never hesitate to have a “thoughtful conversation” with students about their AI-specific expectations

AI-related conversations between instructors and students should be collaborative, not adversarial or tainted by unwarranted skepticism towards the student. Too often, today’s instructor emits an air of paranoia, looking for how students might “get one over” by using AI in sneaky or flagrantly unethical ways.

When instructors are short, curt, closed off, or otherwise resistant to open conversations about acceptable AI use, they place Buffaloes in untenable positions.

Resolving Alleged AI Misconduct at CU Boulder

All parties at CU Boulder are still figuring AI out. As with any feeling-out process, there will be kinks. Some students will be accused of AI misconduct. When they are, here is how CU Boulder processes the allegation:

  • Colorado’s Student Conduct & Conflict Resolution (SCCR) office will primarily lead the adjudication process
  • The student accused of AI misconduct will be asked to schedule a “resolution meeting” with the SCCR
  • If the student does not schedule the meeting, CU officials will “still make a decision about the potential violation” absent the student’s participation
  • If they initiate a resolution meeting, the meeting will be “the student’s chance to tell their side of the story”
  • Representatives of the SCCR will render a decision following the resolution meeting
  • If the student has grounds to appeal a finding of responsibility and related sanctions, they may do so

University of Colorado policy explicitly names your right to have a counselor on your side throughout disciplinary proceedings. Choose that counselor from our Student Defense Team. We go above and beyond for the students we represent and are even prepared to engage the school’s general counsel, if needed.

In light of an AI misconduct allegation at CU, call the LLF National Law Firm Student Defense Team right away at 888-535-3686 or contact us online to discuss how we fight for students in peril.

Colorado

Tell About Your Case

When a Denied Accommodation Becomes an Academic Misconduct Case

When a student is accused of cheating, the natural reaction is to focus on the assignment, exam, or other work the school says is suspicious. But sometimes the more important evidence comes from earlier emails: the student asked for an accommodation, the school denied or ignored the request, and the […]

University Had Duty of Care to Hazed Student

In a sad and disturbing case from the Supreme Court of the State of Washington, Washington State University was found to have a duty of care towards a freshman who died during a fraternity hazing event. The court distinguished the hazing case from an earlier one where it held that […]

The Nation’s Best Universities Are Being Accused of Racial Discrimination in Admissions—What Does This Mean for Students?

Under the Trump Administration, the Department of Justice (DOJ) has been investigating colleges and universities across the nation, looking into whether these schools have been violating the law by giving preferential treatment to Black and Hispanic applicants during their admissions processes. Meanwhile, the universities have adamantly refuted these allegations and […]

Teachers Have No Idea How to Prevent the Use of AI, Which Makes Enforcement Selective and Inconsistent

It is no secret that the use of generative AI by students has become a serious problem for schools. Most, if not all, K-12 schools consider the use of generative AI in certain circumstances to be academic misconduct or cheating. Although cheating has been a problem for a long time, […]