Teaching & Learning
- Brooklyn College uses a course-by-course model for student AI use in graded coursework
- Instructors decide whether AI is prohibited, partially permitted, or required/encouraged in their classes, and faculty must state those rules in the syllabus
- If AI use is allowed, students must disclose or cite it; submitting AI-generated content as one's own without acknowledgment is treated as plagiarism or unauthorized assistance
In accordance with the CUNY Academic Integrity Policy, Brooklyn College adopts a “Course-by-Course” policy model. Instructors have the authority to determine the permissible level of GenAI use in their classrooms. Policies typically fall into three general categories:
1. No GenAI Permitted: Strict prohibition of GenAI for any stage of the assignment.
2. GenAI Assisted: GenAI may be permitted for certain aspects of coursework in disciplinary‐appropriate or platform-specific ways. As a simple example, an instructor may allow the use of GenAI for brainstorming, outlining, but not for drafting or substantively editing the content of a paper.
3. GenAI Integration: GenAI use is required or encouraged as a core component of course assignments.
Faculty must clearly communicate their course policies to all students in the syllabus, and they are encouraged to reiterate the policies at appropriate times during the term (e.g., prior to a particular assignment). It may also be valuable to emphasize the policies and guidelines for GenAI usage are specific to the particular course and may be different than those of another course or instructor.
When GenAI use is permitted, it must be cited and/or appropriately disclosed.
Submission of content generated with GenAI as one's own work without acknowledgment constitutes plagiarism and/or unauthorized assistance. Such violations will be adjudicated under the CUNY Academic Integrity Policy.
- The university does not set a single institution-wide student rule specifically permitting or banning AI in exams; instead, exam-related AI use falls under instructor course policies
- The student handbook states that unauthorized AI use that violates course or instructor policies is academic dishonesty, and faculty are required to communicate AI rules in their syllabi
Each instructor may decide what type of AI usage is acceptable on a course-by-course basis. Faculty must include course-based guidelines on AI usage in all syllabi and communicate any requirements clearly to the students in the class.
Unauthorized use of AI tools or other resources in violation of course or instructor policies.
- Brooklyn College provides AI learning resources for faculty, staff, and students, and its AI guidelines recognize AI's role in enhancing learning
- However, the university does not define a separate student policy specifically governing personal, non-graded study use beyond the general course-by-course framework for academic work
A curated collection of AI training materials, courses, and resources for Brooklyn College faculty, staff, and students.
Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) has transformative potential for higher education, with opportunities for enhancing teaching, learning, and operational efficiency.
- Not defined
not defined
Research
- Brooklyn College does not provide a separate research-writing rule for theses, dissertations, or manuscripts in the retrieved materials
- Its AI guidelines do state that humans remain responsible for AI-generated content, that AI cannot be credited as an author, and that unpublished research and draft manuscripts are treated as sensitive/internal data that may be used only in licensed CUNY AI platforms, not public AI services
Accountability: GenAI is a tool, not an author. Humans remain fully responsible for all content generated, vetted, and submitted.
When GenAI use is permitted, it must be cited and/or appropriately disclosed. GenAI cannot be listed as an author.
Sensitive/Internal:
Meeting minutes, non-public email drafts,
strategic plans.
Intellectual Property: Unpublished research,
grant proposals, draft manuscripts.
PERMITTED PROHIBITED
- Brooklyn College's explicit research-related AI rule is about data protection rather than research methods
- Confidential data may not be entered into any AI platform, and sensitive/internal research materials may be used only in the licensed CUNY Microsoft 365 Copilot environment, with users responsible for monitoring output and protecting confidential research information
Confidential data, as defined by the CUNY Data Classification Standard, must NOT be entered, shared, or processed using any GenAI platforms, including CUNY-licensed platforms, AI-assisted web browsers, and AI-powered search tools.
Microsoft 365 Copilot (accessed via your CUNY Login credentials) is currently the only licensed GenAI service that is approved for processing non-public, internal, and sensitive university data.
Although it is licensed, Copilot output must still be monitored for hallucinations, inappropriate, and inaccurate outputs.
Principal investigators and others who use university computer resources to store or transmit research information that is required by law or regulation to be held confidential or for which a promise of confidentiality has been given, are responsible for taking steps to protect confidential research information from unauthorized access or modification.
- Brooklyn College does not set detailed AI rules for grant proposals, IRB applications, or ethics declarations in the retrieved materials
- It does, however, classify grant proposals as sensitive/internal data, prohibit using public AI tools for that category, and require ethical, accountable, and transparent AI use
Ethical Use: GenAI must be used in ways that uphold the institution's values and ethical standards.
Transparency: The use of GenAI in academic work must be disclosed. Hidden use of GenAI to generate work submitted for credit or decision-making is prohibited.
Sensitive/Internal:
Meeting minutes, non-public email drafts,
strategic plans.
Intellectual Property: Unpublished research,
grant proposals, draft manuscripts.
PERMITTED PROHIBITED
Academic Integrity
- Disclosure of permitted AI use is mandatory
- The guidelines require AI use in academic work to be disclosed, forbid hidden use for submitted work, prohibit listing AI as an author, and direct students to cite AI under the relevant citation style; for substantial use, instructors may require a methodology statement or prompt transcript
Transparency: The use of GenAI in academic work must be disclosed. Hidden use of GenAI to generate work submitted for credit or decision-making is prohibited.
When GenAI use is permitted, it must be cited and/or appropriately disclosed. GenAI cannot be listed as an author. Students should use the following framework for disclosure:
● Citation: Follow APA, MLA or other appropriate citation guidelines for citing GenAI.
● Disclosure of GenAI Usage / Methodology Statement: For substantial use, students may be required to append a statement or transcript detailing the prompts used and how the output was modified.
- Brooklyn College discourages relying on AI detection software alone to determine misconduct
- Detection scores should only trigger a conversation with the student, while undisclosed AI-generated work is treated as plagiarism or unauthorized assistance and is handled under the CUNY Academic Integrity Policy; student sanctions can include failing grades, suspension, or expulsion
The use of GenAI Detection software as the sole basis for determining academic misconduct is discouraged. Research indicates that these tools can produce false positives and may not be reliable.
Faculty are advised to use detection scores only as a signal to initiate a conversation with the student regarding their writing process.
Submission of content generated with GenAI as one's own work without acknowledgment constitutes plagiarism and/or unauthorized assistance. Such violations will be adjudicated under the CUNY Academic Integrity Policy.
Cheating and plagiarism are strictly prohibited and can lead to:
• Failing grades
• Suspension
• Expulsion
Institutional & Administrative
- The employee guidance also identifies the college guidelines as the official AI policy and notes that the document will be updated as practices evolve
- Brooklyn College directs faculty to include course-based AI rules in every syllabus and gives instructors authority to set course-level student AI rules
- For grading, faculty may not upload student assignments to public AI tools and may use AI-assisted grading only within CUNY-licensed services such as Microsoft 365 Copilot
Faculty are required to include course-based GenAI usage guidelines on all syllabi. This requirement will be added to the guidance on syllabus preparation sent to faculty prior to each semester.
Each instructor may decide what type of AI usage is acceptable on a course-by-course basis. Faculty must include course-based guidelines on AI usage in all syllabi and communicate any requirements clearly to the students in the class.
Faculty must not upload student assignments to public GenAI tools (e.g., ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, Perplexity) for assessment. This potentially exposes student intellectual property and PII to third-party vendors, violating FERPA. GenAI-assisted grading must be conducted only within CUNY-licensed GenAI services, such as Microsoft 365 Copilot, that have enterprise data protection agreements.
Yes. On January 28, 2026, the Office of the Provost and Senior VP for Academic Affairs published official GenAI Usage Guidelines for Brooklyn College.
Because the use of Artificial Intelligence is rapidly evolving, this is a fluid document based on current best practices. We will update these guidelines as necessary as CUNY-wide technology and policies evolve.
- Brooklyn College has explicit AI data-protection rules
- Users must verify Copilot outputs and protect confidential research information with strong controls and encryption
- Confidential data must never be entered into any AI platform, sensitive/internal university data may be processed only in the licensed Microsoft 365 Copilot environment, and public/consumer AI tools are barred for confidential and sensitive data because they lack university data-protection agreements
Data Privacy: Sensitive and confidential institutional data (as defined in the CUNY Data Classification Standard) must never be exposed to public GenAI tools and models that harvest information for training purposes without legal protection.
Confidential data, as defined by the CUNY Data Classification Standard, must NOT be entered, shared, or processed using any GenAI platforms, including CUNY-licensed platforms, AI-assisted web browsers, and AI-powered search tools.
Microsoft 365 Copilot (accessed via your CUNY Login credentials) is currently the only licensed GenAI service that is approved for processing non-public, internal, and sensitive university data. Copilot used inside the CUNY Microsoft 365 tenant does not use your data to train its foundation models. Your prompts and responses remain logically isolated within the CUNY tenant as part of Microsoft’s Enterprise Data Protection (EDP).
Although it is licensed, Copilot output must still be monitored for hallucinations, inappropriate, and inaccurate outputs.
Confidential and sensitive data must NOT be entered, shared, or processed using public GenAI services (e.g., Free/Plus versions of ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity). These platforms lack the necessary data protection agreements with the University.
Principal investigators and others who use university computer resources to store or transmit research information that is required by law or regulation to be held confidential or for which a promise of confidentiality has been given, are responsible for taking steps to protect confidential research information from unauthorized access or modification.
In general, this means storing the information on a computer that provides strong access controls (i.e., passwords) and encrypting files, documents and messages for protection against inadvertent or unauthorized disclosure while in storage or in transit over data networks.
- Brooklyn College has an institutional AI governance document in the form of official GenAI Usage Guidelines issued by the Office of the Provost and Senior VP for Academic Affairs
- The document frames the college's AI approach around accountability, transparency, data privacy, and ethical use, and states that the guidelines are subject to periodic revision as CUNY-wide policies evolve
Yes. On January 28, 2026, the Office of the Provost and Senior VP for Academic Affairs published official GenAI Usage Guidelines for Brooklyn College.
Our approach to GenAI is grounded in four core principles:
1. Accountability: GenAI is a tool, not an author. Humans remain fully responsible for all content generated, vetted, and submitted.
2. Transparency: The use of GenAI in academic work must be disclosed. Hidden use of GenAI to generate work submitted for credit or decision-making is prohibited.
3. Data Privacy: Sensitive and confidential institutional data (as defined in the CUNY Data Classification Standard) must never be exposed to public GenAI tools and models that harvest information for training purposes without legal protection.
4. Ethical Use: GenAI must be used in ways that uphold the institution's values and ethical standards.
These guidelines are subject to periodic change as CUNY-wide technology and academic policies evolve.
Because the use of Artificial Intelligence is rapidly evolving, this is a fluid document based on current best practices. We will update these guidelines as necessary as CUNY-wide technology and policies evolve.
DocuMark: Responsible AI Use for Academic Integrity
Knowing your institution's AI policy is step one. DocuMark helps enforce it fairly by empowering universities to manage AI-generated content, prevent cheating, and support student writing through responsible AI use.
Common Questions About CUNY Brooklyn College's AI Policies
CUNY Brooklyn College has defined AI policies in 12 of 12 categories, with an overall coverage score of 100%.
Disclosure of permitted AI use is mandatory. The guidelines require AI use in academic work to be disclosed, forbid hidden use for submitted work, prohibit listing AI as an author, and direct students to cite AI under the relevant citation style; for substantial use, instructors may require a methodology statement or prompt transcript.
Brooklyn College discourages relying on AI detection software alone to determine misconduct. Detection scores should only trigger a conversation with the student, while undisclosed AI-generated work is treated as plagiarism or unauthorized assistance and is handled under the CUNY Academic Integrity Policy; student sanctions can include failing grades, suspension, or expulsion.
Brooklyn College has explicit AI data-protection rules. Confidential data must never be entered into any AI platform, sensitive/internal university data may be processed only in the licensed Microsoft 365 Copilot environment, and public/consumer AI tools are barred for confidential and sensitive data because they lack university data-protection agreements. Users must verify Copilot outputs and protect confidential research information with strong controls and encryption.