Teaching & Learning
- Fordham does not set a single university-wide rule allowing or banning AI for coursework
- If AI use is not authorized under those course rules, using it can be treated as unauthorized assistance under academic integrity standards
- The university states that whether students may use AI for assignments is determined by the instructor and must be communicated in the course syllabus or assignment instructions
Faculty may choose to allow or prohibit student use of AI in their courses. The appropriate use of AI in a course must be clearly articulated in the course syllabus and assignment instructions.
Submitting work generated by AI as one’s own without permission may constitute plagiarism or another form of academic dishonesty under the University’s Academic Integrity Policy.
Students may not claim as their own work any portion of a written assignment that was generated by someone else, including another student, a friend, relative, writing service, or any computer or software generated text. Students should appropriately note any assistance received from another person, company, software program, or other outside source.
Submissions should always represent the student’s original words or ideas and acknowledge the contribution of any outside sources.
- Fordham does not provide a distinct university-wide AI rule specifically for exams and assessments in the provided sources
- The materials indicate that faculty decide whether AI is permitted in their courses and must state the allowed use in the syllabus and assignment instructions; unauthorized AI use would fall under academic integrity rules
Faculty may choose to allow or prohibit student use of AI in their courses. The appropriate use of AI in a course must be clearly articulated in the course syllabus and assignment instructions.
Submitting work generated by AI as one’s own without permission may constitute plagiarism or another form of academic dishonesty under the University’s Academic Integrity Policy.
- The university also cautions students not to enter sensitive personal or academic information into public AI systems and notes that AI can produce inaccurate or biased output
- Fordham permits students to use AI as a learning aid in certain limited ways, such as idea generation, revision support, or understanding concepts, but only if the instructor allows it
Faculty may choose to allow or prohibit student use of AI in their courses.
Examples of possible acceptable AI use in student assignments may include:
• Brainstorming ideas before writing,
• Generating outlines or summaries to better understand concepts,
• Receiving feedback on grammar or sentence structure,
• Practicing language skills,
• Writing support or revision suggestions.
Students should not enter sensitive personal information, academic records, or protected class data into public AI systems.
Students should be aware that AI can hallucinate, reinforce biases, and produce inaccurate content. Human judgment must be used in evaluating all AI-assisted work.
Research
- The policy also requires disclosure when AI contributed in a meaningful way to writing or authorship and directs users to follow publisher or disciplinary rules
- In the visioning recommendations, the university also advises researchers and graduate students to identify when AI may be appropriate and to document and discuss its use clearly
- Fordham's AI policy covers faculty, staff, and students and requires anyone using AI in scholarly or professional writing to verify accuracy, protect confidentiality, and avoid presenting AI-generated material as solely human-authored
All faculty, staff, and students using AI in teaching, learning, scholarship, or professional work are expected to use these tools responsibly and in ways consistent with Fordham’s mission, values, and all applicable policies.
AI may be used to support drafting, brainstorming, research, and communication, but users are responsible for verifying the accuracy, originality, and appropriateness of any output. AI-generated content must not be presented as wholly human-authored if it materially contributed to the work.
Use of AI in scholarly writing or professional documents must be disclosed when it meaningfully contributes to authorship, drafting, or analysis, in accordance with disciplinary norms, publisher standards, or university policy.
Faculty and researchers should follow publisher, funder, and disciplinary guidance regarding AI-assisted writing and authorship.
Research to identify appropriate uses of AI technology and the framework for including clear standards and disclosures to assist students, graduate students, and faculty in making informed decisions about use
Clear communication to all students and faculty about use and non-use of AI technologies and requirements for documentation and discussion where its use may be appropriate
- Meaningful AI contribution to analysis must also be disclosed where required by disciplinary norms, publisher standards, or university policy
- Fordham allows AI to support research-related analysis work, but users remain responsible for accuracy and appropriateness, and they must protect confidential or regulated data
- The policy bars uploading confidential, personally identifiable, or regulated information to non-approved AI tools and requires adherence to university data classification rules and legal obligations
AI may be used to support drafting, brainstorming, research, and communication, but users are responsible for verifying the accuracy, originality, and appropriateness of any output.
Use of AI in scholarly writing or professional documents must be disclosed when it meaningfully contributes to authorship, drafting, or analysis, in accordance with disciplinary norms, publisher standards, or university policy.
Users may not upload or expose confidential, personally identifiable, student, employee, health, financial, or other regulated data to AI systems unless the platform has been approved by Fordham University for such use.
All use of AI must comply with university data classification standards, FERPA, HIPAA, copyright law, and all applicable institutional policies.
- Fordham requires AI use in scholarship and research-related work to align with responsible use expectations, including accuracy checking, authorship transparency, and compliance with disciplinary, publisher, and university rules
- The provided sources do not set a specific AI rule for grant proposals or IRB applications, but they do require disclosure when AI materially contributes to authorship, drafting, or analysis and direct researchers to follow external and institutional standards
All faculty, staff, and students using AI in teaching, learning, scholarship, or professional work are expected to use these tools responsibly and in ways consistent with Fordham’s mission, values, and all applicable policies.
AI may be used to support drafting, brainstorming, research, and communication, but users are responsible for verifying the accuracy, originality, and appropriateness of any output. AI-generated content must not be presented as wholly human-authored if it materially contributed to the work.
Use of AI in scholarly writing or professional documents must be disclosed when it meaningfully contributes to authorship, drafting, or analysis, in accordance with disciplinary norms, publisher standards, or university policy.
Faculty and researchers should follow publisher, funder, and disciplinary guidance regarding AI-assisted writing and authorship.
Academic Integrity
- In addition, the AI guidance states that all AI-assisted work must be reviewed and edited by the submitting person
- The academic integrity materials also require students to note assistance received from software programs or other outside sources
- Fordham requires transparency about AI use when it materially contributes to academic, scholarly, or professional work, and students must follow instructor directions about whether and how AI use should be acknowledged
The use of AI in academic work should be transparent, properly cited where required, and never used to misrepresent one’s own effort or understanding.
Use of AI in scholarly writing or professional documents must be disclosed when it meaningfully contributes to authorship, drafting, or analysis, in accordance with disciplinary norms, publisher standards, or university policy.
Students should appropriately note any assistance received from another person, company, software program, or other outside source.
Students must follow the instructor’s stated expectations regarding whether and how AI use should be acknowledged in submitted work.
Any content produced with AI assistance must be reviewed, edited, and validated by the individual submitting or using it.
- Fordham states that undisclosed or unauthorized AI use may be treated as plagiarism or another academic integrity violation
- Law students are also subject to the law school's academic responsibility code, which prohibits plagiarism and unauthorized use of materials
- The provided sources do not establish a university AI-detection-tool policy, but they do tie AI misuse to existing academic misconduct procedures and sanctions
Submitting work generated by AI as one’s own without permission may constitute plagiarism or another form of academic dishonesty under the University’s Academic Integrity Policy.
Violations of the Academic Integrity Policy will ordinarily result in a grade of F on the assignment or in the course, and may lead to further disciplinary action.
Students may not claim as their own work any portion of a written assignment that was generated by someone else, including another student, a friend, relative, writing service, or any computer or software generated text.
Plagiarism. Plagiarism is the act of appropriating the literary composition of another, or portions of passages of his or her writings, or the ideas or language of the same, and passing them off as the product of one’s own mind. Plagiarism includes not only the exact duplication of another’s work but the lifting of a substantial or essential portion thereof.
Unauthorized use of books, notes, study aids, electronic devices or materials on an examination, quiz, report, or other assignment, which has not otherwise been authorized by the instructor.
Institutional & Administrative
- The university also states that AI should not be used as the sole basis for high-stakes decisions affecting students or employees
- Faculty may use AI to support instruction and administrative tasks, but they remain responsible for the accuracy and fairness of grading, feedback, and communications
- Fordham permits faculty and staff to use AI in teaching, scholarship, and professional work, but requires responsible use, human oversight, and protection of confidential information
All faculty, staff, and students using AI in teaching, learning, scholarship, or professional work are expected to use these tools responsibly and in ways consistent with Fordham’s mission, values, and all applicable policies.
Faculty and staff may use AI to support teaching, advising, communications, or administrative work, but remain accountable for the content, decisions, and outcomes associated with that use.
AI may assist in generating instructional materials, feedback, or administrative drafts; however, final review and human judgment are always required.
AI should not be used as the sole basis for high-stakes decisions affecting students, employees, or institutional outcomes.
Faculty should inform students when AI tools are used in a way that meaningfully affects course content, feedback, or evaluation.
- The policy also requires compliance with university data classification standards and applicable laws such as FERPA and HIPAA
- Fordham restricts what data may be entered into AI systems and requires use of university-approved platforms for confidential or regulated information
- Users may not upload confidential, personally identifiable, student, employee, health, financial, or other regulated data unless the AI platform has been approved by Fordham for that use
Users may not upload or expose confidential, personally identifiable, student, employee, health, financial, or other regulated data to AI systems unless the platform has been approved by Fordham University for such use.
All use of AI must comply with university data classification standards, FERPA, HIPAA, copyright law, and all applicable institutional policies.
Students should not enter sensitive personal information, academic records, or protected class data into public AI systems.
Faculty and staff must not input student education records, personnel files, research subject data, or restricted institutional data into non-approved AI tools.
- The university also emphasizes that AI use should be guided by Jesuit values, ethics, privacy, human judgment, and existing university policies
- The recommendations describe a coordinated approach that includes research on appropriate uses, clear communication standards, faculty development, and structures for ongoing innovation and oversight
- Fordham has an institutional AI governance and strategy framework centered on mission-aligned, responsible adoption, and it has articulated this through a formal university AI policy and an AI Visioning Committee's recommendations
Fordham University recognizes the rapidly expanding role of artificial intelligence (AI) in teaching, learning, scholarship, and administration. This policy provides university-wide guidance for the responsible, ethical, and mission-aligned use of AI technologies at Fordham.
Fordham encourages thoughtful experimentation with AI to enhance learning, scholarship, and operational effectiveness, while upholding the University’s commitment to academic integrity, human dignity, privacy, and the common good.
The use of AI at Fordham must reflect our Jesuit values, including cura personalis, discernment, ethical reflection, and concern for justice.
Research to identify appropriate uses of AI technology and the framework for including clear standards and disclosures to assist students, graduate students, and faculty in making informed decisions about use
Clear communication to all students and faculty about use and non-use of AI technologies and requirements for documentation and discussion where its use may be appropriate
The creation of a Center for Educational Technologies to support and encourage innovative approaches to effective pedagogy and experience-sharing
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 Fordham University's AI Policies
Fordham University has defined AI policies in 11 of 12 categories, with an overall coverage score of 92%.
Fordham requires transparency about AI use when it materially contributes to academic, scholarly, or professional work, and students must follow instructor directions about whether and how AI use should be acknowledged. The academic integrity materials also require students to note assistance received from software programs or other outside sources. In addition, the AI guidance states that all AI-assisted work must be reviewed and edited by the submitting person.
Fordham states that undisclosed or unauthorized AI use may be treated as plagiarism or another academic integrity violation. The provided sources do not establish a university AI-detection-tool policy, but they do tie AI misuse to existing academic misconduct procedures and sanctions. Law students are also subject to the law school's academic responsibility code, which prohibits plagiarism and unauthorized use of materials.
Fordham restricts what data may be entered into AI systems and requires use of university-approved platforms for confidential or regulated information. Users may not upload confidential, personally identifiable, student, employee, health, financial, or other regulated data unless the AI platform has been approved by Fordham for that use. The policy also requires compliance with university data classification standards and applicable laws such as FERPA and HIPAA.