From Doubt to Confidence: How AVA Transformed Faculty-Student Communication at Interamerican University of Puerto Rico

The need first surfaced from faculty. In internal meetings, instructors raised a specific concern: they needed to make greater use of artificial intelligence to sustain the regular, substantive communication that accrediting agencies require, without adding to their workload.

Underneath that operational need sat a harder challenge to name. Much of the faculty associated artificial intelligence with a direct threat to their role — the belief that the technology was arriving to replace them. Institutional leadership recognized this concern early on. As Dr. Zulma Figueroa, Associate Vice President for Online Education, Vice President of Academics, explained, “Institutions today shouldn’t see AI as a competition. This has been faculty’s biggest fear.”

Any pilot would have to solve both problems at once. It needed to give instructors some of their time back and, more importantly, prove that AI was there to support them, not replace them.

A comprehensive approach was needed to drive the AVA pilot both from the top down and the bottom up. After discussions with the academic deans, Dr. Figueroa presented the proposal and moved forward with launching the project alongside her Online Education team. The proposal had the support of the institution’s Office of the Vice President for Academic Affairs.

That support was reinforced by broader institutional efforts already underway. The Office of the President had been developing guidelines and policies for the responsible adoption of AI, providing the pilot with a strong institutional foundation.

With that backing secured, the team brought the faculty learning community together to introduce the project and launched the process of selecting participating faculty. The final decision rested with the academic deans, who each selected at least one instructor per academic unit, spanning disciplines as different as education, counseling, English, mathematics, business administration, and computer science. That diversity was intentional. It reflected the real range of online courses the institution offers.

Before asking anyone to use the tool, the team invested in orientation. The departmental deans explained the project to their faculty, followed by an invitation to participate. That order — understanding before adopting — turned out to be one of the most important decisions in the whole process.

The pilot wasn't a solo effort by the Online Education team either. Working alongside them were Blackboard's team, instructional designers from each academic unit, distance education directors from each program, central administration, which gave its endorsement to the process, and the technology team.

Adoption came naturally, fueled by the positivity, enthusiasm, and active engagement of faculty members throughout the pilot. As Dr. Zulma highlighted, “Instructors and teaching and learning initiatives are irreplaceable, but AI support is necessary.” The pilot reinforced that belief. Teaching and learning still depend on educators' expertise, judgment, and human connection. What AVA afforded them was the time and responsiveness needed to focus more fully on student success.

“Artificial intelligence isn't just generative, just for producing content. It's there to support the processes and the communication that matter so much in virtual learning environments.”

The effect didn't stay inside the virtual classroom. For students who already use generative AI in their daily lives, the institution's adoption of the technology has been a welcome development. Rather than focusing solely on content generation, it provides meaningful, always-available support that enhances the student experience. The result is a simple but powerful message: Interamerican University of Puerto Rico is leading through innovation.

And they were right! Students were finding new ways to get support through the virtual assistant, thanks to “Blackboard, which has been fully supporting us throughout this technological innovation.”

For the Associate Vice President for Online Education, the pilot's central lesson wasn't technical, it was sequential: orient first, adopt second. Explaining the tool well and giving people room to understand it is what turns adoption into something genuine rather than imposed. The project, she insists, only works as a win for everyone involved — the institution, the company, the faculty, and the students.

Dr. Figueroa concludes that the horizon is more a vision than a settled plan. She believes artificial intelligence still has a lot to offer instructional design and communication across virtual education, and sees an even bigger role ahead for AVA as a bridge in the moments when a student can't reach their instructor right away — an assistant that can say “I’m here, I can help” instead of leaving them without a response. Her recommendation to other institutions weighing the same move is direct: start now, and back it fully.

“Artificial intelligence is here to support. It doesn't replace the instructor.”