It’s been proven time and time again that those who don’t learn from the past are doomed to repeat it, and there can be no doubt that looking back and learning from history has great merit. But what happens to those who don’t look ahead—to those who don’t step away from the safety of the familiar to try to catch a glimpse of the future and prepare for it?

For better or worse, and regardless of our misgivings around the subject, artificial intelligence (AI) is not only the hot topic of the moment, it is the wave of the future—and knowing how to implement it is a necessary skill for college graduates, both now and in the days to come. 

Right now, AI capabilities are advancing rapidly, having a significant impact on everything from industry to everyday life—from finance and healthcare to helping you find that new restaurant without getting lost or suggesting your next can’t-miss movie. This summer, TLU’s Dr. Sam Hijazi, professor of math and computer science, taught a course that explored the transformative impact of AI, specifically in the realm of the business world. “Key topics included AI implementation in business processes, AI-driven strategies, and the impact of AI on decision-making, customer experience, and efficiency,” said Hijazi. He went on to explain that students learned practical applications for machine learning, data analytics, natural language processing (NLP), and predictive modeling through hands-on projects and case studies. 

But before they addressed any of those lessons, they began with ethics. “Early in the course we discuss how AI can help or harm people, so everyone sees the stakes before writing any code,” said Hijazi. 

And that’s not the only way he wove a deeper sense of values into the class. For one thing, he had his students study real-world mistakes. “They reviewed famous cases where AI went wrong,” he explained. “Like hiring tools that favored one group—to understand cause and effect.” They also tested their projects for fairness by running bias checks on their models and figuring out how to correct unfair results. They weren’t just learning how to become AI-literate; they learned the rules, including key privacy and AI laws, “so students know what’s legal—and why.” 

And finally, the class included weekly discussions to talk out, reflect, and debate issues so that students could form their own clear, ethical viewpoints.

So why is this type of class important and how will it serve TLU students? For one thing, there’s the employability factor. “AI literacy keeps graduates relevant in a rapidly evolving job market,” said Hijazi. It also sharpens their decision-making skills as they learn to utilize data science foundations to turn information into strategic insight. Being skilled with AI can save time and spark new value creation, and it can bridge business and teach teams.

And when the students graduate, classes like this one will give them a competitive edge in the marketplace. “Hands-on experience with machine learning, NLP, and predictive modeling lets graduates list concrete AI projects on their résumés, signaling job-ready technical fluency rather than abstract familiarity,” said Hijazi. 

Students also learn to make data-powered decisions with the help of AI. “Mastery of analytics tools trains students to convert raw datasets into clear business recommendations—an ability prized in roles from marketing and finance to operations and product management,” said Hijazi. In addition to all of that, students are equipped with process-automation leadership and customer-experience innovation skills, and ethical and regulatory insight—an increasingly critical requirement for managerial and executive roles.

In a world that is becoming more reliant on AI technology by the day, graduates entering the workforce will need the skills to utilize it—and the understanding of how to implement it ethically—more and more as time goes on. Hijazi believes that TLU must look to the future and equip both its students and its faculty in order to keep pace with the rapid change in AI capabilities. He proposes to do this by way of offering things like quarterly roundtable discussions with local tech and finance leaders and creating an applied AI lab as a cloud-based sandbox—a virtual place to learn. 

And of course, by offering classes like this one this summer—classes that spark the imagination and inspire a sense of ethical value around the use of AI technology—so that students can both learn from the past and face the future with confidence.