\n\tBy SHANNON O. WELLS<\/p>\n
\n\tA celebratory lunch held on Sept. 10 at Posvar Hall recognized this year\u2019s HAIL Graduate Awardee Program, honoring individuals whose research, teaching and leadership aim to redefine artificial intelligence (AI) and data science through HAIL, the University\u2019s Hub for AI and Data Science Leadership<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tDescribed by HAIL leaders as a \u201cfriendly, informal gathering,\u201d the event included a short program highlighting each award recipient, the impact of their work and an open networking period. It also provided a \u201cgreat opportunity\u201d to meet faculty, staff and students from different departments, learn about potentially collaborative projects and ask awardees about their approaches to AI-related teaching and research.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tEight Pitt doctoral students participated in the inaugural awards program, each recognized as \u201cshowing curiosity and critical thinking about responsibility in AI and data science practices,\u201d said Nora Mattern, program facilitator and HAIL\u2019s associate director of responsible AI and data science practices.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tStudents participating included:\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tKhushboo Bhutani \u2014 Film and Media Studies Program and Department of English<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tRose Gatfield-Jeffries \u2014 Department of History and Philosophy of Science<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tAlex Jennings \u2014 Department of English<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tRuijie Ma \u2014 School of Social Work<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tJennifer Nwogu \u2014 Information Science Program<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tBenjamin Panny \u2014 Intelligent Systems Program<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tTessa Rhinehart \u2014 Department of Biological Sciences\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tAnthony Robol \u2014 Department of Industrial Engineering<\/p>\n \n\tThroughout the spring 2026 semester, the awardee cohort met with faculty and staff from around the University who guided discussion about principles of responsible AI and data science work.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tThe experts and the principles they addressed included:\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tMichael Colaresi (Department of Political Science), accountability<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tBob Gradeck (University Center for Social and Urban Research), community engagement<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tJustin Kitzes (Department of Biological Sciences), reproducibility<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tSergey Frolov (Department of Physics & Astronomy), reproducibility and replication\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tAhmad Tafti (Pitt HexAI Lab and School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences), explainable AI\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tRuth Mostern (Department of History and Institute for Spatial History Innovation), agency and respect for people\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tMelissa Bilec (Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Mascaro Center for Sustainable Innovation), sustainability<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tGena Kovalcik (Mascaro Center for Sustainable Innovation), sustainability<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tCarl Haynes-Magyar (University Library System), data quality and stewardship\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tThe students were charged with exploring two questions: “What does responsible data and AI use and development entail in different disciplines or professions?” and “What individual actions can be taken to practice responsible data and AI use and development?\u201d noted Mattern, a teaching associate professor in the Department of Information Culture and Data Stewardship.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tThe student awardees created several works, including what culminated in a poster presentation at the DataSci+AI Forum: The Story and Future of Pittsburgh Through Data<\/a> event held March 26-27 at the William Pitt Union and Heinz History Center.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tIn this collaborative effort, students developed a taxonomy of responsibility principles, along with their own definition of responsible data and AI work: “Responsible data and AI work integrates human-centered, methodological, and forward-looking actions to balance the risks and benefits of data and AI-driven research.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tThe spring forum set out to make the case that \u201cthe city and the University that bears its name are well equipped to accommodate and advance the latest digital technology-based revolution.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tParticipants included a mix of students, faculty and staff from Pitt and neighboring universities, industry partners, nonprofit organizations, government leaders and community groups. The event aimed to give students exposure to real-world applications of AI, faculty and researchers an opportunity to connect their work to broader societal challenges, and provide regional partners a chance to explore collaborative and workforce development opportunities.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cWe have such creative and dedicated collaborators internally, such as the School of Computing and Information leadership, and externally \u2014 with the 13 companies and organizations that comprise the HAIL advisory board,\u201d said HAIL\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tDirector Michael Colaresi, associate vice provost for data science, in March. \u201cThis dynamic network has built both interpersonal trust and organizational bridges that we believe are necessary to lead in the age of AI.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tHAIL Graduate Awardee Program students also developed a white paper reflecting on the program and articulating a responsibility practice they can carry forward in their work with data and AI, Mattern noted. Two awardees wrote about how discussing principles of reproducibility and replication informed their work and motivated them to build additional documentation practices into research.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tAnother student, whose scholarship involves technology design with local community groups, wrote about being inspired by discussions of data stewardship, respect for people, and accountability. She plans to extend additional decision-making to community collaborators about how data is shared and managed.<\/p>\n \n\tAwardees also collaborated on a short article describing the structure and outcomes of the awardee program that will be published in a fall 2026 issue of the Journal of Interactive Technology and Pedagogy<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tHAIL welcomes those interested in the 2026-27 Graduate Awardee program to apply through the online application<\/a>. Pitt graduate students are invited to apply by Thursday, Sept. 17.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tShannon O. Wells is a writer for the University Times. Reach him at shannonw@pitt.edu.<\/p>\n \n\t\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tHave a story idea or news to share? Share<\/a> it with the University Times.<\/p>\n