Information Technology AI Appropriate Use Policy for Westmont College

A. INTRODUCTION AND PURPOSE

This Artificial Intelligence Appropriate Use Policy establishes guidelines for the responsible use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies at Westmont College. As a Christian academic community, we seek to use all technological tools, including AI, in ways that uphold our institutional values, respect intellectual property, protect privacy, ensure fairness, and advance our educational mission while adhering to legal and ethical standards.

This policy addresses all forms of AI, including but not limited to generative AI tools (such as large language models, image generators, and content creation tools), automated decision systems, and AI-enabled research tools on campus networks, college-owned devices, and for college-related activities.

B. GUIDING PRINCIPLES

The use of AI technologies at Westmont College shall be guided by:

  • Truth and Academic Integrity: Committing to truth, transparency, and academic honesty in all AI use, recognizing that honesty is the foundation on which all intellectual endeavors rest
  • Transparency: Clearly documenting and disclosing significant AI use in academic and administrative contexts
  • Human Dignity: Recognizing that AI tools ought to augment human capabilities rather than replace human judgment or devalue human creativity
  • Respect for Intellectual Property: Adhering to copyright law and respect for the creative works of others
  • Privacy and Data Protection: Protecting personal information and confidential data
  • Equity and Accessibility: Ensuring AI use promotes fairness and equal opportunity among all community members
  • Responsible Stewardship: Using AI resource in efficient and thoughtful ways
  • Christian Discernment: Approaching AI with wisdom that aligns with our faith tradition and institutional mission, acknowledging that academic dishonesty violates both academic and spiritual principles

C. AI USE IN ACADEMIC CONTEXTS

Westmont’s Academic Integrity Policy covers use of AI in addition to other forms of misrepresentation in the academic sphere. It can be found at https://www.westmont.edu/office-provost/academic-program/academic-integrity-policy

D. AI TOOLS AND SERVICES

D.1. Institutional Support of AI Services

The AI world consists of a wide spectrum of tools, addressing a variety of needs. Currently, Westmont supports the use and adoption of Google Gemini which is provided as part of the Google Workspace for Education ecosystem. Some applications used by the college have already incorporated AI as a feature.  For these solutions, we rely on the vendor for support and training.

D.2 Institutional limits to AI Usage

  • AI tools that operate on institutional data are prohibited unless specifically approved
  • The IT department, in collaboration with academic leadership, will evaluate emerging AI technologies
  • AI services, other than those Westmont specifically supports, require administrative approval before purchase and use.
  • Requests for new AI tool adoption should be submitted via this AI Technology Tool request form found in https://my.westmont.edu by searching for ‘tool request’.
  • Tools will be evaluated based on security, privacy, cost, ethical considerations, and alignment with institutional mission
  • The college reserves the right to restrict access to AI tools that present security, ethical, or educational concerns

E. DATA PRIVACY AND SECURITY

When using AI systems:

  • No confidential college information, student records, or sensitive personal data shall be provided to third-party AI systems without appropriate security reviews and data processing agreements
  • Personal Identifiable Information (PII) must never be provided to external AI systems that train their models on it. All information provided must comply with FERPA, HIPAA, GDPR and other relevant policies, regulations, and best practices.
  • Non-public research data must not be processed through external AI systems without appropriate safeguards
  • Data used to train or customize AI systems must be appropriately protected and anonymized (removing or replacing Personally Identifiable Information with randomly generated data)
  • Users must understand that information submitted to external AI systems may be retained, used for training purposes, or potentially accessed by third parties, and especially so with open source tools like OpenAI, leading to privacy violations

For reference, the Westmont users (whether or not using AI) must follow the policies below: 

General Policies

Intellectual Property Policies

Privacy Policies

Security Policies

F. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND ATTRIBUTION

F.1 Copyright Considerations

  • AI-generated content is subject to the same copyright considerations as other works
  • All copyrighted material provided to AI systems must respect fair use principles as outlined in Westmont's Copyright Policy
  • Users must not use AI to circumvent copyright protections or take credit for others' work

F.2 Attribution and Transparency

  • If AI is used in producing academic work, publications, or creative content, it must be appropriately disclosed. Minor AI assistance, such as spelling and grammar checking, need not be disclosed.
  • College members shall not misrepresent AI-generated work as solely human-created
  • Attribution shall clearly indicate:
    • Which portions of work involved AI assistance
    • The specific AI tools or systems used
    • The nature and extent of AI contribution

G. INSTITUTIONAL AI INITIATIVES

Westmont College is committed to responsible innovation in AI, including:

  • Exploring secure, internal AI tools for administrative efficiency
  • Creating educational resources about AI for the campus community
  • Regularly evaluating emerging AI technologies relevant to our institutional mission

H. PROHIBITED USES

AI technologies shall not be used in harmful ways, including but not limited to :

  • Creating deceptive content (e.g. deepfakes) or spread misinformation
  • Generating content that violates the College's Community Life Statement
  • Engaging in unauthorized surveillance or privacy violations
  • Discriminating against individuals or groups
  • Automating decisions with significant consequences without meaningful human oversight
  • Generating content that misrepresents scientific, historical, or theological truths
  • Creating fraudulent, harassing, pornographic, or obscene materials
  • Circumventing academic integrity standards
  • Facilitating academic dishonesty in any form

​​I. EDUCATIONAL AND TRAINING RESOURCES

I.1 Training and Ongoing Education

  • Westmont will provide education and resources on responsible AI use
  • Staff using AI tools will receive training specific to their role
  • Departments may develop specific guidelines appropriate to their disciplines
  • At the provost’s discretion, faculty will receive training on AI capabilities, limitations, and integration into curriculum
  • The provost may choose to encourage academic departments to develop AI related discipline-specific guidance and professional development

I.2 Community Dialogue

  • Westmont encourages workshops on effective and ethical use of AI, to be offered to faculty and/or staff as appropriate
  • Westmont will engage the community for their input on its annual review of AI practices and policies. This review will include
    • Keeping abreast of technological developments
    • Reviewing potential issues AI use has surfaced
  • Westmont encourages integrating AI ethics into relevant courses across the curriculum

J. COMPLIANCE

J.1 Consequences of Non-Compliance

  • Academic integrity violations involving AI will be reported through the established academic integrity process
  • Non-academic violations will be addressed through existing disciplinary procedures
  • Consequences will be proportional to the nature and severity of the violation

K. POLICY REVIEW

This policy shall be reviewed annually by the IT Advisory Board to ensure it remains relevant in this rapidly changing field. Recommendations for updates shall be submitted to college executive leadership for approval.

This policy reflects Westmont College's commitment to both academic excellence and Christian formation. We recognize that the appropriate use of AI is an evolving area that requires ongoing discernment, education, and adaptation. As a Christian academic community, we seek to embrace beneficial technological advancements while maintaining our core commitments to truth, integrity, and human flourishing. 

This policy was initially generated using Google Gemini AI and edited to reflect Westmont’s values and practices.

AI Policy Takeaways