Progress moves faster when institutions do not have to build alone. 

That idea has been at the heart of the NAAIC Institutional Mentorship Program throughout the 2025-2026 mentorship year. By pairing mentee colleges with experienced mentor institutions, the program has created opportunities to share curriculum, exchange lessons learned, and adapt proven approaches to meet local workforce needs. 

After just one year of mentorship, the NAAIC collaborations  are already translating into action. Colleges are launching new AI degrees and certificates, strengthening connections with employers, expanding access for students and communities, and building the institutional infrastructure needed to support AI education for the long term. The result is more than a collection of individual programs. It is a growing network of institutions learning from one another and helping accelerate the reach of AI education nationwide. 

‍New AI Credentials

One of the clearest signs of progress during this mentorship year has been the development and launch of new AI credentials.

Across the mentorship network, colleges are turning AI education plans into tangible programs, with new degrees, certificates, courses and pathways moving from development to the classroom.

• Northwest Arkansas Community College: An Applied Science degree in artificial intelligence is currently pending approval from the Higher Learning Commission, alongside the expansion of an existing certificate of proficiency in AI. The college is also developing stackable pathways through its Ignite initiative, allowing high school students to earn college credit through its AI offerings.
• Ivy Tech Community College: The college is launching an Applied AI Technologies associate degree, a technical certificate and a professional certificate for upskilling. Six new AI-specific courses have also been developed, with plans to integrate introductory AI coursework into other disciplines.
• Isothermal Community College: An Applied Science degree in AI has been approved and will launch in fall 2026. Its introductory AI course is already being adopted by business and agriculture programs, extending its reach beyond a single degree track.
• Fullerton College: The college has launched an AI Foundations certificate, an AI in Business certificate and an AI in Business Associate of Science degree, with coursework spanning prompt engineering, machine learning and business applications. A Bachelor of Science in Applied Human-AI Collaboration and Leadership is also being proposed.
• Florida State College at Jacksonville: Three new programs are now available: an AI Practitioner Technical Certificate, an AI Awareness Technical Certificate and an AI track within the Computer Information Technology AS degree. More than 25 students are already enrolled.
• Moraine Park Technical College: Four new AI courses are launching in fall 2026 as part of the college's AI data specialist degree, with additional multi-degree options under consideration.
• El Camino College: A three-course AI Practitioner Certificate of Achievement has been developed and approved, with plans to expand the pathway to an associate degree by 2027–2028.
• City Colleges of Chicago: An advanced certificate and AAS in AI and Machine Learning have been approved, with additional AS and AAS degrees in AI and manufacturing planned.
• Laurel Ridge Community College: Two new AI courses received system-wide approval across Virginia's 23 community colleges. At Laurel Ridge, the courses have been incorporated into a certificate that feeds into an AAS in Technical Studies.
• Laramie County Community College: The college now offers both AS and AAS degrees in AI, covering topics from ethics and introductory concepts to machine learning, computer vision and natural language processing, developed with guidance from mentors at Houston City College.

From Arkansas to Florida, Illinois  to Wyoming, the throughline is the same: with the right mentorship, colleges can bring new AI credentials from concept to classroom at record speed, launching a wave of degrees, certificates, and courses this year alone. A new AI credential can move from idea to classroom fast when a college has the right mentorship in place. With the right mentorship, colleges can turn AI credential concepts into classroom-ready programs at record speed.  

‍Connecting AI Education to the Workforce

Building AI programs is only part of the equation. Across the mentorship network, colleges are also working to ensure that what students learn reflects what employers and communities need.

Northwest Arkansas Community College has developed relationships with businesses including Tyson, JB Hunt, Walmart and Sam's Club, as well as organizations including the Northwest Arkansas Council and the Arkansas Governmental Auditors Association. Those connections help inform curriculum while creating opportunities to bring AI education directly into the workforce. The college has already delivered more than 200 AI badges and is launching additional non-credit professional skills training. Customized programs have also been developed for local employers, including Walton Enterprises and a cybersecurity firm, with content tailored to specific industry needs.

“The challenge in providing valuable AI training for Northwest Arkansas is keeping pace with the incredible speed of technological change and the rapid innovation happening across our region’s businesses,” said Chris Lynch, executive director of workforce development at NorthWest Arkansas Community College. “We strive to meet that challenge by collaborating closely with business and industry partners throughout the design, learning and implementation of training that builds an AI-fluent workforce.”

Grand Rapids Community College (GRCC) is extending that workforce focus through several initiatives. The college has organized Google AI certificate events and manufacturing-focused AI training while establishing a transfer agreement with Grand Valley State University for students pursuing AI bachelor's degree pathways. GRCC is also developing a new way to reach local business owners. In partnership with the West Michigan Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, the college created a three-course AI certificate delivered entirely in Spanish for business owners, with recruitment underway for a fall cohort.

Industry input is becoming increasingly embedded in how programs are developed. Ivy Tech's new statewide AI curriculum committee incorporates input from local industry subject matter experts, while El Camino College is building a local BILT and identifying industry partners for ongoing advisory engagement.

Across the network, industry input is shaping AI curriculum directly, not sitting on the side as an afterthought, whether through a statewide advisory committee, a new local BILT, direct employer partnerships with companies like Tyson and Walmart, or transfer pipelines built with four-year partners like Grand Valley State University. 

‍AI Beyond the Classroom

The impact of the mentorship program also extends to how colleges are introducing AI to students and communities that may not otherwise encounter it. At Isothermal Community College, AI-focused camps and outreach activities are helping introduce high school students to the field and strengthen the pipeline into future AI programs. The college continues to explore ways to create engaging activities for younger learners while extending AI education across disciplines. 

Kem Harvey, Ph.D., dean of Applied Technologies at Isothermal Community College, sees AI education as an opportunity to both engage students early and prepare them for its growing role across industries. “Our summer camps give high school students an opportunity to explore AI firsthand and get excited about its possibilities,” Harvey said. “At the same time, we recognize that AI is not just an IT topic, which is why we are incorporating relevant AI concepts and real-world applications across our curriculum, including in programs like Business and Agriculture.” 

El Camino College is creating opportunities for students to apply their skills beyond coursework through competitions and micro-internships. Students have already competed in the  US Cyber Games Season IV: Flag Fest CTF (Capture-the-Flag) competition . For Laramie County Community College, expanding access requires a different approach. Wyoming's small population and limited local industry partnerships have led the college to emphasize remote instruction, with the goal of serving students statewide while keeping employability and industry engagement at the center of the program.

Fullerton College is also extending AI literacy beyond its degree pathways and campus. The college developed EduAI Atlas, an open source curated online resource hub for students and community college educators, and is planning a month-long initiative focused on building AI literacy in November.

Together, these efforts show how AI education can extend beyond a single program or classroom, reaching high school students, working professionals, business owners and learners across large geographic areas.

‍Building the Infrastructure for Long-Term Growth

As AI programs grow, institutions are building the infrastructure to sustain them. At City Colleges of Chicago, Wright College is opening the Center for Artificial Intelligence and Emerging Technology, focused on curriculum innovation, collaboration, public access and community engagement.

Gustavo Alatta, M.S., assistant professor of Computer Information Systems at Wilbur Wright College, sees the center as an opportunity to build a more sustainable AI education ecosystem. “By creating opportunities for faculty, students and our community to learn, experiment and grow together, we can strengthen those connections and expand access to emerging technologies across Chicago’s Northwest Side,” Alatta said.

Florida State College at Jacksonville has secured multiple grants supporting AI-enabled labs, dual enrollment partnerships and K–12 pipelines, while faculty have pursued AI training through Intel, AWS, IBM skillsBuild and Google. With the right mentorship, colleges can bring new AI credentials from concept to classroom at record speed, launching a wave of degrees, certificates, and courses this year alone. Similar grant funding has enabled Moraine Park Technical College to secure cutting-edge AI tools and resources. 

Institutions are also strengthening their internal capacity. Ivy Tech established a statewide AI curriculum committee across all 19 campuses, while Northwest Arkansas Community College is planning a "train the trainer" model for adjunct faculty. Meanwhile, Grand Rapids Community College leveraged NAAIC KSAs and Canvas shells to build out its AI coursework and capstone, and El Camino College brought disciplines together with a new cross-departmental AI committee.  Institutions are also strengthening their internal capacity. Ivy Tech established a statewide AI curriculum committee across all 19 campuses, while Northwest Arkansas Community College is planning a "train the trainer" model for adjunct faculty. Meanwhile, Grand Rapids Community College leveraged NAAIC KSAs and Canvas shells to build out its AI coursework and capstone, and El Camino College brought disciplines together with a new cross-departmental AI committee.

Together, these efforts are helping colleges move from individual AI offerings toward broader, sustainable institutional strategies.

‍A Network Built to Keep Moving

Throughout the 2025-2026 NAAIC Institutional Mentorship Program, mentorship has taken many forms. 

Houston City, Valencia, Maricopa Community College, Des Moines Area Community College, and Miami-Dade College supported their mentees by sharing resources and best practices to help them navigate development obstacles. This collaboration accelerated the creation of stackable AI credentials specifically tailored to regional workforce needs. Furthermore, these partnerships fostered stronger ties with local industry leaders and strengthened student feeder patterns to prepare learners for an AI-driven future. 

That may be one of this year’s most significant outcomes: mentorship is creating connections that can continue to multiply across the consortium. As NAAIC looks toward its next cohort of mentee colleges, the foundation established in 2025–2026 offers a model for what can happen when institutions share what they know, adapt it to the communities they serve and build on one another's progress.

This year was about turning mentorship into momentum. The next is about seeing how far that momentum can go.