Notre Dame University Case Study

Published Jan 28, 2026

Challenges:

With faculty concerns, students’ uncertainty about appropriate AI use, and administrators needing clear implementation strategies, Notre Dame needed more than ever actionable insights to guide their institutional AI strategy.

  • How to thoughtfully integrate generative AI into academic environments while maintaining educational integrity.
  • Address faculty concerns about intellectual property and appropriate AI implementation
  • Solve students’ uncertainty about appropriate AI use in coursework
  • Administrators needing clear, evidence-based implementation strategies

Objectives:

  • Conduct strategic research initiative to understand authentic AI usage patterns in higher education
  • Generate quantitative data to guide institutional AI strategy development
  • Develop effective academic integrity guidelines based on real usage patterns
  • Transform faculty skepticism into strategic adoption through concrete solutions
  • Position Notre Dame as thought leader in responsible AI integration

Solutions

Notre Dame partnered with Praxis AI to conduct a year-long comprehensive pilot integrating our AI Assistant (Praxis Pria) directly into their Canvas LMS environment.

  • Year-long comprehensive pilot integration to understand how AI works in real environments
  • Strategic research initiative designed for real academic settings
  • Engaged 44 faculty members across 57 courses
  • Involved 1,537 students generating over 15,000 prompts
  • Comprehensive data analysis providing unprecedented insights into AI usage patterns

Outcomes:

  1. Data-Driven Strategy: Usage frequency metrics revealed peak engagement times and optimal integration points
  2. Academic Integrity Breakthrough: Distinguished between legitimate learning support vs. inappropriate usage
  3. Faculty Development Success: Transformed skepticism into strategic adoption with concrete solutions
  4. Student Engagement Insights: Clear and observable correlation between thoughtful AI usage and academic success
  5. Institutional Leadership: Positioned as innovation leader with competitive advantage

“With thoughtful instructional design, clear guidelines, and robust evaluation, AI Assistants can enhance educational experiences while providing more transparency to students and faculty.” - Notre Dame Faculty Development Team

Conclusion:

Notre Dame's success demonstrates that effective AI integration requires strategic research and data-driven decision making. The combination of quantitative metrics with qualitative feedback guides successful AI strategies, while faculty development proves crucial for sustainable adoption. Student behavior patterns provide actionable insights for course design improvements, and academic integrity can be maintained while embracing AI innovation. Institutions that approach AI integration strategically—like Notre Dame—position themselves as innovation leaders while maintaining educational excellence. The pilot proved that AI integration, when properly implemented, can enhance critical thinking skills while maintaining educational integrity and providing transparency for both students and faculty.

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