William & Mary
VA · AI Readiness #89 of 227
AIREDEX™ Score: 7.5 /10
William & Mary launched Virginia's first Applied AI major at a public university in fall 2026, alongside an AI minor and a new AI & Ethics minor pairing computer science with philosophy, accessible to undergrads in every school.
David Yalof, senior vice provost for academic affairs, co-chairs the university-wide AI Policy Initiative, whose governance recommendations remain the basis for AI policy at William & Mary. Data scientist Cristiano Fanelli is leading a Department of Energy Genesis Mission project building AI foundation models for particle physics with Jefferson Lab, Brookhaven, and SLAC. The Mason School of Business also introduced a named AI Student Fellows program, selecting students to help redesign coursework for an AI-enabled classroom. A dedicated, cross-school AI research center remains the next step to formalize William & Mary's growing research footprint.
Pillar grades
- Commitment: C+
- Curriculum: A-
- Partnerships: C-
- Research: A+
A(I)ttitude™: Neutral
Selected Highlights
- David Yalof (Senior Vice Provost for Academic Affairs) confirmed as current co-chair of the University-Wide AI Policy Initiative (AIPI) per live official W&M page, alongside Pamela Eddy (Associate Provost for Faculty Affairs & Development).
- AIPI cross-campus membership confirmed; final report submitted July 2025; Mason School AI Integration Team (Edmiston/Conner) adds school-level governance layer.
- Dedicated 'AI at W&M' portal (wm.edu/sites/ai) plus publicly accessible AIPI Final Report PDF covering academic integrity, research, teaching/learning, and institutional domains; DeepSeek ban and approved-tool governance documented.
- Applied AI B.A. (30 credits, August 2026) confirmed as the first Applied AI major at a Virginia public university; AI minor (fall 2025) and AI concentrations in CS and Data Science BS also confirmed.
- AI & Ethics minor (August 2026) jointly offered by CDSP and College of Arts & Sciences, with named faculty developers Chris Tucker, William D'Alessandro, Evgenia Smirni, and Andrea Stathopoulos; AIPI human-centered ethics framework; STLI Griffin Guide to AI with Credly badge.