Who Are You? Where AI Fits Five Deployments Rollout Plan Core AI Principles Everything in One Place Have a Question? Everything Starts with a Ticket ↑ Top
AI Strategy Hub · Reach University

Turning Jobs into Degrees - Scaling Impact with AI

Your guide to how AI fits into Reach University's work — which tools to use, where to start, what the rules are, and how to get help. Everything in one place.

Our mission: "Turn jobs into degrees." Every AI decision we make serves this.

By the Numbers

3,200+Candidates enrolled today
7,500FY28 target — our financial breakeven
2.3×Growth required by FY28 — AI helps bridge the gap
5IT-supported AI deployment types, from Gemini to enterprise solutions
1IT ticket to get started with any AI tool
Start Here

How to Use This Site

Whether you're brand new to AI at Reach or looking for something specific, here's the logical path through this resource.

Reach University · The AI Strategy
Find Your Starting Point

Who Are You?

AI looks different depending on your role. Pick the one that fits you best to see what AI can do for your work specifically.

📝

Build Course Materials Faster

Draft discussion questions, rubrics, and case studies based on your candidates' real workplaces.

Domain 1 · Teaching
💬

Sharpen Your Feedback

Give more detailed written feedback faster — especially across multiple cohorts or new programs like Behavioral Health.

Domain 1 · Feedback
🔬

Research & Curriculum Development

Ask Claude to summarize long policy documents or accreditation standards. Use Gemini to pull background on a new topic quickly.

Domain 1 · Research
🎯

Where to Start

Submit an IT ticket for Gemini access. Try drafting a discussion prompt — then refine it yourself. AI is the first draft, not the final word.

Get Started
🧭

Candidate Support & Communication

Draft clear, warm emails — follow-ups, milestone reminders, common question responses. You review and personalize before sending.

Domain 2 · Communication
📊

Summarize Reports & Data

Turn Domo dashboards or enrollment data into clear narratives for team meetings and stakeholder updates.

Domain 2 · Reporting
📋

Document Drafting

AI excels at first drafts of SOPs, onboarding guides, FAQs, and meeting notes. You own the expertise — AI gets it on paper faster.

Domain 2 · Drafting
🎯

Where to Start

Submit an IT ticket for Gemini access. Try drafting your next candidate outreach email and see how it goes.

Get Started
⚙️

Automate Repetitive Workflows

Formatting reports, organizing employer meeting notes, summarizing survey responses — great candidates for AI assistance.

Domain 2 · Efficiency
📑

Policy & Contract Review

Claude can read long documents and pull out what matters. Great for employer MOUs, grant language, and accreditation requirements.

Domain 2 · Documents
🌐

Build Stakeholder-Facing Tools

Employer portals, interactive reports, candidate-facing FAQs — IT can partner with you to scope and build these using Claude.

Domain 3 · Tools
🎯

Where to Start

Submit an IT ticket and describe the workflow you want to improve. IT will help you scope the right approach.

Get Started
📈

Scale Without Adding Headcount

Going from 3,200 to 7,500 candidates means doing more with smarter systems. AI helps teams handle higher volume without burning out.

Strategic Growth
🔗

Support NCAD Expansion

AI-powered playbooks can accelerate replication without requiring Reach staff to be everywhere as other universities adopt the model.

Replicability
🛡️

Governance & Oversight

The Director of IT is the capacity-building hub for all AI activity. Every deployment — simple workflow or stakeholder tool — is scoped through IT.

Governance
🎯

How This Connects to Strategy

AI supports all five FY26-28 priorities: building careers, building workforce, financial sustainability, replicability, and innovation capacity.

FY26-28 Strategy
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Where AI Fits

Three Areas Where AI Helps Most

AI use at Reach is organized into three clear areas. Each has different users, tools, and levels of IT involvement. Every department decides what's right for them — IT supports the rollout.

Teaching & Learning

Faculty-led · Gemini is the primary tool
Course DesignDraft syllabi, discussion questions, and rubrics grounded in real workplace scenarios
Feedback at ScaleGive richer written feedback to more candidates without spending more time
Curriculum ResearchSummarize workforce research, accreditation standards, or industry reports
Zoom & Canvas SupportSummarize class recordings, generate quiz questions, prep class agendas

What This Means for Faculty

Reach's Professors of Practice bring deep workplace expertise to the classroom. AI doesn't replace that — it gives faculty more time to use it. The goal is to handle drafting so faculty can focus on relationships, dialogue, and the Reach Method.

  • Build case studies based on your candidates' actual workplaces
  • Adapt course materials when launching a new cohort or program
  • Create practice assessments that connect classroom learning to job performance
  • Summarize long readings into key points for candidates who are working full-time
  • Prep for class by asking AI to anticipate common questions on a topic
Who leads this: Faculty and academic leadership decide how AI is used in instruction. IT provides the tools and trains faculty on how to use them well.

Operations & Efficiency

Staff-led · Both Gemini and Claude are useful here
Candidate OutreachDraft personalized check-in emails, milestone reminders, and follow-ups
Employer RelationshipsSummarize MOU reviews, draft partnership communications
Reporting & DataTurn Domo dashboards into readable summaries for meetings and updates
Internal DocsDraft SOPs, onboarding guides, FAQs, and meeting notes faster

What This Means for Staff

As enrollment grows from 3,200 to 7,500 candidates, every team will need to do more. AI helps staff handle higher volume — more candidates, more communication, more documentation — without compromising the personal touch that makes Reach work.

  • Respond to candidate questions faster with AI-drafted replies you review first
  • Analyze survey responses or feedback trends across a cohort
  • Draft talking points for employer or community partner meetings
  • Summarize long policy documents or compliance materials
  • Create templates for repeatable communications across teams
Who leads this: Department heads and staff leads decide which workflows to improve. Submit an IT ticket to get started — IT helps scope the right approach.

Stakeholder Tools

IT-partnered · Claude is the primary tool
Employer PortalsInteractive reports for employer partners to track candidate progress
NCAD ResourcesAI-powered playbooks for universities launching apprenticeship programs
Candidate Self-ServiceAI-assisted answers to common questions about the program or next steps
Community ReportsDynamic, data-driven impact reports for policymakers and stakeholders

What This Means for External Audiences

This is where AI becomes a product — something external stakeholders actually interact with. These tools require IT partnership from the start. Done well, they can dramatically scale how Reach communicates its impact.

  • Give employers a live view of how their candidates are progressing
  • Help NCAD partner universities access Reach's playbooks and frameworks
  • Let prospective candidates get accurate answers without waiting
  • Generate customized impact reports for different stakeholder groups
  • Build smart intake tools that guide users to the right next step
Who leads this: Departments identify the need; IT leads the build. Every Domain 3 project starts with a scoping conversation — submit an IT ticket to discuss.
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IT-Managed AI

Five Deployment Categories.

IT has structured AI support around five deployment types — from Gemini (available to everyone) to licensed enterprise tools, vendor-embedded AI, marketplace add-ons, and large-scale solution projects. Knowing which category fits your need tells you how to access it.

1. Google Gemini

Standard Workspace AI — available to all (candidates, faculty, staff, contractors)
  • Lives inside Google Docs, Gmail, Sheets, and Drive
  • Searches the web and your Google Drive in one place
  • Available to everyone with a Reach Google account — no special access needed
  • Supports images, audio, video, and text together
  • AI-generated content is watermarked (SynthID) for traceability
⚠️ Age restriction: 18+ for advanced Workspace featuresA hard limit we cannot override. Affects instructional settings where candidates may be under 18 — contact IT for alternatives.

2. Claude for Teams / Enterprise

Licensed, IT-managed — $25/user/month, department budget required
  • Tied to Reach SSO — secure, institutional access
  • Excellent at reading and analyzing long documents
  • Best tool for Domain 3 custom stakeholder-facing tools
  • Connector tools for Google Workspace, Slack, and more (IT manages approvals)
  • No age restrictions — works in instructional settings
⚠️ Budget flows through ITDepartment funds licensing at $25/user/month — IT handles billing centrally. Additional access controls (Reach accounts and managed devices only) are rolling out.
📧

Gmail & Docs

Draft, summarize, and improve emails and documents without leaving Google Workspace. Available to all Reach users.

🔍

Research Mode

Search the web and your Google Drive at the same time — great for pulling together information quickly.

🖼️

Multimodal

Analyze images, audio clips, or video alongside text — useful for reviewing multimedia course content.

⚠️

Age Restriction: 18+

Advanced Workspace features require users to be 18+. IT can advise on alternatives for instructional settings with under-18 candidates.

📄

Long Documents

Claude handles documents too long for most AI tools — full strategic plans, grant applications, policy manuals, MOUs.

🛠️

Domain 3 Tool Building

The best choice for custom employer portals, candidate-facing tools, and NCAD resources. Requires IT scoping.

🔗

Connector Tools

Integrates with Google Workspace, Slack, and other IT-managed platforms. All connector approvals go through IT.

💰

Budget-Based Access

$25/user/month — department budgets flow to IT for centralized licensing. Contact Brad Luhta to start the process.

🏫

3. SaaS AI Functionality

AI embedded in existing vendor tools — Canvas Ignite AI, Element 451 BoltAI, and future SIS features. IT activates and reviews for compliance. No separate installation.

🛒

4. Marketplace Apps

Add-on AI tools in Google Workspace, Zoom, and similar platforms. All must be approved by IT before use — submit a ticket. Protects against unvetted privacy risks.

🔬

5. Claude Code / Azure AI Foundry

Large-scale infrastructure projects: custom university-wide AI systems. Capabilities are real but require IT from the start — security review and planning required.

🚫

ChatGPT — Phasing Out

No SSO, no Workspace integration, outside our enterprise agreement. Submit a ticket to migrate your workflows to Gemini or Claude for Teams.

The Rule Across All Five: Anything new needs to go through IT — whether it's getting Claude for Teams licensed, activating a SaaS AI feature, approving a marketplace app, or scoping a large-scale project. Submit a ticket at service.reach.edu and IT will route it appropriately.
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How We Approach This

Freedom with Guardrails

Reach's approach to AI isn't top-down. We're not telling every department exactly how to use it. But we do have rules that apply to everyone — because they protect our candidates, our data, and our reputation.

What can I never put into an AI tool?

Never enter student educational records, Social Security numbers, financial account details, medical or health information, or any other sensitive personal data into an AI tool — even our approved platforms. This is both a FERPA requirement and a matter of basic privacy. If you're unsure, ask IT before you do.

Do I have to tell people when I use AI?

Yes — in most cases. If you submit work substantially generated or shaped by AI (especially academic or formal professional work), you should disclose that. Faculty and staff are encouraged to note when AI helped draft communications or materials. Specific disclosure requirements for academic contexts are set by faculty and academic leadership.

Can I use AI tools I find on my own?

For personal exploration, yes — but for any work-related task, stick to our approved platforms (Gemini and Claude). Other tools haven't been reviewed for privacy, security, or data handling. If you think another tool would be genuinely valuable, bring it to IT to evaluate.

Who decides how AI is used in my department?

You do — within the university's guardrails. Reach takes a bottom-up approach: IT sets the platform parameters and privacy rules, and departments figure out how AI best serves their specific work. You don't need permission to start using Gemini for day-to-day tasks. Domain 3 projects (tools for external audiences) require IT partnership before you start.

What if AI gives me wrong information?

AI tools can and do make things up — they generate plausible text, not verified facts. Always review AI output before you use it. Don't cite AI-generated facts without verifying them. Treat AI like a capable colleague who sometimes gets things wrong — you'd check their work before submitting it.

How do I get access to Gemini or Claude?

Submit a ticket through the IT ticketing system. You'll be asked what you're hoping to use AI for — that helps IT make sure you have the right access and any training you need. Gemini is available through your existing Google Workspace account; Claude access is granted separately. Both use your Reach University single sign-on.
What's Coming

Our AI Rollout Plan

We're building AI capability at Reach in three stages — starting with the basics, adding depth, and eventually deploying tools that extend Reach's impact to external audiences and partner institutions.

Phase 1 · Now → FY26

Foundation

  • Roll out Gemini access for all staff and faculty
  • IT onboarding and training for approved platforms
  • Establish ticketing workflow for AI requests
  • Phase out ChatGPT use for work tasks
  • Identify early adopters in each department
  • Set data privacy and disclosure standards
Phase 2 · FY26 → FY27

Expansion

  • Launch first Domain 3 stakeholder tool
  • Introduce Claude for document analysis workflows
  • Develop AI use cases for Behavioral Health (ACH) launch
  • Create department-level AI use playbooks
  • Integrate AI tools with Sonis
  • Build NCAD replication resources using AI
Phase 3 · FY27 → FY28

Scale

  • Employer-facing portals for all partner institutions
  • AI-assisted candidate advising tools
  • AI-generated impact reports for community stakeholders
  • Scaled NCAD tools supporting 3M degree starts vision
  • AI embedded in Domo reporting workflows
  • Annual AI governance review and platform evaluation
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AI Principles

Principles That Guide Our AI Efforts

AI is a tool. Like any tool, it can be used well or poorly. These principles keep us grounded.

🎯

Mission First

Every AI use case should connect to turning jobs into degrees. If it doesn't help candidates or the people who support them, it's not a priority.

🔒

Privacy Always

No student data, no personal information, no sensitive records go into AI tools. This is non-negotiable.

Humans Own the Decision

AI drafts, analyzes, and suggests. Humans decide, review, and take responsibility. AI never gets the final word on something that affects a real person.

📣

Be Transparent

Disclose when AI helped create something meaningful. Don't pass off AI work as entirely your own when it significantly shaped the output.

🏛️

Equity in Design

AI tools built for candidates or external audiences must work for everyone — regardless of language, background, or access to technology.

🔄

Learn as We Go

AI is evolving fast. We'll review our approach regularly and adjust — what's true today may change by next year.

All Resources

Everything in One Place

Every AI strategy resource for Reach University — all open directly in your browser.

📄 Full Strategy Document

AI Adoption Strategy for Reach University

The complete written strategy — all eight sections, platform decisions, domain framework, governance model, and roadmap.

Read the strategy →
❓ FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

60+ questions organized into 11 categories — from getting started to privacy to the ACH behavioral health program.

Browse the FAQ →
📊 Presentation

Slide Deck — 13 Slides

A keyboard-navigable presentation covering the full strategy. Use for team meetings, all-hands, or department briefings.

Open slides →
🖼️ Visual Poster

Strategy at a Glance

A single-page visual overview — domains, platforms, roadmap, and principles in one printable poster.

View infographic →
💬 AI Assistant

Ask the Strategy AI

An AI assistant trained on Reach's specific strategy. Ask anything — from "which tool should I use?" to detailed platform questions.

Start a conversation →
📚 External Resource

GenAI Literacy — SEE Framework

A structured decision-making tool from AI for Education. Evaluate any AI use case through three lenses: Safe, Ethical, and Effective — with five worked scenarios.

View resource →
🔗 Launch Tool

Google Gemini

The standard Workspace AI, available to all Reach users through your Google account. Draft, summarize, research, and work with images, audio, and video.

Open Gemini →
🔗 Launch Tool

NotebookLM

Google's research and note-taking assistant. Upload your own documents and ask grounded questions, generate summaries, and create audio overviews.

Open NotebookLM →

Have a Question? Ask the AI.

The AI assistant knows Reach University's strategy inside and out. Ask it anything — it will give you a specific, practical answer based on your situation.

"Which tool for candidate emails?" "What can I never put into AI tools?" "How do I start a Domain 3 project?" "Why is ChatGPT going away?" "What does the Gemini age limit mean?" "AI and the strategic plan?"
Open the AI Assistant

Everything starts with one ticket.

Submit a ticket through IT to get access, training, or start a project. The IT team handles all AI access and support.

Submit an IT Ticket →
1

Describe what you want to do

2

IT scopes the right approach

3

Get access and training

4

Share what works