Pennsylvania State University has launched two new faculty grant programs to support the use of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies in teaching and learning, offering awards ranging from $1,000 microgrants to $50,000 transformation grants as part of the university’s broader AI Transformation Initiative.
The programs are being administered by Penn State AI Center of Excellence for Teaching and Learning and are funded through the Office of the Provost.
According to the university, the grants are intended to help faculty integrate AI into instruction and redesign courses and academic programs to reflect new teaching possibilities created by generative AI technologies.
The first initiative – the AI in Instruction Microgrant Program – will provide awards of up to $1,000 to individual faculty members pursuing small-scale instructional innovation with generative AI.
Penn State said as many as 75 grants will be awarded for projects to be carried out during the fall 2026 semester, with applications due June 2.
The second initiative – the Large Course Transformation Grant Program – is aimed at larger, team-based efforts to rethink teaching and learning at the course or program level.
Awards of up to $50,000 will be available to teams of at least three faculty members working during the 2026-27 academic year to transform large multi-section undergraduate courses or entire degree programs.
Penn State said it expects to fund between six and 10 of the larger transformation projects. Proposals must combine AI integration with at least one additional instructional goal: experiential learning, reimagined assessment, or civic learning.
Together, the two programs are designed to fit within Penn State’s AI Transformation Initiative, a university-wide effort to incorporate AI tech into core academic activities and prepare students and faculty to use the technology effectively and responsibly.
The university said the grants are intended to produce long-term changes in instruction by encouraging faculty to experiment with generative AI, redesign teaching methods, and develop new models that can be adopted across courses and programs.
Both tenure-line and non-tenure-line faculty members of any rank are eligible to apply, provided they have held a full-time appointment at Penn State for at least one academic year. Applicants also must complete the AI Essentials at Penn State training program and obtain support from their academic unit head before submitting proposals.
Grant funds may be used during the 2026-27 academic year for course buyouts, software subscriptions, course materials, student assistant support, and professional development directly related to the proposed work.
Award recipients will be notified by early July.
Complete application requirements and submission materials are available through InfoReady, where Penn State said faculty can apply for both programs. The university also said additional calls for proposals for the microgrant and transformation programs will be issued this fall.
