Campus AI Framework

A practitioner's playbook for AI strategy and governance in higher education. Concept and content by Joe Sabado. Free to use and adapt for non-commercial purposes under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0.

This is an interactive application and works best with JavaScript enabled. Below is a text outline of what it contains.

The model

Eight institutional pillars, grouped into Governance (Mission & Vision, AI Principles, AI Policies & Guidelines, Governance/Risk/Compliance & Data Governance), Enablement (Engagement & Collaboration, Roles & Responsibilities), and Capabilities (Campus Readiness, Implementation & Operations); four application domains (Teaching & Learning, Research & Innovation, Operations & Infrastructure, Student & Community Engagement); and the AI Strategic Compass for prioritizing initiatives by risk and impact.

What you can do here

Find your starting point: a maturity triage (Nascent / Emerging / Established).
The first 90 days: a stage-aware action plan.
The eight pillars: concept, signals, and concrete practices for each.
Use cases & case studies: the framework applied to real campus AI initiatives.
How AI enters campus: the six pathways AI arrives and the types of AI to govern.
Maturity Assessment, Governance Guide, AI Registry: assess where you stand.
Strategic Compass, Tool Evaluation Matrix, Playbook, Adoption pathways, Run it: decide and operate.
Standards alignment: how the framework maps to NIST AI RMF, ISO/IEC 42001, the EU AI Act, OECD, UNESCO, and EDUCAUSE.

Learn more and contact the author at campusaiexchange.com.

Browse the framework as text: The eight pillars · Find your starting point · Strategic Compass · Maturity Assessment · How AI enters campus · Standards alignment.

Campus AI Framework

Who it's for

One framework, many roles

Campus AI is a team sport, no single office owns it. Pick the role that fits you for a curated path through the framework: an honest frame, a few first steps, and the destinations that matter most to you.

For IT, data governance, privacy, security, procurement

IT, data & security

Vet tools, classify data, and document systems, safely and transparently.

You carry the technical and compliance weight: which tools are safe, what data they may touch, how systems are documented, and who answers when something breaks. The framework gives you a documentation model and evaluation tools built for exactly this. Start where the risk concentrates.

Your path

1
Document the estate
The layered registry & documentation model, service, system, and model cards; use-case and risk registries.
AI Registry & Docs
2
Evaluate tools
A structured due-diligence matrix for vetting AI tools and vendors against your requirements.
Tool Evaluation Matrix
3
Ground the GRC
The governance, risk, compliance & data-governance pillar, the substrate AI safety stands on.
Governance & Risk
4
Right-size review
Proportionate review paths so low-risk tools move fast and high-stakes ones get scrutiny.
Strategic Compass

First step: stand up the use-case registry and surface the shadow AI already in use.

Go-to destinations

AI Registry & Docs Tool Evaluation Matrix Governance & Risk