Lake Forest College announced on March 9 that the Mellon-funded HUMAN initiative is entering a new phase, with its work at the intersection of humanistic inquiry and artificial intelligence continuing to gain attention beyond the campus. The project will also see a transition in leadership as new co–principal investigators prepare to guide its next steps.
The HUMAN initiative is supported by a $1.2 million grant from the Mellon Foundation. It is a multi-year project that promotes interdisciplinary faculty research, curricular innovation, and institutional partnerships focused on exploring emerging technologies through the lens of the humanities.
Davis Schneiderman, Executive Director of the Krebs Center for the Humanities, has led the initiative and helped position Lake Forest College as a national voice in discussions about artificial intelligence, ethics, and liberal arts education.
As leadership transitions to new co–principal investigators, college officials say they expect the HUMAN initiative’s influence to continue expanding nationally. The ongoing support from the Mellon Foundation underscores the importance of examining technology’s impact through humanistic perspectives.
The broader implications of this transition suggest that Lake Forest College will remain engaged in shaping conversations about technology and ethics within higher education.
