Shaw University to Launch AI-Focused Doctoral Program

At the conclusion of the Civil War, a Union soldier and Baptist minister established a school in Raleigh, North Carolina, aimed at offering religious education to the formerly enslaved. This institution, Shaw University, is now branching into a new domain: AI literacy.

From the next academic year, Shaw’s divinity school will introduce a Doctor of Education (Ed.D) degree with a specialization in Artificial Intelligence and Moral Agency. As AI increasingly undertakes tasks traditionally performed by humans, the divinity school seeks to explore its moral dimensions.

“We say Shaw was created to provide leadership in building literacy,” said Mark Harden, dean of Shaw University Divinity School. “We (half)joke this is our second calling because we’re building AI literacy for vulnerable communities with an emphasis on social justice and ethics.”

In June, Shaw’s divinity school received approval from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges. They are now pursuing accreditation from the Commission on Accrediting at the Association of Theological Schools, which represents 280 theology graduate schools across North America.

Chris Meinzer, chief operating officer at ATS, noted that Shaw’s AI degree is the first within their network at the master’s or doctoral level. Some divinity schools have started offering individual classes in AI and ethics.

Notre Dame’s Institute for Ethics and the Common Good received a $50 million donation from the Lilly Endowment in December to support the DELTA network. This network aims to offer practical guidance to pastors, churches, and schools facing AI-related challenges. DELTA emphasizes dignity, embodiment, love, transcendence, and agency as core Christian values.

Meghan Sullivan, director of the Institute for Ethics and the Common Good, stated that higher education is increasingly focused on ethical questions raised by AI. Theology schools are well-suited for studying AI ethics due to their historical engagement with questions about human agency.

Earlier this year, Pope Leo XIV published an encyclical, “Magnifica Humanitas,” which highlighted the importance of protecting human dignity and agency in an AI-driven world. The Pope emphasized avoiding the delegation of ethical frameworks to technology companies.

Divinity schools are deepening their engagement with AI. Philip Butler, an associate professor at the Iliff School of Theology in Denver, initiated an AI institute there in 2018. His class on AI and theology examines the implications of who AI technologies are developed for and who benefits from them.

Shaw University, a historically Black theological institution, has a legacy of civic engagement dating back to the Civil Rights Movement. Leaders such as Ella Baker, who co-founded the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee on its grounds, have emerged from this school.

According to Harden, at least 66 individuals have shown interest in the program, set to launch in January. Shaw’s divinity school, which educates about 65 students, presently offers two master’s programs. Candidates for the AI doctoral program must hold a master’s degree in arts or divinity and have five years of professional experience in fields like pastoral ministry or social work. Many students balance non-church jobs alongside their studies.

Following the COVID era, Shaw’s divinity school offers its courses online and is currently recruiting staff for the AI degree program. Most faculty members will have formal certifications in AI, and the program will take three to four years to complete.