Ep. 34 Fantasy Draft: What Was Already Broken in Higher Ed Before AI?

Ep. 34 Fantasy Draft: What Was Already Broken in Higher Ed Before AI?

Did generative AI really break higher education or did it simply expose what was already broken? In this episode of Unfixed, Zach and Nik make the case that many of the biggest disruptions we’re experiencing today were decades in the making. After exploring how AI reveals the shortcomings of everything from recipe websites to Google search, they bring the conversation to higher education with a fantasy sports-style draft, each selecting the five institutional practices that AI has most clearly exposed as outdated, fragile, or overdue for reinvention. Come for the laughs, stay for the conversation about what higher education should fix first. Justus and Janos, No, the Pre-AI Era Was Not That Great  [https://www.insidehighered.com/opinion/views/2025/11/20/no-pre-ai-era-was-not-great-opinion] Justus and Janos, Your AI Policy Is Already Obsolete [https://www.insidehighered.com/opinion/views/2024/10/22/your-ai-policy-already-obsolete-opinion] Justus and Janos, Assessment of Student Learning Is Broken [https://www.insidehighered.com/opinion/views/2024/03/28/assessment-student-learning-broken-opinion] Unfixed, Ep. 8 We Built and AI Advising Bot, Here is What Happened [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/unfixed-how-ai-is-reshaping-the-university/id1815142605?i=1000719462688] Unfixed, Ep. 13 Why AI Use Policies are Already Obsolete [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/unfixed-how-ai-is-reshaping-the-university/id1815142605?i=1000730372196] Unfixed, Ep. 25 Are Asynchronous Online Classes Broken? [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/unfixed-how-ai-is-reshaping-the-university/id1815142605?i=1000756712468] Janos, The Assistant for the Rest of Us [https://www.meltsintoair.org/chatgpt/the-assistant-for-the-rest-of-us?rq=assistant] Thoughts and suggestions? Email us at unfixed@meltsintoair.org [unfixed@meltsintoair.org] You can find the full show notes and our writing at meltsintoair.org [http://meltsintoair.org/] Subscribe to the Unfixed Newsletter—The AI Higher Ed Breakdown [https://www.meltsintoair.org/unfixed-newsletter] our bi-weekly newsletter unpacking the top news stories at the intersection of AI and higher education.

Ep. 33 Teaching AI Literacy in Higher Education with Allison Vaughn & D.J. Hopkins

What does it actually mean to be AI literate in higher education? In this episode of Unfixed, we sit down with Allison Vaughn and D.J. Hopkins from San Diego State University to explore how one institution is building AI literacy for faculty, staff, and students. We discuss what belongs in an AI literacy curriculum, how to teach skills that seem to change every few months, and whether AI literacy could eventually become as fundamental to teaching as disciplinary expertise or digital literacy. Allison Vaughn [https://psychology.sdsu.edu/people/allison-vaughn/], professor at San Diego State University Dr. D.J. Hopkins [https://ttf.sdsu.edu/people/hopkins-dj], professor at San Diego State University Faculty Futures Lab [https://soundcloud.com/facultyfutureslab], the podcast from the SDSU Center for Teaching and Learning, hosted by D.J. Center for Teaching and Learning at SDSU [https://ctl.sdsu.edu/] Thoughts and suggestions? Email us at unfixed@meltsintoair.org [unfixed@meltsintoair.org] You can find the full show notes and our writing at meltsintoair.org [http://meltsintoair.org/] Subscribe to the Unfixed Newsletter—The AI Higher Ed Breakdown [https://www.meltsintoair.org/unfixed-newsletter] our bi-weekly newsletter unpacking the top news stories at the intersection of AI and higher education.

Ep. 32 AI Is Not EdTech: Why Higher Education Keeps Treating It Like It Is

Higher education has spent decades evaluating and adopting educational technology, but generative AI may be something fundamentally different. In this episode, Zach and Nik argue that AI is not simply the next ed tech tool and explore why universities continue to approach it as if it were. From AI agents and enterprise adoption to data governance, faculty alignment, and the growing tension within the ed tech industry, they examine what changes when AI becomes part of institutional infrastructure rather than just another classroom technology. Microsoft, 2025 Work Trend Index Annual Report [https://assets-c4akfrf5b4d3f4b7.z01.azurefd.net/assets/2025/04/2025_Work_Trend_Index_Annual_Report_680aaa7fe52dd.pdf] Einstein AI [http://einstein.ai/] EDUCAUSE Review, “When AI Meets Data: The Promise and the Pressure of Bringing AI into Higher Education Systems.” [https://er.educause.edu/articles/2026/1/when-ai-meets-data-the-promise-and-the-pressure-ofbringing-ai-into-higher-education-systems] Zach Justus, AI Agents and the problems of start-up culture for higher ed [https://www.meltsintoair.org/chatgpt/ai-agents-and-the-problems-of-start-up-culture-for-highe] Zach Justus, AI Is Making Edtech Pricier—and In-House Builds Plausible Again [https://www.meltsintoair.org/chatgpt/ai-is-making-edtech-pricierand-in-house-builds-plausible-again] Thoughts and suggestions? Email us at unfixed@meltsintoair.org [unfixed@meltsintoair.org] You can find the full show notes and our writing at meltsintoair.org [http://meltsintoair.org/] Subscribe to the Unfixed Newsletter—The AI Higher Ed Breakdown [https://www.meltsintoair.org/unfixed-newsletter] our bi-weekly newsletter unpacking the top news stories at the intersection of AI and higher education.

Ep. 31 [Special Episode] CSU Renews Its OpenAI Deal: Zach and Nik React

The California State University system just renewed its OpenAI contract, turning what began as a bold AI pilot into a long-term institutional commitment. In this special Unfixed reaction episode, Zach and Nik break down the costs, controversies, and consequences of the ChatGPT Edu deal—from academic freedom and governance to vendor lock-in and the future of teaching. Is CSU building essential educational infrastructure, or making a risky bet on a single AI company? This big university system is embracing AI. Students and faculty aren't all on board [https://www.npr.org/2026/05/25/nx-s1-5772820/artificial-intelligence-education-technology-california-state-university] California State University renews controversial systemwide contract with OpenAI | EdSource [https://edsource.org/2026/cal-state-renews-controversial-system-wide-contract-with-openai/758919] Nik and Zach, Canceling that Cal State ChatGPT contract does not solve the AI problem; it might make it worse | EdSource [https://edsource.org/2026/california-state-university-openai-contract/757273] Thoughts and suggestions? Email us at unfixed@meltsintoair.org [unfixed@meltsintoair.org] You can find the full show notes and our writing at meltsintoair.org [http://meltsintoair.org/] Subscribe to the Unfixed Newsletter—The AI Higher Ed Breakdown [https://www.meltsintoair.org/unfixed-newsletter] our bi-weekly newsletter unpacking the top news stories at the intersection of AI and higher education.

Ep. 30 Preparing Teachers for the Age of AI with Jamie Gunderson

In this episode of Unfixed, Nik and Zach are joined by our producer and special education scholar Jamie Gunderson to explore how AI is reshaping teacher education and K-12 classrooms. Drawing from her work preparing future teachers and her expertise in Universal Design for Learning (UDL), Jamie discusses the major gaps in AI training for educators, the challenges facing teachers already in the classroom, and the opportunities AI creates for accessibility and inclusion. The conversation examines what teacher preparation programs must rethink as AI becomes a permanent part of education. From critical AI literacy to equitable classroom design, this episode explores what it means to prepare teachers for an AI-shaped future. Jamie Gunderson [https://apps.csuchico.edu/directory/Employee/jlgunderson] Aniya Greene-Santos, Does AI Have a Bias Problem? [https://www.nea.org/nea-today/all-news-articles/does-ai-have-bias-problem?utm_source=chatgpt.com] Thoughts and suggestions? Email us at unfixed@meltsintoair.org [unfixed@meltsintoair.org] You can find the full show notes and our writing at meltsintoair.org [http://meltsintoair.org/] Subscribe to the Unfixed Newsletter—The AI Higher Ed Breakdown [https://www.meltsintoair.org/unfixed-newsletter] our bi-weekly newsletter unpacking the top news stories at the intersection of AI and higher education.