Professors in Phased Retirement Are to Participate in AI Pilot Program

On Monday, Supreme Leader of Student Relations Madeline Gold ’28 addressed the Association of Amherst Students (AAS) to introduce an AI pilot program called “Virtual Faculty Engine” for professors in phased retirement. “The Virtual Faculty Engine program is designed to preserve these professors’ educational experiences for generations to come,” Gold said. 

According to Gold, retiring professors will have the option to upload a face scan to create a life-like avatar for students to interact with online. They would also commit to recording audio for three hours per week, amassing the necessary sound clips to accurately imitate their respective voices. In addition to these audio clips, the professors will answer questions relating to their professional work and moral compass. 

These answers and uploads of their exclusive research, Gold hopes, will “be enough to create accurate AI models of these accomplished educators.” Gold also hinted that these AI avatars would be displayed on screens in the new Student Center and Dining Commons. “The student body 100 years from now,” Gold added, “will be able to sit down in our new center and talk to professors from now as if they were in the same room.” 

The college purchased over 500 terabytes of RAM with plans to build a small data center near Book & Plow Farm to “make the transition process smooth and simple.” The current plans aim to finish the data center’s construction by 2032, with the AI operations to be carried out through Frost Library’s computing operations in the meantime. 

While other logistics have yet to be unveiled, the plan was officially set in motion last Thursday after the faculty voted 35-20 in favor of the program. Johnson A. Chapel Professor of Geology LeBrun Jane expressed extreme excitement: “The educational opportunities for future Amherst students are endless with this use of artificial intelligence … [Amherst College] is paving the way for liberal arts education for generations to come, and I will gladly contribute to this project when I retire in 60 more years.”

Senators were split on the new plans, with some criticizing the concept of AI itself. “The introduction of this program is an absolute shame and a blow to the Amherst legacy. Any respect I had for this administration is utterly gone now,” senator John Doe ’27 said. 

Other senators were happy to be able to ask these professors questions whenever they pleased. “I love AI so much. I can basically ask my professors anything and everything whenever I need to,” senator Jane Smith ’28 said. “I know about the environmental concerns, but what about my five-page essay?”

These details will be shared in an email addressed to the student body on Friday. “We’re still working out the smaller details, but we’re excited to hear from student leaders about this plan now that it’s officially in motion,” Gold said.