Creighton University to launch Institute for Adaptive Intelligence

A new Institute for Adaptive Intelligence: Integrating Technology and Human-Flourishing will be launched this fall at Creighton, with University Librarian Michael Paulus, MLIS, DMin, serving as executive director.

The institute will be dedicated to empowering members of the Creighton community to engage with technology in transformative, ethical and human-centric ways, and to developing leaders with the skills, knowledge and ethical framework necessary to navigate and influence the rapidly evolving technological landscape of today and tomorrow.

“I am grateful that Dr. Paulus has agreed to serve as the inaugural executive director of the Institute for Adaptive Intelligence,” Creighton University President the Rev. Daniel S. Hendrickson, SJ, PhD, said. “This new institute reflects a long arc of innovations in the University’s history that responds to the interests and needs of our students and the world around us.”

The institute will advance thought leadership on best practices in new and emerging technologies; provide support for interdisciplinary courses, workshops, and faculty and staff development in adaptive technologies; identify opportunities for research and innovation; and develop public partnerships and programming that serve our wider communities.

For students throughout the University, the Institute for Adaptive Intelligence will serve as a hub for experiential learning, connecting coursework, research and real-world application to equip graduates for careers not yet fully imagined.

"The Institute for Adaptive Intelligence will help prepare Creighton students to lead in a rapidly evolving, technology-driven world," Creighton University Provost Mardell Wilson, EdD, said. "Across every major and program, the institute will provide opportunities to strengthen the critical thinking, adaptability and ethical leadership skills our students need to innovate, solve complex problems and serve others in meaningful ways.”

Dr. Paulus has published and presented on the role of artificial intelligence in libraries, higher education and broader culture. He was the co-editor of AI, Faith, and the Future: An Interdisciplinary Approach and the author of two books on AI, the latest of which is his 2026 work, Hope in the Library: How Libraries Can Help Shape Our Future with Artificial Intelligence.