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Amita Shetty, director of University of Illinois Chicago, UIC’s Break Through Tech Chicago, a national initiative to achieve gender equality in technology fields, has been chosen to lead the new program Data + AI at UIC to equip undergraduate students with the critical skills they need to succeed in an increasingly AI-driven world and enable more students from diverse backgrounds to be part of the next generation of innovators.
The $1 million award from Google to the University of Illinois Chicago will enable all its undergraduate students in any field of study to develop their data and artificial intelligence skills.
“AI is transforming industries, and when guided by diverse talent, it can drive meaningful societal change,” Shetty said. “UIC is uniquely positioned through its scale, diverse disciplines, and strong ties to Chicago’s organizations to prepare students for responsible leadership in this transformative era.”
The award will support UIC’s new Data + AI program, scheduled to launch in a pilot phase during the 2025-26 academic year. Students in the program will start with a specialized course developed by UIC faculty in collaboration with industry leaders, followed by experiential learning. Beyond building students’ technical fluency, the program will focus on ethical reasoning and professional mentorship.
“The data science revolution, including artificial intelligence, calls us to provide state-of-the-art learning opportunities for UIC students,” UIC Chancellor Marie Lynn Miranda said.
The data and AI fluency initiative is part of UIC’s commitment to providing undergraduate students — regardless of their area of study — with essential opportunities to gain practical, real-world experience while on campus and to prepare for successful careers. This award from Google will ensure that through Data + AI program, society broadly benefits from the data science revolution and it enhances UIC students’ career readiness by learning the industry-relevant skills which employers’ value.
“The rapid advancement and widespread use of technology, especially in the field of applied data and AI, is having a profound impact on our lives. This transformation will inevitably lead to a shift in the skills needed to succeed in both academic and professional environments,” said Jessica Holberg, Google.org partnerships and outreach lead in Chicago.
