Connecticut College AI symposium asks: Can artificial intelligence possess wisdom?

Connecticut College will host its second annual AI and the Liberal Arts Symposium on Oct. 16-17, bringing scholars, educators and AI practitioners to New London for conversations about artificial intelligence, higher education and the future of the liberal arts.

The 2026 symposium, The Paradox of AI in the Liberal Arts, will explore how AI is changing teaching, learning, creativity, critical thinking and human decision-making.

The symposium will feature presentations, interactive activities, group discussions, an Oxford-style debate and a keynote presentation by new media scholar Jon Ippolito. Registration is now open at https://ailiberalarts.digital.conncoll.edu/registration/. 

Debate asks whether AI can possess wisdom 

“The Great AI Debate” begins at 9 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 17. AI and education strategist Patrick Dempsey and P. Anand Rao, professor of communication anddigital studies and director of the Center for AI and the Liberal Arts at the University of Mary Washington, will debate the motion: “This House believes that wisdom cannot be synthesized by AI.” Dempsey will argue in favor of the motion, while Rao will argue against it. The debate will examine whether AI can move beyond processing information to demonstrate judgment, meaning and wisdom. Scholar Stack AI is supporting the event.

Jon Ippolito to deliver keynote

Jon Ippolito, professor of new media and director of the Digital Curation graduate program atthe University of Maine, will deliver the Harold F. Wiley Keynote Presentation Drawing from his collection of "AI Fault Lines," Ippolito's interactive keynote will explore the contradictions, risks and possibilities surrounding AI and invite participants to consider its relationship to creativity, education and the liberal arts.

The symposium will take place Friday, Oct. 16, and Saturday, Oct. 17, at Connecticut College inNew London.

Registration and additional information are available at https://ailiberalarts.digital.conncoll.edu/registration/. 

For more information, contact Susan Purrington, Connecticut College's Harold F. Wiley Generative AI Teaching and Learning Fellow, at spurringt@conncoll.edu.

About Connecticut College

Founded in 1911, Connecticut College is a premier private liberal arts institution of 2,000students located on a 750-acre arboretum campus in New London along the Thames River. TheCollege’s mission is to educate students to put the liberal arts into action as citizens of a globalsociety.

Through an innovative four-year curriculum called Connections, students combine theory and practice to integrate every aspect of their experience — from classes and research to internships and studies abroad — in preparation for meaningful careers that contribute to the public good. For more information, see www.conncoll.edu or find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.