This spring, the Clinton School of Public Service has introduced a new course, AI in Public Service, designed to equip future public service leaders with the tools to navigate the most significant technological shift of this generation.
Led by Dr. Robert Richards, Associate Professor of Communication, the course explores how Artificial Intelligence is fundamentally reshaping the public and nonprofit sectors. The course was developed by Richards in collaboration with faculty members Dr. Songkhun (Sunny) Nillasithanukroh and Dr. Andreas Sihotang. The ultimate motivation for the class is the profound technological transformation currently affecting society.
“I have lived through four major technological transitions,” Richards said. “The last was the rise of smartphones and social media. This current shift is primarily affecting white-collar jobs, and public service is being impacted like every other sector.”
Rooted in Research and Expertise
The curriculum is heavily informed by the faculty’s ongoing work at the forefront of digital governance. Dr. Richards, along with Dr. Nillasithanukroh and Dr. Chul Hyun Park, Senior Research Fellow, are currently shaping the global conversation on technology as co-chairs of the “Resilient Technologies for Digital Government” track at the 27th Annual International Conference on Digital Government Research (dg.o 2026) in Omaha, Nebraska. Their work explores how emerging tools help public systems prepare for and respond to crises.
Furthermore, Clinton School Dean Victoria DeFrancesco Soto, Dr. Nillasithanukroh, and Richards are co-editing a special edition of the Journal of Public Affairs Education, focusing on incorporating AI into public service education. This deep academic background ensures that students are not just learning about tools but are understanding the broader implications for governance and nonprofit work.
AI as a Tool for Public Good
In the classroom, students are exploring the practical applications of AI that are already revolutionizing government work. Richards highlights several key trends and use cases that the class will analyze:
- Intelligent Agents: Tools that act as personal assistants, summarizing thousands of emails and drafting initial responses to help public service leaders manage time-consuming tasks.
- Regulatory Reform: A notable example from Ohio, where AI was used to analyze state regulations for duplications, leading to a more efficient reform process.
- Data Visualization: Using AI to transform complex qualitative and quantitative data into clear, actionable visualizations for stakeholders.
- Brainstorming, Summarizing, and Drafting: Using AI to summarize complex information and generate first drafts for projects and presentations, which serves as a creative springboard for human revision.
The Classroom Experience
The course is designed for students of all experience levels. Using Ethan Mollick’s New York Times bestseller, “Co-Intelligence: Living and Working with AI,” as a guide, students participate in a collaborative learning environment. They maintain journals to monitor new developments and start each class with a “show and tell” period to discuss new tools, risks, and benefits they have discovered in AI.
One major focus is moving beyond the “hype” to evaluate AI through various lenses, including economic, ethical, and theoretical. Students will complete a deep-dive research paper on a topic of their choice about how AI can be used in specific public service areas like philanthropy, national security, and public health.
Meeting Tomorrow’s Challenges Today
By the end of the semester, students will have a significant advantage in the job market. As the workforce shifts toward AI integration, those who can lead organizations through this transition are in high demand.
“We want our students to walk into their first leadership roles feeling comfortable and confident,” said Richards. “They will have more knowledge and experience dealing with this technology than most people. Our aim is to put them in a position where they can lead an organization in using AI effectively and help their colleagues navigate these changes, especially for use in public service fields.”
Beyond the classroom, students are encouraged to engage with the broader community through local meetups like “AI in the Rock,” ensuring they are connected to the evolving technological landscape in Arkansas and beyond.