New Artificial Intelligence program begins at Ferris

A 15-month schedule is underway to develop Ferris State University's $29.5 million Center for Virtual Learning on the Big Rapids campus.The future facility, planned for the site of the former Vandercook Hall, will be home to Information Security and Intelligence, the School of Digital Media, School of Education, eLearning and the new Artificial Intelligence program. The state of Michigan will contribute $22 million for the Center for Virtual Learning's construction as a capital outlay project. In December 2020, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed the Public Act awarding the funds, and Ferris' Board of Trustees approved construction plans in February. At that same meeting, the trustees approved a Bachelor of Science in Artificial Intelligence. Faculty members involved in the Center for Virtual Learning's development see the project's collaborative nature as benefiting future student learning.