Norco College has received a Title III Strengthening Institutions Program award from the U.S. Department of Education, issued through the Department's postsecondary grants partnership with the U.S. Department of Labor, to fund Human-Centered AI for Student Success and Economic Mobility. The five-year project runs from October 2026 through September 2031 and is budgeted at $2,995,954, with $528,627 awarded for the first year and later years subject to annual continuation funding.
At its heart, the grant is an investment in people. Rather than simply adopting technology, the project equips teaching faculty, counselors, tutors, and staff with the skills, training, and tools they need to strengthen student learning and support. The goal is for AI to extend what educators do best, freeing them to spend more time teaching, mentoring, and building the personal connections that make the biggest difference for students.
The grant also creates an environment where faculty lead. Through a new Faculty AI Taskforce and Faculty AI Teaching Institute, faculty will explore AI tools, test what works in their own disciplines, and decide for themselves how best to use them to prepare students for the careers ahead. The Institute will train 140 faculty over four years, and each participant will put student-facing AI applications into practice and share what they learn with colleagues.
The project will focus on key activities designed to strengthen student learning,
support, and career readiness. Among the initiatives are:
- A new Employment Resource Center to help students with resumes, interview preparation, job searches, internships, and employer connections.
- AI-enhanced tools in the Financial Freedom Program to help students navigate college costs, financial aid, budgeting, and debt.
- Redesigned student success workshops in digital literacy, career exploration, resume writing, college finance, and study strategies.
- Anytime alert tools that help faculty and staff identify struggling students and connect them with tutoring, counseling, and other support.
- AI tools for advising and college navigation that give students accurate information around the clock.
Human-Centered AI for Student Success and Economic Mobility is designed to achieve measurable outcomes, including increased full-time enrollment, retention, graduation, and earnings for former students.
"When we give our faculty and staff the skills, tools, and freedom to decide how AI can best serve their students, they can better prepare those students for rapidly evolving careers,” said Monica Green, Ed.D., President of Norco College. "This grant is first and foremost an investment in our people."
The grant was developed by the district's grant management team and David Schlanger, Dean of Student Services, who will serve as Project Director in collaboration with faculty, staff, and college leadership.
Every AI tool developed through the grant will follow the California Community Colleges' human-centered principles for AI, with human oversight, clear notice to students when AI is being used, privacy protections, and an easy path to a real person. A Faculty AI Taskforce will help guide the work, and an independent external evaluator will measure what is working so the college can refine, sustain, and share effective practices with other colleges.
Work on the project begins in fall 2026 with hiring, forming the Faculty AI Taskforce, and planning for the Employment Resource Center. The first Faculty AI Teaching Institute cohort and the redesigned workshops are expected to launch in 2027 and 2028.
This project is supported by the U.S. Department of Education under Title III, Part A of the Higher Education Act, award number 26D60SI000304. First-year federal funding of $528,627 covers 100 percent of first-year project costs. The five-year project budget of $2,995,954 is 100 percent federally funded, with no non-federal funding.