Dayton Engineer
AI Is upending higher ed. This professor sees a chance to reclaim what matters.
Lecture halls. Credit hours. Rigid curricula. In his new book, University Revolution: Artificial Intelligence and the Transformation of Learning, University of Dayton professor Kevin Hallinan argues that AI isn’t just disrupting higher education — it’s creating space to rediscover its purpose.
Hallinan, a longtime UD mechanical engineering professor, says AI can free educators from the role of content deliverer and allow them to focus on what drew many to teaching in the first place: mentoring students, nurturing curiosity and building meaningful connections.
“This transformation is not optional — it’s already happening,” he writes.
The book combines classroom experience, educational theory and emerging research to show how universities could shift — not by abandoning their values, but by using new tools to better serve them. Hallinan also explores the possibilities of open-source, AI-supported models that expand access to learning around the globe.
An interactive AI version of the book is available at kevin-hallinan.com.