Picture this: You work at a college which is famous for its theater programs. Like, genuinely, that’s your whole thing. As you sit in your office one day, talking to your only friend (by which I mean ChatGPT), you’re struck with a genius idea. Your school is in desperate need of a new major. No, not another theater major (you already have six of those), something more innovative and, frankly, useful. Something to celebrate our new overlord … Yes, you’ve got it: a degree in artificial intelligence.
According to their website, the new Artificial Intelligence B.S. (ironic, no?) degree at Ithaca College will teach students “to build these systems and to explain what they are actually doing, combining computational problem-solving, data-driven reasoning, and clear communication.” This major has been in the works since 2024, and Professor Doug Turnbull of the Department of Computer Science was quoted by The Ithacan saying, “We want AI to be a humanities pursuit as much as an engineering and science pursuit.” What exactly he means by this isn’t very evident, but it’s clear he isn’t the only member of a liberal arts institution thinking along these lines, as illustrated by the more than 40 liberal arts colleges which currently offer degrees in AI. While no students have currently enrolled in the AI B.S. at Ithaca College, Dean Claire Gleitman maintained to The Ithacan that they “wouldn’t want to create a new program if [they had] no reason to think a student has an interest in it.”
As if it wasn’t bad enough for one of the nation’s top theater schools to be offering an AI major, Ithaca College has, with nearly uncannily coincidental timing, cut their Theatre Administration degree. The degree is being changed into a broader degree referred to as Creative Industries, which the college maintains is not the same as a cut. Students who are currently enrolled in the Theatre Administration program received the news while sitting in class. Those students will still be able to finish their degrees, but no future students will be allowed to enroll in the program.
Many people were quick to point out the slightly suspicious timing of the AI major being instated right as Theatre Administration was dropped, leading the college to publish a statement saying, “The evolution of Theatre Administration to Creative Industries is unrelated to Ithaca College’s new academic offerings in artificial intelligence. The college is not cutting arts education in favor of AI. These are separate academic initiatives developed independently to create new opportunities for students.”
So, if the two degree changes really had nothing to do with each other, why such outrage, especially from former students in comment sections online? Well, for starters, one can’t help but see the larger irony in the situation. As our world continually values so-called “AI slop” over the work of real artists, it makes almost perfect sense that a theater-focused college would seemingly prioritize AI over the arts, while simultaneously making statements about how their unique view as a liberal arts college will inform their use of AI. How long will it be until Ithaca College is teaching its students to use AI to write scripts for the very same sort of productions its students would’ve once learned to manage behind the scenes, an option which is no longer available for them?
For that matter, the choice to institute a major which currently has no students enrolled while cutting a major which does have students is nearly incomprehensible. The degree in Theatre Administration was, according to writer Chris Peterson, “... wonderfully specific. The college describes it as ‘combining performing arts with business, with training in development, producing, marketing and management.’ Those are actual jobs our industry needs people to do.” If young people don’t see the careers they want in the arts available to them and instead see only broad degrees in the world of AI, if they are told continually that there is nothing of value or feasibility in their dreams, how can we expect them to do anything but succumb to pressure and pursue other careers?
In a world where many of the posts, comments or influencers we see might be AI-generated, it becomes more paramount than ever to encourage specialized humanities fields, especially at an institution like Ithaca College, which members of arts communities look to for guidance. It’s true that many students will pick the STEM degree regardless of offerings, but what is to be done for that minority of humanities students if there is genuinely no other option? I’m not proposing the idea that one day colleges will cut their English Literature degrees in favor of AI degrees, but really, who knows? I don’t think anyone could’ve imagined Ithaca College creating an AI degree, so, in this frightening climate for the humanities, anything is possible.
Abigail Winsett is a member of the Class of 2029 in the College of Arts and Sciences. She is a staff writer for the Arts & Culture department and can be reached at agw66@cornell.edu.
