Portrait: Barry FallsI am struck by how quickly the conversation about artificial intelligence has shifted — not just in our industry, but in our classrooms and research labs and in the questions our students are asking. They are not wondering whether AI will change the world. Instead, they are asking how they can be the ones who shape it. At Stevens, I believe we have a responsibility to meet that ambition with equal conviction.

This fall, we are launching a new School of Computing — made possible by more than $33 million in philanthropic support, a total that continues to grow, from alumni and friends whose confidence in Stevens’ vision I find genuinely humbling. This is not a response to disruption; it is a decision to drive it.

The School of Computing will bring together programs in computer science, AI, cybersecurity and data science under dedicated leadership, new faculty and an expanded curriculum designed for the world that students will actually enter. We have launched a national search for a founding dean who will shape this school’s identity and ambition for decades to come.

What distinguishes Stevens is not simply that we teach computing; it is how we connect computing to everything else — engineering, healthcare, finance, the arts. Because the future will not be built by people who only know code. It will be built by people who can apply computing to the problems that matter most and who understand the ethical responsibilities that come with that power. Stevens computer science and cybersecurity graduates are already doing exactly that, entering the workforce with an average starting salary of $97,300.

Among the school’s new offerings is a bachelor’s degree in artificial intelligence. This program will educate students not only in how AI systems work, but in how to build them responsibly: evaluating their ethical dimensions, understanding their security implications and anticipating their impact on society. We are also introducing an AI minor available to students across the university, from finance and biomedical engineering to music and policy, because fluency in AI is no longer optional in any field.

Our SUCCESS curriculum reinforces this further, ensuring that every Stevens student, regardless of major, engages with AI, machine learning and data analytics, alongside a grounding in ethics. We are preparing students not just to navigate this landscape but to define it.

I am deeply grateful to the community whose energy and belief are making this possible. Stevens has always attracted students who want to build what comes next. We are ensuring that the tradition they inherit is worthy of what they will pass on.

Per aspera ad astra,

Nariman Farvardin 
President, Stevens Institute of Technology 
[email protected]