At Fort Lewis College, a student-faculty research team is exploring that very question. Ivan Guardiola, chair and Katz Endowed Professor of Management, and third-year Business Administration major Kelvin Benedict developed and launched an AI-powered advising assistant. The goal? To help students navigate the complexities of academic planning with greater ease and confidence. Their pilot project, sponsored by the Provost’s office, aims to quickly and accurately answer common academic advising questions, making student support more responsive and accessible.

Rooted in student need

“The primary motivation was to assist students,” said Guardiola. “We noticed through anecdotal evidence that students often asked basic questions about logistics, resources, or procedures.”

With Business Administration being the largest major on campus, it offered a diverse and complex testing ground. Guardiola explained, “The Business Administration major was chosen because it is the largest on campus, with various concentrations, certifications, and minors, making it ideal for gauging the effectiveness of AI as a basic advisor.”

The team began by surveying students, faculty, and Skyhawk Station staff to identify frequently asked questions. “Many inquiries were about processes or campus resources,” Guardiola said. “Thus, our AI aims to converse with students, answer basic questions about courses and course planning, and provide a useful knowledge base of common procedures and Workday functions. For more complex advising situations, it will direct students to the appropriate place, office, or person to begin resolving their issues.”

Designed with students in mind

Benedict became involved in the project after showing early interest in AI through his coursework. “I was using AI to help me make higher-quality work in his class,” he said of his experience in Guardiola’s data mining course. He went to Guardiola’s office hours to show him what he was accomplishing with AI. “Look at what I got done and look at this AI I have running... And he’s like, ‘this is super cool. There’s going to be an opportunity over the summer to work with me and Tom [Miaskiewicz] developing an AI advisor.’ I said, I would love to be a part of that,” said Benedict.

That collaboration took shape through FLC’s 2024 AI Summer Institute—a hands-on initiative aimed at building AI knowledge and capacity across campus. Students worked with faculty and staff mentors to design tools tailored to FLC. The initial AI advising team included Benedict, Guardiola, Morgan Feldpausch (Business Administration & Accounting, ’25), and Marketing and Katz Endowed Professor Tom Miaskiewicz.

Following the summer pilot, Benedict continued working with Guardiola to refine the assistant’s scope and design. “We defined that role by coming up with all the questions that a student would ask an academic advisor,” he said. “We reached out to some of the advisors, we asked some of our friends, and we came up with a huge list of all the questions that could possibly be asked.”

Then came the challenge of teaching the AI how to respond. “We had to come up with what we call our gold standard response, which is, in your perfect dream, how would you want the model to respond?” he said. “And then what resources will the model need to use to come to that golden standard answer?”

The team supplied the AI with multiple years of course requirements, catalog content, course descriptions, and procedural information pulled from campus websites. They then calibrated the AI’s creativity, aiming to balance natural, human-like responses with factual accuracy.

“We found that moderate settings yield better results, reducing creativity while ensuring consistency. The accuracy of the AI depends on the knowledge we provide, making it crucial for FLC to maintain accurate and up-to-date external/student-facing websites and advising documents. The bot is designed to refer only to its narrow knowledge base, highlighting the need for precise information for students,” said Guardiola.

Beta testing begins

To test the AI, the team embedded it in a Canvas course and invited 113 students to try it. While still in beta, the early signs are promising. “As of March 24, 2025, the average page views were about 4 per day, totaling 463 views, showing some interest,” said Guardiola.

Student feedback has also been encouraging. “57% of respondents found the AI useful for their academic questions or concerns, and 86% felt the information provided was accurate,” he added.

The tool is designed to serve both students and faculty. “The faculty benefits are that questions can be answered quickly and cuts down on email traffic. It can also be a resource for faculty. I, as an advisor do not have every procedure or process committed to memory this is a great source to search through information in an effective way,” Guardiola said.

While continuing to improve upon the current version of the AI advising assistant, team shared the potential for it to enhance academic advising by identifying student needs and determining whether a student's concern requires simple procedural guidance or the attention of a faculty advisor.

Potential for an AI advising future

As Guardiola looks to the future, his sights are set on expanding the project. “I hope to create a Beta 2.0 version before expanding it to other majors. I envision this being applied to all Katz majors first, then extending to all majors at FLC.”

The AI Advising Assistant is just the beginning of Fort Lewis College’s exploration of new ways to support students. Thanks to the strong foundation laid by Guardiola and his team—and with the Provost’s Office backing further development this summer under an established MOU—the project will continue to evolve with a Beta 2.0 version. This commitment to innovation reflects the College’s investment in building on promising work that meets student needs today and in the future.

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