Department Compass
A guided process that helps your department move from individual faculty judgment to shared AI guidelines, without forcing everyone to agree.
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Faculty Compass first
Each person completes it on their own -
Shared without names
No names are ever collected -
Your department decides
Claude maps; people decide -
Guidelines to keep
Plus a Decision Record to download
Departments are being asked for AI guidance, and their faculty don't all agree.
From “We can’t agree on AI” to “Here’s what we share, where we differ, and what we decided.”
This is for you if…
- Your department needs AI guidance, and faculty see AI very differently.
- You want decisions people can stand behind, not a policy handed down.
- You want room for faculty discretion where it belongs.
- You need to stay within your institution’s requirements, and say clearly when you’d like them to change.
Running the process? Get the Faculty + Department Compass bundle, which includes your own Faculty Compass. Each colleague completes their own Faculty Compass, then joins your department from the last step of that course. Bringing in a whole department or campus? Use “Bringing this to your campus?” below.
Shared guidance without forced agreement
Faculty see AI very differently, and that's not a problem to fix. Your department needs a way to find what it truly shares, see where it differs, and decide together what should be consistent and what should stay with each instructor.
Department Compass walks your department through seven steps. Each person first completes their own Faculty Compass, then chooses what, if anything, to share, without names. Claude maps where the department agrees and differs. Your department discusses, decides using its own decision method, and records each decision. Guidelines are drafted only from what you decided.
Your department leaves with:
• Department AI Guidelines: clear, labeled guidance that shows where every line came from.
• A Department AI Decision Record: what you decided, why, and what stays open, including dissent.
• Optional: a short version for students, and a proposal for your institution when you'd like a requirement to change.
Institutional requirements always come first. Nothing is shared with names, and shared material is deleted automatically 12 months after your department's last activity.
Department Compass walks your department through seven steps. Each person first completes their own Faculty Compass, then chooses what, if anything, to share, without names. Claude maps where the department agrees and differs. Your department discusses, decides using its own decision method, and records each decision. Guidelines are drafted only from what you decided.
Your department leaves with:
• Department AI Guidelines: clear, labeled guidance that shows where every line came from.
• A Department AI Decision Record: what you decided, why, and what stays open, including dissent.
• Optional: a short version for students, and a proposal for your institution when you'd like a requirement to change.
Institutional requirements always come first. Nothing is shared with names, and shared material is deleted automatically 12 months after your department's last activity.
Questions people ask
How long does it take?
Each person spends about 25 to 30 minutes on their Faculty Compass first. The department steps fit into one or two meetings, plus a few short online steps over a couple of weeks.
Is what people write private?
Each person chooses exactly what to share, and nothing is shared with names. Private reflections stay in each person’s browser. Shared, nameless material is deleted automatically 12 months after your department’s last activity.
What if it isn’t for me?
Write to us within 14 days and we’ll refund you, as long as you haven’t finished the course.
What does the department get?
Department AI Guidelines, a Decision Record, and optionally a student version and a proposal for your institution. All of it can be downloaded.
What about our institution’s AI policy?
Institutional requirements come first. Decisions that conflict with them stay out of the guidelines and can go into a separate proposal for your institution to consider.
How many people do we need?
At least three people need to share before the department map is made. This protects everyone’s anonymity.
Guided conversations about AI, learning and teaching.
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