iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

6.) Permissible AI use will end up varying across different professors and classes. It's chaotic and confusing to students. We need shorthand descriptions in our courses. "No Tech classes, Full AI classes, etc."-- fixed labels so students know expectations before they sign up.

5.) The role of grades may need to be rethought completely. When kids are pushing for that perfect GPA, it can be detrimental to learning and classroom dynamics. I love teaching students at levels where they are purely there to learn-- MPAs, PhDs-- and grades don't really matter.

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4.) AI use should be different across the academic life course. We need to protect and preserve the cognitive development of younger students, and phase in AI over time to augment the skills they've learned. We don't give kids calculators until we've taught them the multiplication tables.

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3.) These new old forms of evaluation take more time-- giving oral exams to a large lecture course is a massive endeavor, which is why most professors don't do it. Ditto for grading scaffolded assignments. So if we are to do the AI thing right, we may need more professors and teaching resources.

2.) If you have high-stakes assignments that can be done with AI use, and you ban AI use without policing it, you are creating massive incentives to cheat, and that is bad for everyone. We need either assignments that embrace AI, or assignments that cannot be gamed by AI.

1.) We are starting to see real divergence across schools and programs about AI policies, ranging from the more Luddite (Berkeley Law, Chicago) to an embrace of AI tools. That may become part of schools' branding moving forward.

Rory Truex @rorytruex.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

This is the year universities are finally tackling the AI problem in earnest. But there is no consensus across schools, or even among departments within schools, about best practices. Six things I've learned in watching this conversation evolve:

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I really, really appreciate the shoutout. I am horrible at social media and growing this thing. Any suggestions or feedback on the pod are welcome!

Rory Truex @rorytruex.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

Frances Lee is one of my favorite people in my department, in addition to being one of the country’s leading scholars of Congress. She’s also a firm believer in American democratic resilience and the strength of our institutions. Full interview here: open.spotify.com/episode/4MIF...

open.spotify.com

An Optimistic Take on American Democracy | Frances Lee (Princeton)

Civic Forum · Episode

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Rory Truex @rorytruex.bsky.social · 12/08/2026

Live event on Thursday with the great Frances Lee to talk all things Congress and the state of American democracy. Link here: open.substack.com/live-stream/...

open.substack.com

LIVE SOON: Everything You Didn't Know About Congress

Starting Aug 13 at 1:00 PM EDT

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Rory Truex @rorytruex.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

New pod out! The US pro-democracy movement has much to learn from Hungary, where the people just toppled their own corrupt right-wing populist autocrat through a peaceful electoral movement. Clip below, full episode at www.thecivicforum.com or anywhere you get your pods.

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Alex Dukalskis @alexdukalskis.bsky.social · 17/07/2026

This is a superb conversation about Chinese politics w/ @rorytruex.bsky.social & @marceldirsus.com

podcasts.apple.com

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Rory Truex @rorytruex.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

Thanks for listening Matthew! I appreciate the support!

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Rory Truex @rorytruex.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

Going live Thursday to talk all things Hungary with @kimlanelaw.bsky.social and Peter Dosa. How do democracies heal after a period of authoritarianism? What can Americans learn from the Hungarian case? Link in replies.

Rory Truex @rorytruex.bsky.social · 09/07/2026

Going live shortly with two greats in the activism space, @jesscraven101.bsky.social and @msifry.bsky.social. We'll discuss the state of the pro-democracy movement and the most effective things people can do to make a difference. Link here: open.substack.com/live-stream/...

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Nick Carnes @carnes.bsky.social · 23/06/2026

. @noamlupu.bsky.social and I talked to @rorytruex.bsky.social about our new book, Keeping Workers Off the Ballot (out this October with @princetonupress.bsky.social) substack.com/@rorytruex/n...

substack.com

Why Is Working Class Representation So Low?

Interview with Nick Carnes and Noam Lupu

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Rory Truex @rorytruex.bsky.social · 16/06/2026

Join me on Thursday at 1PM ET for a live session with Nick Carnes and Noam Lupu to find out why working class representation is so low, why that matters, and what can be done to get more workers on the ballot. Link in replies:

Rory Truex @rorytruex.bsky.social · 16/06/2026

Thank you for reading! It is depressing but oddly I feel like this moment could rejuvenate many universities and make us appreciate anew the human part of education.

Rory Truex @rorytruex.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

Starting a new initiative this summer, weekly live events on Substack about the core issues facing our democracy, featuring great speakers. This Thursday, 1PM ET, an hour with the great @jasmine.bsky.social on all things work, AI, and the emerging populist backlash. Event link in replies.

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Kai Ryssdal @kairyssdal.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

If you credulously do a segment about the vote in California in which you don’t say the president is lying, you’re spreading disinformation to your listeners.

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Will AI Break the University?

We are entering a new phase in universities where degrees will be handed out, and it may well not be possible to know if the student did any work at all. Full post here: rorytruex.substack.com/p/will-ai-br...

rorytruex.substack.com

Field Notes from a Tough Year

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Taken to the extreme, these behaviors could produce the shell university, where AI generated work is being passed off as human, and then in turn evaluated by another AI, again passed off as human.

AI introduces a gigantic moral hazard in that it substantially reduces the time taken to complete these things, if the person is willing to let an LLM do it for them.