As higher education changes faster than ever, institutions are moving beyond experimentation and beginning to make real decisions about how AI should be used. The AI Strategic Council brings together leading AI experts from around the world, who draw on their experience across education and industry to support practical understanding of what AI means for teaching, assessment, and learning.
At key global moments, council members lead the conversations that matter most in education through thought leadership, roundtables, events and media engagement.
Jessica Bernards Bio
Jessica Bernards
Mathematics Instructor, University of Oregon and AI Education Specialist
Jessica Bernards is an award-winning mathematics educator with two decades of experience in higher education. She teaches at the University of Oregon and Portland Community College, and is recognized for supporting educators through AI teaching strategies and faculty development. She is also a curriculum consultant, author and conference speaker, with a focus on active learning.
LinkedIn profile
Victoria Lansdown Bio
Victoria Lansdown
AI Learning Strategist
Victoria Lansdown is an AI learning strategist who helps educators and organizations adopt AI in practical, responsible and human-centered ways. Her work focuses on translating AI from abstract possibility into real-world implementation through learning experiences, responsible adoption strategies and practical guidance. With an MBA and a background in cognitive neuroscience, Victoria brings a learning-first lens to helping people use emerging technologies thoughtfully in the contexts where they work, teach and lead.
LinkedIn profile
Mustafa Akben Bio
Dr. Mustafa Akben
Director of AI Integration and Assistant Professor of Management, Elon University
Dr. Mustafa Akben, PhD, is Director of AI Integration and Assistant Professor of Management at Elon University. His work focuses on human-AI collaboration, AI literacy, organizational decision-making, and the responsible integration of artificial intelligence into teaching, research and institutional practice. At Elon, he helps translate emerging AI capabilities into practical, ethical and sustainable learning and work systems.
LinkedIn profile
Saeed Al Dhaheri
Dr. Saeed Al Dhaheri
Director, Centre for Future Studies, University of Dubai; UNESCO Co-Chair; President, UAE Robotics and Automation Society
Dr. Saeed Al Dhaheri is Director of the Centre for Future Studies at the University of Dubai and serves as UNESCO Co-Chair on Anticipatory Systems. His work focuses on the responsible use of AI in education, and AI governance, with an emphasis on academic integrity, creativity, critical thinking and the human qualities that make learning meaningful.
LinkedIn profile
Prashant Jain bio
Prashant Jain
Educator and Mathematics Leader
Prashant Jain is an educator, author and academic leader focused on helping students achieve excellence in mathematics, Olympiads and competitive examinations. An IIT Bombay Computer Science graduate, he has more than a decade of experience mentoring students for national-level exams and has authored more than 25 books, including bestselling Olympiad and foundation mathematics titles published by Pearson. His work focuses on making advanced mathematics accessible, engaging and impactful for learners.
LinkedIn profile
Hamsa Bastani
Dr. Hamsa Bastani
Associate Professor of Operations, Information and Decisions at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania
Dr. Hamsa Bastani studies how to design, deploy, and evaluate AI systems that empower human decision-makers and improve societal outcomes. Her research examines how AI can transform education while preserving the effort and self-regulation required for durable learning. She co-led the first large field study of generative AI tutors in high school mathematics, published in PNAS. In a large-scale chess experiment, she showed how self-directed access to AI can ultimately undermine productive struggle, engagement, and skill development. She also partnered with the Taipei City Department of Education to deploy an LLM-guided personalized practice platform that substantially improved student learning outcomes at scale.
Claudia Del Pozo
Claudia Del Pozo
AI Education Policy Leader and Founder of Eon Institute
Claudia Del Pozo is founder of Eon Institute and an AI education policy leader whose work focuses on AI literacy, digital skills and responsible AI adoption. She has led initiatives across Latin America that support universities, educators, public sector leaders and institutions in preparing for an AI-enabled future. Her work includes faculty development, responsible AI capacity building, and contributions to the International Baccalaureate curriculum on AI and its wider implications.
Peter Foltz
Dr. Peter Foltz
Research Professor, Institute of Cognitive Science, University of Colorado Boulder
Dr. Peter Foltz is Research Professor at the University of Colorado’s Institute of Cognitive Science and Director of Nexus at the National Science Foundation AI Institute for Student-AI Teaming. His research covers AI-based approaches for education and clinical assessments, large-scale data analytics, reading and writing development, collaboration, and 21st century skills learning. The methods he has pioneered are used by millions of people annually to improve achievement, expand student access, and make learning materials more affordable.
Mutlu Cukurova
Dr. Mutlu Cukurova
Professor of Learning and Artificial Intelligence, University College London
Dr. Mutlu Cukurova is Professor of Learning and Artificial Intelligence at UCL, affiliated with the Knowledge Lab (Institute of Education) and the Centre for Artificial Intelligence (Faculty of Engineering). His research investigates how AI can augment human intelligence in education; advancing learning analytics, multimodal data, and human–AI complementarity to support, rather than replace, teachers and learners. He leads large-scale projects in this area, and his theoretical and empirical work is widely cited across the field's principal venues. He advises governments, industry, and international organisations on ensuring that educational AI is both effective and human-centered.
Our Mission
We bring the world's leading voices in AI and higher education together to help institutions make responsible, confident decisions about how AI is understood and used to support educators and learners.
Pearson’s role is to lead the advancement of responsible AI in higher education and the workforce - not just through technology, but by building practical understanding of what AI means for teaching, assessment, and learning.
The AI Strategic Council exists to support this work by bringing experienced voices into action.
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Shaping the future of higher education
AI Strategic Council member are active contributors to how AI is understood and applied across higher education. They bring their experience into moments where institutions are shaping direction, asking hard questions, and looking for practical guidance. Their work focuses on real‑world use of AI — grounded in teaching, learning, assessment, and institutional leadership.