A new collaboration between Florida State University and nonprofit educational organizations is opening doors for Ukrainian scholars, empowering them with vital AI skills that can drive innovation and resilience in higher education.
The Anne Spencer Dave’s College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences (Anne’s College) and the Ukraine Task Force (UTF) have joined forces with the American Councils for International Education and the Digital Education Council (DEC) to deliver free, online artificial intelligence (AI) training for research faculty in Ukraine.
Dina Vyortkina, associate dean for Innovation and Instructional Technology at Anne’s College and member of the UTF, coordinated the effort to provide DEC’s online course leading to a certificate for AI in Higher Education at no cost to 36 Ukrainian researchers.The researchers invited to participate are alumni of or current participants in BridgeUSA programs.
“We have designed a comprehensive faculty professional development program for our colleagues in Ukraine,” Vyortkina said. “Completing AI literacy courses would be a great foundation for everyone before we embark on scalable AI initiatives that support teaching, learning, research and operations. We are looking forward to tangible outcomes and impactful changes.”
Both the BridgeUSA Ukrainian Academic Fellows Program (BridgeUSA UAFP) and the BridgeUSA Ukraine Program for Resilience and Reconstruction (UPRR) build connections between Ukrainian and U.S. scholars for long-term collaboration in areas such as joint research, shared pedagogy, course development and publications. These programs are implemented by the American Councils for International Education with the long-term goal of helping Ukrainian universities educate and train professionals critical to the country’s recovery and reconstruction through lasting, productive collaboration with U.S. institutions of higher education.
Housed in FSU’s Learning Systems Institute (LSI), the UTF was established in 2022 as part of the university’s broader internationalization strategy and aims to forge partnerships between FSU and Ukrainian scholars and educate the FSU community about Ukraine. Through the UTF, FSU has hosted six BridgeUSA Fellows and will host two more this summer.
In June 2024, FSU became the first U.S. university to host fellows through the program: Taras Panchenko, Andrii Balandr, Andrii Roskladka and Natalia Safonova all spent the summer on campus collaborating with FSU faculty mentors. And in October 2025, the UTF hosted Sofiia Doskich and Kostyantyn Mezentsev through BridgeUSA UPRR.
“We anticipate that this new area of collaboration will lead to new research collaborations and the sharing of best teaching practices between BridgeUSA Alumni and peers at FSU,” said Vilma Fuentes, UTF program director. “This may also pave the way for future grant-funded opportunities.”
The DEC’s “Certificate for AI in Higher Education” is a self-paced, 20-hour course that allows participants to gain the knowledge and skills needed to integrate AI effectively in teaching and day-to-day work. It’s intended for users of every level, helping them understand the fundamentals of AI, its implementation in higher education, responsible practices and practical use cases. Each module is practical, focused and directly applicable to higher education.
American Councils is providing the course as part of its mission to strengthen international ties and connections between countries and cultures through excellence in academic, professional, and cultural exchange, language acquisition, educational developmentand research. Since 1974, their educational portfolio has grown to include 140 countries important to national security, prosperity and peace.
“It’s a strong reflection of the partnership we have forged through BridgeUSA UPRR with FSU so far—one built on trust, shared purpose and a long-term commitment to lasting partnerships between Ukrainian and U.S. universities, including new opportunities for collaboration in areas such as AI in higher education, research and innovation,” said Ksenia Ivanenko, program manager for Higher Education Partnerships and Capacity, Field Operations at American Councils for International Education.
In addition to completing the AI course, Ukrainian faculty can also participate in webinars facilitated by FSU colleagues. The project also aims to help Ukrainian faculty adapt existing university courses, embed innovative approaches and AI tools, contribute to the co-creation of AI literacy courses tailored to higher education in the Ukrainian language and local context, and conduct institutional AI assessments.
“We are deeply grateful to Florida State University for its outstanding commitment to Ukraine, American Councils BridgeUSA UPRR, our program participants and alumni and for investing so much energy and care into this work,” Ivanenko said. “At a time when Ukrainian higher education continues to demonstrate remarkable resilience under immense pressure, this initiative creates meaningful access not only to practical AI skills but also to international academic exchange that can strengthen institutions and support the next generation of teaching and research.”
For more information about LSI and the UTF, visit lsi.fsu.edu. To learn more about Anne’s College, visit annescollege.fsu.edu. For more information about FSU’s global footprint, visit global.fsu.edu.
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