Description:
As artificial intelligence rapidly reshapes how students learn, produce work, and relate to knowledge, Catholic institutions are responding with policies, literacy initiatives, and instructional adjustments. Yet a deeper question remains: are we addressing education alone, or the formation of young people in an age of intelligent machines? Drawing from work with Catholic schools and diocesan leaders, this session will explore the distinction between education and formation and why that distinction matters for AI. The Catholic Companion Framework for Technology and Innovation will be introduced at a foundational level as one response to this emerging formation gap. The presentation will also reflect on the unexpected range of interest the framework has generated across dioceses, schools, and institutions, revealing both the appetite for coherent guidance and the fragmentation of current efforts. The session will invite consideration of what a more coordinated, formation-centered Catholic response might require.
Speaker Bio:
Meaghan Crowley-Sullivan is an instructional leader working at the intersection of faith, pedagogy, and emerging technologies. She serves as the Curriculum and Professional Learning Developer at the iDEAL Institute at Loyola Marymount University, partnering with dioceses and schools nationwide to navigate artificial intelligence and strengthen teacher capacity for student learning.
A three-time graduate of the University of Notre Dame, her work centers on transformative learning, blended instructional design, and the formation of educators and students in technology-rich environments. She is the developer of the Catholic Companion Framework for Technology and Innovation and examines how Catholic institutions can respond coherently to technological transformation while remaining rooted in mission and whole-person formation.