Susan M. Cheng
Educator · Writer · Parent

Hi! I'm Susan

Susan M. Cheng, Ed.L.D., MPP

As a leader in higher education, I've helped students, especially first-generation students, navigate toward student success and find their way in challenging learning environments. Now I'm bringing that work to a new question: how do kids and families grow up safely alongside artificial intelligence?

Families deserve plain-language guidance about the technology their children already use, and the people closest to kids deserve a real say in how it's built.

Associate Provost for Student Success at Cal Poly. Adjunct Associate Professor of Family Medicine and previously Senior Associate Dean at Georgetown University School of Medicine.

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Susan Cheng smiling, wearing a cream knit capelet embroidered with pink and red flowers over a red-striped shirt

Photo credit: Stephen Heraldo

Current Work

What I'm Doing Now

Families & AI

AI Safety Considerations & Responsible Use

I'm a parent and an educator. Today's kids will never know a world without chatbots, voice assistants, and algorithmic feeds. Most parents I talk with feel the same mix of curiosity and unease I do.

My goal is to turn that unease into clear, practical support that families can use at the kitchen table.

Free for Families

AI-OK? AI Safety Resources for Kids & Parents

Helping families grow with AI and stay safe along the way. Clear, age-aware guidance from Pre-K through college.

Visit AI-OK?
Leadership & Learning

AI in Higher Education

My focus is AI fluency, ethics, and access, so that every student, especially first-generation students, can use these tools well and question them wisely.

  1. Future of AI, BlueDot Impact

    Credential issued October 2026.

  2. Founding Cohort, Turing AI Frontier Fellows

    Domain experts applying AI to entrepreneurial work and discovery.

  3. Fall 2026

    AI Literacy in the First-Year Curriculum

    Redesigned UNIV 1000 with AI, financial, and career literacy for 900+ first-year, first-generation students across 32 sections.

  4. CSU Certification, Academic Applications of AI

    California State University program for faculty and staff.

  5. AI Symposium: "AI Innovation Playground"

    Assembled 20+ interactive demos, research posters, and hands-on sessions on AI fluency and the ethics of AI in teaching and learning.

  6. AI Community of Practice

    Quarterly gatherings across six colleges and the Student Vibe Coding Club on AI policy and practice.

  7. Founder & Chair, AI BOOST

    A student success AI advisory board spanning advising, tutoring, and fellowships, with a shared inventory of AI activity to guide planning.

  8. 2025–2026

    Co-Chair, Cal Poly AI Working Group

    With the AAC&U Institute on AI, Pedagogy, and Curriculum.

  9. Inaugural AI Convening

    Delivered 2 faculty panels on innovations and responsible use of AI with the Office of the Provost AI Planning Group.

Ideas in Motion

Papers, Talks & Podcasts

Career

My Path So Far

Ed.L.D., Harvard Graduate School of Education · MPP, Harvard Kennedy School · B.A., UCLA, summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa

What drives me

I build systems of belonging and access that help first-gen students thrive, and I'm bringing AI fluency to the future of student success.

Contact

Let's Talk

I'm glad to hear from parents, educators, researchers, and builders working on AI for kids and families. I also speak to schools, universities, and parent groups. The best way to reach me is on LinkedIn.

Connect on LinkedIn