Robert Crossler and Chris Cooney, WSU Carson College of Business faculty, will present “Building AI Fluency and Career-Ready Skills across the Carson College of Business at Washington State University” on Adobe’s Academic Innovation Café podcast series Wednesday, Nov. 18, at 8 a.m.
During the podcast, Crossler and Cooney will share their experience embedding AI fluency into foundational course work while engaging students in meaningful, team-based projects that mirror real-world business consulting work.
Podcast attendees will gain concrete strategies for integrating authentic, industry-aligned projects into gateway courses, along with tangible examples of how thoughtful tool selection and project design can spark genuine student engagement and career readiness.
Crossler and Cooney were instrumental in redesigning BA 100, a Carson College introductory business course in which students work in teams to evaluate the marketing strategy of an assigned company or brand and recommend opportunities for improvements — all while leveraging Adobe Express and Firefly AI to develop critical workplace competencies.
“This approach directly advances the college’s mission to ensure students graduate with both marketing knowledge and AI fluency skills employers increasingly demand,” said Crossler, senior associate dean for academic affairs.
Crossler, an expert in information systems, leads AI literacy and skill-building workshops on the WSU Pullman and Vancouver campuses with the goal of preparing students not just to use AI but to understand what it does well, where it falls short, and how to use it responsibly.
Cooney, who directs the college’s Center for Entrepreneurship, is a long-time Adobe collaborator and teaches Entrepreneurial Marketing. He has introduced thousands of students to AI-fluent, real-world problem-solving, developed in partnership with organizations like Adobe, Google, and the interdisciplinary Harold Frank Engineering Entrepreneurship Program.
