Unfixed is a podcast for anyone interested in how generative AI is transforming higher education, from teachers and administrators to students and curious learners. Hosted by the faculty behind the blog Melts into Air, it offers candid reflections on a university system in flux, where even the mission of higher ed is up for debate.
Hosts: Zach Justus and Nik Janos
Producer and Editor: Jamie Gunderson
Ep. 10 Ready for a Fight?
In this episode of Unfixed, “Ready for a Fight?”, we explore the growing resistance to generative AI in higher education. While we don’t adopt the “Fight AI” stance ourselves, we take it seriously—as a revealing response to the rapid automation of knowledge work. Drawing from educators, artists, organizers, and labor movements, we unpack what motivates this rejection of AI, what it’s defending, and where it might lead. Featuring references to union actions, institutional policy shifts, and structural critiques of tech power, this episode sheds light on the values and vulnerabilities animating the pushback.
Melts into Air, What does it mean to fight AI? https://www.meltsintoair.org/chatgpt/fightai
Melts into Air, Will General Artificial Intelligence Replace Me? https://www.meltsintoair.org/chatgpt/will-artificial-general-intelligence-replace-me
Karen Hao, Empire of AI https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/743569/empire-of-ai-by-karen-hao/
Cant, Muldoon, and Graham, Feeding the Machine: The Hidden Human Labor Powering A.I. https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/feeding-the-machine-9781639734979/
California Faculty Association https://www.calfac.org/csu-administrators-impose-greater-use-of-a-i/
Thoughts and suggestions? Email us at unfixed@meltsintoair.org
You can find the full show notes and our writing at meltsintoair.org
Ep. 9: Bridging the AI Gap: From Kindergarten to College with Stephanie Dinnen and Pete Siner
AI is reshaping every level of education—but K–12 and higher ed often feel worlds apart. In this episode, we talk with Teach Smarter podcast hosts Stephanie Dinnen and Pete Siner about how generative AI is transforming K–12 schools, the evolving challenges across grade levels, and what higher education needs to understand about the next generation of AI-native students.
AI is reshaping every level of education—but K–12 and higher ed often feel worlds apart. In this episode, we talk with Teach Smarter podcast hosts Stephanie Dinnen and Pete Siner about how generative AI is transforming K–12 schools, the evolving challenges across grade levels, and what higher education needs to understand about the next generation of AI-native students.
Stephanie Dinnen is an implementation specialist, supporting districts and schools in building MTSS frameworks for literacy, math and SEL. She is a psychiatric researcher turned K-12 educator and a military spouse advocate.
Pete Siner is a former teacher and educational consultant who helps schools use AI to strengthen Tier 1 and Tier 2 instruction, support SEL, and build sustainable systems across traditional, CTE, and alternative settings. He hosts the Teach Smarter podcast and will present at ISTE 2025 on how AI can save teachers time without adding complexity.
Teach Smarter Podcast, teachsmarteredu.com
Stephanie Dinnen, @mrsdinnenreads, www.linkedin.com/in/stephaniedinnen
Pete Siner, https://www.linkedin.com/in/peter-s-75580490/
Thoughts and suggestions? Email us at unfixed@meltsintoair.org
You can find the full show notes and our writing at meltsintoair.org
Ep. 8 We Built an AI Advising Bot, Here’s What Happened
Advising is part mentorship, part logistics—and often a confusing mess. In this episode, we explore how AI might help (or hurt) students and advisors trying to navigate course selection, degree requirements, and policy mazes. We share what happened when we built our own advising bot and tested it in the wild. Could this be the future of student support, or just another edtech fantasy? With special guest Jamie Gunderson.
Advising is part mentorship, part logistics—and often a confusing mess. In this episode, we explore how AI might help (or hurt) students and advisors trying to navigate course selection, degree requirements, and policy mazes. We share what happened when we built our own advising bot and tested it in the wild. Could this be the future of student support, or just another edtech fantasy? With special guest Jamie Gunderson.
Josh Farris and Chi Chan, Guiding First-Generation Students to Success
Lauren Coffey, An AI Boost for Academic Advising
Liam Knox, The (AI) Counselor Is in
Ep. 7 Insecure University
In this episode of Unfixed, we unpack the mounting pressures that are destabilizing higher education. From the looming enrollment cliff and partisan political attacks to the unresolved trauma of COVID-19 and the disruptive arrival of generative AI, universities are being pulled in multiple, often contradictory, directions. Nik and Zach explore how these forces intersect to create what they call the “insecure university.” What does it mean to learn, teach, and lead in institutions struggling to justify their very existence?
In this episode of Unfixed, we unpack the mounting pressures that are destabilizing higher education. From the looming enrollment cliff and partisan political attacks to the unresolved trauma of COVID-19 and the disruptive arrival of generative AI, universities are being pulled in multiple, often contradictory, directions. Nik and Zach explore how these forces intersect to create what they call the “insecure university.” What does it mean to learn, teach, and lead in institutions struggling to justify their very existence?
Inside Higher Ed, “College-age demographics begin steady projected decline”
Rufo in City Journal
Venkatesh Rao, “Knowledge Under Siege” (cooked with AI)”
Nils Gilman on Theory of Change podcast
Thoughts and suggestions? Email us at unfixed@meltsintoair.org
You can find the full show notes and our writing at meltsintoair.org
Ep. 6 AI and the Slow University
Generative AI is upending higher education but can the university keep up? In this episode, we explore why institutional change in academia is so slow, even as AI accelerates disruptions across academic integrity, tenure, curriculum, and writing. From campus bureaucracy to the post-COVID pivot, we ask: what happens if we don’t adapt? And what would it take to respond differently, before the university becomes obsolete?
Generative AI is upending higher education but can the university keep up? In this episode, we explore why institutional change in academia is so slow, even as AI accelerates disruptions across academic integrity, tenure, curriculum, and writing. From campus bureaucracy to the post-COVID pivot, we ask: what happens if we don’t adapt? And what would it take to respond differently, before the university becomes obsolete?
Mark Carrigan, Are Universities Too Slow to Cope With Generative AI?
Melts into Air, Thoughts on the First AI-Powered University
Seb Murray, Business Schools Ease Their Resistance to AI
Thoughts and suggestions? Email us at unfixed@meltsintoair.org
You can find the full show notes and our writing a meltsintoair.org
Ep. 5 The Wild West
In this episode of Unfixed, we unpack Chico State’s recent ChatGPT rollout and what it reveals about the CSU system’s broader AI strategy. Why are universities centralizing AI adoption? What’s at stake for faculty, students, and the future of higher ed? We explore institutional motivations, equity and sustainability concerns, vendor influence, and the disconnect between AI hype and on-the-ground realities.
In this episode of Unfixed, we unpack Chico State’s recent ChatGPT rollout and what it reveals about the CSU system’s broader AI strategy. Why are universities centralizing AI adoption? What’s at stake for faculty, students, and the future of higher ed? We explore institutional motivations, equity and sustainability concerns, vendor influence, and the disconnect between AI hype and on-the-ground realities.
Nik Janos, Thoughts on the First AI-powered University
Rob Nelson, What is an AI-empowered University
Rob Nelson, Alignment Problem
Thoughts and suggestions? Email us at unfixed@meltsintoair.org
You can find the full show notes and our writing a meltsintoair.org
Ep. 4 AI is Coming for White-Collar Jobs-Is Higher Ed Ready? Special Episode
In this special breaking-news episode of Unfixed, Nik and Zach dive into urgent headlines warning that AI could eliminate millions of entry-level white-collar jobs. They unpack what this means for students, the public perception of higher education, and what colleges must do now to stay relevant. Featuring insights from Kevin Roose, Dario Amodei, Hard Fork, and more, the episode explores how universities can reposition themselves in an era of accelerating automation and economic uncertainty.
In this special breaking-news episode of Unfixed, Nik and Zach dive into urgent headlines warning that AI could eliminate millions of entry-level white-collar jobs. They unpack what this means for students, the public perception of higher education, and what colleges must do now to stay relevant. Featuring insights from Kevin Roose, Dario Amodei, Hard Fork, and more, the episode explores how universities can reposition themselves in an era of accelerating automation and economic uncertainty.
Kevin Roose, For Some Recent Graduates, the A.I. Job Apocalypse May Already Be Here - The New York Times
Jim VanderHei and Mike Allen, Behind the Curtain: A white-collar bloodbath
Ep. 3 Shock and Awe
Assistants are no longer exclusive to research institutions, AI is becoming an essential tool for educators and researchers across higher education.
Assistants are no longer exclusive to research institutions, AI is becoming an essential tool for educators and researchers across higher education. In this episode, we explore how generative AI is transforming academic work, from streamlining research processes to enhancing teaching strategies, offering a new kind of support for professionals navigating the demands of modern academia. We also examine the implications for retention, tenure, and promotion (RTP).
Notes:
Melts into Air, Assistant for the Rest of Us
Melts into Air, Tenure, Promoton, AI
Melts into Air, AI Personality Disorder
Ep. 2: AI is Devil Magic
Generative AI didn’t just disrupt student assessment—it broke it. In this episode, we unpack how traditional models of evaluating student work are collapsing under the weight of new AI tools. From essays to exams, what happens when the core systems of trust and measurement in higher ed no longer hold?
Generative AI didn’t just disrupt student assessment, it broke it. In this episode, we unpack how traditional models of evaluating student work are collapsing under the weight of new AI tools. From essays to exams, what happens when the core systems of trust and measurement in higher ed no longer hold?
Ep. 1: We are Unfixed: How AI is Reshaping Higher Education
In this inaugural episode of Unfixed: AI and Higher Education, hosts Nik Janos and Zach Justus introduce a new podcast that explores how generative AI is accelerating deep structural changes across the university.
In this inaugural episode of Unfixed: AI and Higher Education, hosts Nik Janos and Zach Justus introduce a new podcast that explores how generative AI is accelerating deep structural changes across the university. More than just a classroom tool, AI is transforming admissions, advising, labor, assessment, and even the core mission of higher education. Born from spontaneous faculty conversations, blog posts, and national articles in Inside Higher Ed, this podcast returns to the origin: unscripted, thoughtful dialogue among colleagues. Expect guest interviews, behind-the-scenes insights, and honest takes on the institutional disruption few are ready to confront.