SUNY revamps general education requirements for fall 2026

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEXSTAR) — The State University of New York updated its general education curriculum for undergraduates. Starting with associate and bachelor's students entering in the fall semester, the new curriculum introduces civic discourse and artificial intelligence (AI) coursework.

SUNY Chancellor John King Jr. announced the changes Monday, “Every SUNY student will be expected to demonstrate the knowledge and skills that advance respectful and reasoned discourse,” he said. And, "We will help our students recognize and ethically use AI as they consider various information sources."

The new civic discourse requirement is supposed to train students to consider ideas from diverse perspectives and engage in ethical advocacy. The AI literacy update, meanwhile, addresses emerging technologies. Students will learn to perceive and evaluate content for accuracy, bias, and ethical implications. These skills would apply to both traditional and AI content.

SUNY also plans to double capacity of the Empire State Service Corps from 500 to 1,000 students. That's because over 2,000 students applied for the initial slots. Launched by Gov. Kathy Hochul in 2024 and costing $2.75 million, the program created 500 paid jobs for SUNY students, with participants dedicating 300 per year to community service.

Announcing the changes, King said that students could meet the new requirements within their existing 30-credit framework, so they can avoid taking more classes. The current general education framework already includes critical thinking, reasoning, and information literacy.

A working group formed by SUNY’s Provost’s Office in June 2024 developed the plan after gathering system-wide feedback and recommendations. SUNY's Board of Trustees approved the recommendations in December 2024.

With over 3 million alumni worldwide and 1.4 million students across 64 college or university campuses, SUNY represents the largest public university system in the country. If they want, individual campuses can choose to incorporate the changes early, but they're mandatory come fall.