What role should AI and technology play in higher education? How do we balance innovation and ethics? How can colleges and universities address technical debt and modernize without compromising their missions?
I recently chatted with Dr. Pablo Molina, Associate Vice President and Chief Information Security Officer at Drexel University, for his thoughtful, insightful take on these questions and more. A seasoned leader with deep technical and academic ethics expertise, his insights were timely.
Dr. Molina’s career spans continents and sectors, but a central thread runs through it: a deep respect for the human impact of technological choices. “An interest for technology, an interest for teaching, and an interest for ethics that brought me into my current roles of being a university executive in technology functions,” shared Dr. Molina.
That intersection—where innovation meets accountability—is where higher education must operate today. From his earliest days programming Hewlett Packard calculators to his work building AI policy frameworks, Molina’s focus has been on solving real problems in ethical ways.
The AI Hype—and the Real Opportunity
Dr. Molina is a believer in AI’s potential to transform higher ed, but he’s also a realist.
He notes, “A hype around artificial intelligence by which is supposed to solve every single problem. Well, it won’t.”
AI can do a number of things very well such as compose text, machine learning, but there are still many things where artificial intelligence is not particularly good such as predicting the future where human beings are involved.
During our conversation Dr. Molina cautioned against relying on AI for high-stakes academic decisions—like admissions, grading, or hiring—but embraced its role in boosting productivity and streamlining operations. AI’s value, he argued, will come from careful, mission-aligned integration.
“Those who provide our e-mail and all their productivity tools, they are going to offer artificial intelligence in their tools and we’re going to judiciously accept those offerings and adopt them,” he explained.
And it’s not just administrators who stand to benefit. “I see that students are already benefiting tremendously,” Dr. Molina noted.
Principles Over Promises
Dr. Molina emphasized the importance of principled leadership in digital transformation. That means more than just good intentions—it means structure, scrutiny, and strategy.
“If your mission is research, or maybe both education and research,” he said, “then… make sure that your projects, your strategies… support that particular mission.”
He called on institutions to embed privacy and security “by design,” avoid the lure of flashy solutions, and practice data minimization—a concept many institutions still struggle to apply consistently.
And perhaps most importantly, he urged leaders to consider not just whether something works, but whether it’s good. “Is this responsible computing going to hurt some categories of individuals while providing additional benefits to others?”
Technical Debt Is Real—and Risky
With 61 replace of institutions deferring key tech updates, according to a recent Educause poll, Dr. Molina warned against short-term thinking.
“It’s a little bit like shooting yourself in the foot because you’re not making your institution as productive as it could be”, he said. “But we understand that in a difficult year, you must cut corners and technology upgrades that can be deferred, that can be still implemented two to three years.
He was blunt about the stakes: “Delaying some of the updates if you increase the risk of a major data leak…In the end, you didn’t save any money. All the money you thought you saved made everybody more miserable, increased the risk… and certainly did not improve the bottom line.”
What’s Next?
Looking ahead, Molina sees AI and quantum computing as transformative forces—but not in isolation. “Computing capacity… can be put in the hands of many… to really make a difference solving some of the intractable problems.”
And he’s optimistic about the next generation. “Our next employees coming from the schools today are going to be spectacular…They will be able to hit the ground running much faster than past generations of students.”
Final Advice
“In order to solve problems,” Dr. Molina reminded us, “one must have a clear thinking, a strategic thinking, a clear vision of what is it that you’re trying to do… and then be very disciplined about it.”
Responsible AI isn’t a buzzword—it’s a framework for making thoughtful, inclusive decisions about technology. For IT leaders higher education, the message is clear: progress isn’t just about adopting the newest tools. It’s about aligning those tools with purpose, policy, and people.
Because higher education isn’t broken. It just needs to work smarter.
The author, Alberto Aguirre, is Managing Director, Education at Softtek.