Sheridan College has a worldwide reputation for fostering creativity and self expression, being one of the leading schools in creative arts. Yet, within recent years landmark courses have been put at risk. Due to major budget cuts, forty programs have been cut entirely, many of which were still in high demand from the public. It recently came to our attention that Sheridan is bringing in courses that center around the use of AI. 

There is no room for generative AI at an institution that has built itself on seeking students who thrive off creativity. Our careers as creatives are already at risk, AI is an ever-looming threat that is being continuously pushed into the mainstream and despite public outcry. AI is rapidly growing, and it should not be used to replace the arts, jobs, or our own minds, and we need to help stop it. 

Sheridan College, or any college for that matter, should not be reinforcing the use of generative AI. While some professors have truly tried to keep it away from our learning, the school is making the wrongful choice of having us “learn” to use it. 

Intelligence and creativity does not come from typing in a prompt. It comes from our unique minds, something no computer can copy. 

AI is also extremely dangerous and impactful in the fields of film, animation, illustration, and creative design. As we see a dramatic increase of AI generated images, videos, and even websites, regurgitating a soulless amalgamation of real artists creations, it becomes increasingly threatening to our futures. This fight extends beyond our school walls and will follow us into our careers, so why is our institution working against the students best wishes and pushing productivity over creativity?

It is time for students to unify against our common enemy. Please help keep our industries safe, and sign this petition if you believe we need to keep it out of our schools.