BoodleBox@Smeal

The Penn State Smeal College of Business is proud to be the first and only college at the university approved to pilot BoodleBox, a secure, enterprise-grade generative AI platform designed for education and professional collaboration. This pilot supports Smeal’s ongoing commitment to ethical, innovative, and pedagogically sound integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) across teaching, research, and operations.

BoodleBox provides access to multiple premium AI models, including GPT-4, Claude, Gemini, and Perplexity, within one secure, integrated environment. The platform is FERPA-compliant, SOC 2 certified, and ensures that user content is never used to train AI models, making it a safe, responsible environment for exploration and learning.

Smeal’s Pilot Phases

Phase 1: Faculty and Staff Access (Late Fall 2025)

During the first phase, Smeal faculty and staff (no student use during this phase) will gain access to BoodleBox for non-student-facing uses such as:

  • Customizing AI tools that streamline classroom and administrative tasks.
  • Streamlining administrative tasks (e.g., email drafting, event planning, project management).
  • Supporting research (e.g., literature reviews, summaries, data exploration).
  • Creating course materials (e.g., syllabi, rubrics, learning outcomes)
.

Phase 2: Limited Student Access (Spring 2026)

During phase 2, select courses will integrate BoodleBox directly into student learning experiences. Faculty participating in the pilot will receive hands-on support from eLDIG for:

  • Designing AI-enhanced assignments that promote critical thinking and ethical use.
  • Evaluating student learning processes, not just final outputs.
  • Using AI transparency features to gain insight into student collaboration and work processes.

Requesting Access

Smeal Faculty and Staff can request access to BoodleBox by completing an online registration form. Access is not automatic, and it may take up to 2 business days for the RIIT Group to enable your account. Once enabled, you will receive an invitation email from BoodleBox to sign into the platform using your Penn State credentials. If you do not receive an invitation email within 2 business days, contact [email protected] and we’ll confirm status within one business day.

Training Opportunties

BoodleBox and the eLDIG team are teaming up to provide a series of training opportunities. The two listed below are upcoming, with more to follow:

  • BoodleBox Overview, provided by BoodleBox (11/10, 11am-12:15pm)
  • BoodleBox Bot Design, provided by BoodleBox (11/19, 12-1pm)

Why BoodleBox?

BoodleBox was selected as part of Smeal’s AI Call to Action to provide faculty, staff, and students with a unified, secure space to experiment with AI responsibly. The platform supports:

  • Pedagogical innovation through collaborative group work, process-over-product learning assessment, and analytics that provide transparency into student engagement.
  • Operational efficiency by streamlining administrative and instructional workflows such as drafting communications, building syllabi and rubrics, or planning events and projects.
  • Equitable access to top-performing AI tools within a structured and ethical framework that models professional best practices.

Key Features

  • Multiple Premium AI Models: Access GPT-4.1, Claude, Perplexity, and more within one secure platform.
  • Collaborative Learning Spaces: Group chats and shared workspaces allow teams to brainstorm, research, and co-create deliverables.
  • Process Transparency: Instructors can view student-AI interactions to assess participation, application of knowledge, and responsible AI use.
  • AI Bot Access: Quickly design custom tools or “bots” for academic or administrative purposes, or select from a large library of pre-built bots to use or customize.
  • Secure, Compliant Infrastructure: FERPA and SOC 2 compliant with enterprise-grade data protection.

Responsible and Ethical Use

While BoodleBox offers a safe environment, users are expected to practice responsible AI use:

  • Recognizing and mitigating potential AI inaccuracies or biases
  • Maintaining academic integrity and transparency
  • Understanding privacy, data protection, and accessibility requirements

Data & Compliance

  • Review the BoodleBox Data Privacy site for detailed information.
  • BoodleBox meets WCAG 2.1 AA Guidelines and has been reviewed and approved by Penn
    State Accessibility.
  • Follow Penn State’s FERPA, records retention, data classification (AD95), and IRB guidelines.
    Only Level 1 (public) or Level 2 (moderate) data may be used in BoodleBox—never Level 3 or 4 (highly
    confidential) data

Support & Community