Northern Colorado community college applauded by Department of Labor for AI implementation

Aims Community College in Northern Colorado is being recognized as a leader when it comes to incorporating artificial intelligence into its workforce studies programs.

Aims, which predominantly serves students in and around Weld County, hosted Congressman Gabe Evans and Department of Labor Deputy Secretary Keith Sonderling for a tour on Thursday. The duo was taken through the Fort Lupton campus, as students and staff from Aims showed them how they're incorporating AI into several different aspects of their studies. 

In an exclusive interview with CBS News Colorado, Sonderling said he wanted to visit the campus to see how AI could help the next generation of workers be more efficient in their jobs. 

"It is really important for me to get out and see real workforce development training happening in real time," Sonderling said. 

Aims is encouraging its students to use AI ethically and to improve their capabilities and skill sets. 

"Is it 100% of the student body that has to interact with AI?" Evans asked one staff member. 

"Right now, organically, 80-to-90% of students are interacting with it on a daily basis," they answered. 

"It is a really nice tool, it makes everything a lot quicker," one student said.

Sonderling and Evans were able to learn about several Aims programs, including those that taught students how to weld, fly drones, study animal sciences and even how to get a commercial driver's license. 

Between AI and simulators, both Evans and Sonderling were able to get hands-on understandings of how students can use technology to better perfect their otherwise physical labor studies. 

"The president wants to make America skilled again. How are we going to do that? Just like community colleges like Aims here are doing, teaching skills that are actually going to get people the jobs they need to help this economy continue to prosper," Sonderling said. 

Naturally, many across America are concerned that AI could one day eliminate the need for their work in their respective career fields. 

We asked Sonderling if Americans should be concerned about AI replacing them, rather than assisting them as Aims is intending. 

"This technology is meant to help students and eventual workers understand their jobs and do their jobs better in a more safe and efficient environment," Sonderling said. "That is why I am really excited to see how technology is going to work hand-in-hand with these students, not replace them. And, they are excited about that."

Sonderling said it's important for people to be literate in AI, something those with Aims agreed with. 

Staff at Aims said there is a difference between being literate and competent with artificial intelligence. They said they hope the college can be a bridge between the two for students. 

"All of our courses will have a little bit of AI component, so when our students go out into the workforce, they are ready and they can thrive," an Aims employee said. 

"That is what Aims is doing. You are building that workforce with modern cutting-edge technology to be able to drive us into the middle of the 21st century so we can truly build it and make it here," Evans said during a round table discussion. "And, we have to build it and make it here because the United States is not alone on the globe."