
Taylor Swaak is a senior reporter at The Chronicle of Higher Education, covering how institutions are harnessing technology to innovate. Her key areas of focus include college partnerships with ed-tech companies, and the growing use of artificial intelligence across different administrative functions of higher ed.
She wants to know when technology is adopted without due diligence, is misused, or contributes to inequity, and when practices further higher ed’s mission and are worth imitating.
Prior to joining The Chronicle, Taylor wrote for The 74, where she spearheaded the organization’s K-12 coverage of the nation’s two largest school districts — NYC Public Schools and L.A. Unified — before documenting D.C. Public Schools’ pivot to virtual learning during the Covid-19 pandemic. Her byline has also appeared in Newsday, Newsweek, The Hartford Courant, and on CNN.com.
When she’s not writing, Taylor is listening to narrative-storytelling podcasts, drinking seasonal lattes, and exploring Arlington, Va.'s expansive bike-trail system.
Stories by this Author
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Will Campuses Bite?
A Tech Giant Is Pitching a Robot Dog for Campus Security. It’s a Hard Sell.
It can run up to seven miles per hour, and climb stairs. Would you want it guarding your campus? -
Testing the Waters
Admissions Offices Need More Students and Less ‘Drudgery.’ Is AI the Answer?
Admissions staff members shared various ways they’re using — or thinking about using — artificial intelligence. -
Flash at the Bash
At Educause, Tech Vendors Vied to Draw Eyes
Fresh-baked cookies, Groucho glasses, and other bait filled the exhibit hall. -
Reviewers' Little Helper
‘We’re All Using It’: Publishing Decisions Are Increasingly Aided by AI. That’s Not Always Obvious.
Authors’ use of artificial intelligence has dominated the conversation since ChatGPT was released. But many editors and peer reviewers use it, too. -
A Long and Bumpy Road
Why Has It Been So Hard for the U. of Phoenix to Find a Home?
Part of the challenge is unique to the for-profit, experts say. Part of it is more systemic. -
Brave New World
First Came ChatGPT. Then Came the Over-the-Top Sales Pitches.
Faculty members and administrators say their inboxes are overrun with marketing emails for “new” AI tools. -
Student Privacy
Bots Are Grabbing Students’ Personal Data When They Complete Assignments
Using courseware has become unavoidable. So has giving up information. -
Hidden Costs of College
Courseware Can Be Integral to a Course. Why, Then, Are Students Footing the Bill for It?
Advocates argue that learners shouldn’t have to pay extra for products so they can complete and submit their homework. -
Outsourcing Instruction
Millions of Students a Year Are Required to Buy Courseware. Often, It Replaces the Professor.
Full of features that can substitute for teaching and largely unregulated, the technology is ripe for misuse. -
'Difficult to Move Forward'
U. of Arkansas System Trustees Say ‘No’ to Partnership With Prospective U. of Phoenix Buyer
In a narrow decision, members opted not to support a potential agreement with the entity that’s looking to purchase the for-profit college.