The University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) and Microsoft are joining forces to present a Copilot Chat Prompt-A-Thon, an event designed to immerse participants in the dynamic world of artificial intelligence, specifically through Microsoft’s Copilot Chat. Held on March 31 at the SMC Campus Center, this unique gathering is more than just an educational seminar—it’s a hands-on laboratory for experimenting with AI prompting techniques, discovering the power of secure business AI tools, and discussing the seismic impact of artificial intelligence on education and the modern workplace.
UMB’s Prompt-A-Thon isn’t your average technical workshop. Sitting at the intersection of education, enterprise technology, and digital security, this event speaks to a growing trend: organizations and educational institutions are keen to harness AI’s formidable capabilities while maintaining a strong stance on privacy and accountability. Microsoft Copilot, the centerpiece platform of the event, is billed as a secure, enterprise-friendly alternative to mainstream consumer AI tools like ChatGPT. That security-first approach underpins the event and resonates with the current climate of increasing AI skepticism and scrutiny.
What makes this event particularly timely and relevant is the rapidly shifting landscape of AI use in academia and business. With ChatGPT and similar tools grabbing headlines, many institutions—particularly those dealing with sensitive or regulated data—are seeking robust alternatives that can deliver both productivity gains and compliance. Microsoft Copilot’s claim to offer this balance places it at the center of the conversation.
In essence, prompting is both science and art: effective inputs can turn a good AI into a great listener, summarizer, or creator, while muddled prompts can yield unsatisfactory or even misleading results. This practical session aims to strip back the mystique surrounding “AI black boxes” and empower attendees to develop repeatable strategies for working with large language models like Copilot Chat.
For many, especially those new to AI or wary of its complexities, this demystification is crucial. Good prompt engineering leans on clarity, specificity, and intent, making sure end results aren’t merely accurate, but contextually and ethically sound—ever more important in fields like healthcare, law, and education.
This interactivity is more than just fun. It’s crucial for driving adoption and understanding. AI’s full potential isn’t always clear from slides or lectures; rather, it comes alive when users experiment, make mistakes, and rapidly iterate. The event’s “prompt lab” approach equips attendees to return to their own departments and teams as AI ambassadors, carrying with them not just theoretical knowledge but lived, tactile experience.
Attendees will learn about these security features firsthand and discuss how Copilot aligns with institutional policies on data sharing, FERPA, HIPAA, and other regulatory frameworks. For an institution like UMB—where sensitive research, healthcare data, and academic records are at all times in play—these assurances are not just nice to have, they’re mission-critical.
The emphasis on security isn’t a marketing platitude. Recent years have seen a steady march of data breaches and privacy controversies at the intersection of education and technology. By foregrounding a secure, institutionally managed AI tool, UMB and Microsoft are sending a clear message: the future of AI in academia is not just about progress, but responsible, ethical progress.
This duality—where promise and peril coexist—forms the backdrop of many conversations expected at the event. By elevating prompt engineering as a literacy skill, the event bets that the best defense against misuse (intentional or unintentional) is widespread, deep understanding of both the tool and its limitations.
Agents represent a frontier in productivity software, blurring the lines between automation and collaboration. The event’s exploration of agents stands as a preview of coming shifts in workplace AI, where routine tasks move ever further from the human to the machine domain—prompting larger questions about digital transformation, reskilling, and the future of work.
Attendees leave not only with technical skills but with a sense of shared mission, better equipped to evangelize secure, effective AI practices in their own corners of the university. The Prompt-A-Thon becomes a catalyst for the diffusion of AI literacy—an essential step as institutions prepare for even deeper integration of these tools.
By focusing on prompt engineering, the event smartly addresses the risk of overreliance or misunderstanding. Good prompts do not guarantee perfect answers, but they increase the odds of both relevance and accuracy. Equally, promoting transparent discussion around bias, privacy, and institutional safeguards ensures that users engage critically rather than passively.
The biggest risk, however, may lie in complacency. As AI interfaces become friendlier, users can fall into the trap of treating Copilot (or any tool) like an infallible oracle, not a probabilistic engine prone to error. The event’s emphasis on human oversight and ethical prompting is rightly central, and future iterations should redouble efforts to instill “AI skepticism” alongside “AI fluency.”
The Prompt-A-Thon, then, isn’t just a showcase for new technology. It’s an inflection point, where the ethical, practical, and social dimensions of AI come to the fore. It answers the urgent need for safe, structured environments to explore AI’s immense promise, while openly grappling with the new risks and responsibilities it imposes on users and institutions alike.
The work doesn’t end with a single event. If the Copilot Chat Prompt-A-Thon achieves its aims, it will start a long-needed conversation about institutional AI readiness—one that balances agility and caution, innovation and oversight, new skills and ethical grounding.
For the educational sector, this is the real frontier. Ready or not, AI is rapidly weaving itself into the fabric of academia and the workplace. UMB and Microsoft’s initiative is a blueprint for how to embrace this future: with open eyes, steady hands, and a determination not just to use AI—but to use it well, safely, and together.
Source: elm.umaryland.edu March 31: UMB and Microsoft Copilot Chat Prompt-A-Thon - The Elm
UMB’s Prompt-A-Thon isn’t your average technical workshop. Sitting at the intersection of education, enterprise technology, and digital security, this event speaks to a growing trend: organizations and educational institutions are keen to harness AI’s formidable capabilities while maintaining a strong stance on privacy and accountability. Microsoft Copilot, the centerpiece platform of the event, is billed as a secure, enterprise-friendly alternative to mainstream consumer AI tools like ChatGPT. That security-first approach underpins the event and resonates with the current climate of increasing AI skepticism and scrutiny.What makes this event particularly timely and relevant is the rapidly shifting landscape of AI use in academia and business. With ChatGPT and similar tools grabbing headlines, many institutions—particularly those dealing with sensitive or regulated data—are seeking robust alternatives that can deliver both productivity gains and compliance. Microsoft Copilot’s claim to offer this balance places it at the center of the conversation.
The Art and Science of Prompt Engineering
One of the day’s focal points will be “prompt engineering,” a term that’s gained traction as AI systems become more embedded in everyday workflows. The Prompt-A-Thon promises to dive into the nuances of crafting effective prompts—giving the AI explicit guidance about what to do, how not to behave, and the precise output desired.In essence, prompting is both science and art: effective inputs can turn a good AI into a great listener, summarizer, or creator, while muddled prompts can yield unsatisfactory or even misleading results. This practical session aims to strip back the mystique surrounding “AI black boxes” and empower attendees to develop repeatable strategies for working with large language models like Copilot Chat.
For many, especially those new to AI or wary of its complexities, this demystification is crucial. Good prompt engineering leans on clarity, specificity, and intent, making sure end results aren’t merely accurate, but contextually and ethically sound—ever more important in fields like healthcare, law, and education.
The Interactive Edge: Hands-On AI Experience
Unlike passive demos or keynote-heavy conferences, the Copilot Chat Prompt-A-Thon is structured around active participation. The event consists of three 90-minute sessions, each designed to maximize hands-on discovery and iterative learning. With guidance from experts steeped in both the technology and its educational implications, participants will engage directly with Copilot Chat to generate everything from emails and reports to creative content and synthesized images.This interactivity is more than just fun. It’s crucial for driving adoption and understanding. AI’s full potential isn’t always clear from slides or lectures; rather, it comes alive when users experiment, make mistakes, and rapidly iterate. The event’s “prompt lab” approach equips attendees to return to their own departments and teams as AI ambassadors, carrying with them not just theoretical knowledge but lived, tactile experience.
Security and Compliance: The Copilot Difference
A significant theme underlying the day’s activities is data protection. While consumer tools like ChatGPT are built for broad accessibility, enterprise and educational settings require assurances about where data goes, how it’s used, and who can access it. Microsoft’s Copilot Chat is positioned as a more secure answer to these questions. Its integration with corporate data governance, user authentication, and policy enforcement elevates it above platforms where data privacy and compliance are afterthoughts.Attendees will learn about these security features firsthand and discuss how Copilot aligns with institutional policies on data sharing, FERPA, HIPAA, and other regulatory frameworks. For an institution like UMB—where sensitive research, healthcare data, and academic records are at all times in play—these assurances are not just nice to have, they’re mission-critical.
The emphasis on security isn’t a marketing platitude. Recent years have seen a steady march of data breaches and privacy controversies at the intersection of education and technology. By foregrounding a secure, institutionally managed AI tool, UMB and Microsoft are sending a clear message: the future of AI in academia is not just about progress, but responsible, ethical progress.
AI in Education: Opportunities and Challenges
Throughout the event, the broader context of AI’s impact on education will be a guiding theme. AI tools—when deployed thoughtfully—have the power to revolutionize everything from lesson planning to personalized tutoring, grading, and research. The Prompt-A-Thon recognizes this potential but doesn’t shy away from the debate: What are the risks of AI-enabled plagiarism or bias? How do faculty and students stay in control as AI-generated content proliferates?This duality—where promise and peril coexist—forms the backdrop of many conversations expected at the event. By elevating prompt engineering as a literacy skill, the event bets that the best defense against misuse (intentional or unintentional) is widespread, deep understanding of both the tool and its limitations.
Copilot Agents: The New AI Colleagues
A lesser-known but rapidly emerging feature of the Copilot platform is the concept of “agents.” These specialized AI assistants go beyond chat to execute task-driven workflows, automate multi-step processes, and orchestrate information across multiple data sources. At the Prompt-A-Thon, attendees will receive an overview of these Copilot agents, gaining insight into their configuration, practical applications, and the guardrails required to keep them both helpful and safe.Agents represent a frontier in productivity software, blurring the lines between automation and collaboration. The event’s exploration of agents stands as a preview of coming shifts in workplace AI, where routine tasks move ever further from the human to the machine domain—prompting larger questions about digital transformation, reskilling, and the future of work.
The Power of Community Learning
Events like the Copilot Chat Prompt-A-Thon serve another function too: they create communities of practice. AI can be intimidating, but collective exploration—bolstered by expert facilitation and peer learning—dissolves barriers. UMB’s approach, by opening the event to hands-on participation and active experimentation, signals a broader shift in how institutions approach digital transformation: not as a top-down memo, but as a shared journey.Attendees leave not only with technical skills but with a sense of shared mission, better equipped to evangelize secure, effective AI practices in their own corners of the university. The Prompt-A-Thon becomes a catalyst for the diffusion of AI literacy—an essential step as institutions prepare for even deeper integration of these tools.
Risks and Rewards: Critical Reflections
It’s easy to be swept up by the optimism surrounding AI, but no serious analysis would ignore the underlying challenges. While Copilot Chat’s security features represent a clear departure from consumer-grade platforms, no system is immune to misuse, bias, or the possibility of “hallucinated” output—the AI’s occasional tendency to generate plausible but incorrect information.By focusing on prompt engineering, the event smartly addresses the risk of overreliance or misunderstanding. Good prompts do not guarantee perfect answers, but they increase the odds of both relevance and accuracy. Equally, promoting transparent discussion around bias, privacy, and institutional safeguards ensures that users engage critically rather than passively.
The biggest risk, however, may lie in complacency. As AI interfaces become friendlier, users can fall into the trap of treating Copilot (or any tool) like an infallible oracle, not a probabilistic engine prone to error. The event’s emphasis on human oversight and ethical prompting is rightly central, and future iterations should redouble efforts to instill “AI skepticism” alongside “AI fluency.”
Copilot Chat and the Broader AI Ecosystem
For Microsoft, Copilot Chat is more than just a product—it’s a strategic move to capture the enterprise AI market as concerns over governance and privacy accelerate. By integrating tightly with Microsoft 365 and institutional authentication, Copilot is positioned as the trusted workhorse for organizations that might otherwise shy away from AI adoption.The Prompt-A-Thon, then, isn’t just a showcase for new technology. It’s an inflection point, where the ethical, practical, and social dimensions of AI come to the fore. It answers the urgent need for safe, structured environments to explore AI’s immense promise, while openly grappling with the new risks and responsibilities it imposes on users and institutions alike.
Looking Ahead: From Prompt-A-Thon to Everyday Practice
After the excitement fades and the laptops close, the test of the event’s impact lies in what happens next. Will attendees infuse their departments with deeper AI literacy? Will UMB’s approach spark similar initiatives at other universities, as educators and administrators realize that hands-on, community-driven training is the surest route to real digital transformation?The work doesn’t end with a single event. If the Copilot Chat Prompt-A-Thon achieves its aims, it will start a long-needed conversation about institutional AI readiness—one that balances agility and caution, innovation and oversight, new skills and ethical grounding.
For the educational sector, this is the real frontier. Ready or not, AI is rapidly weaving itself into the fabric of academia and the workplace. UMB and Microsoft’s initiative is a blueprint for how to embrace this future: with open eyes, steady hands, and a determination not just to use AI—but to use it well, safely, and together.
Source: elm.umaryland.edu March 31: UMB and Microsoft Copilot Chat Prompt-A-Thon - The Elm
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