The community college network is launching an undergraduate degree in artificial intelligence and machine learning development, with the first courses starting on August 20, 2026.
The public network of the City Colleges of Chicago is opening its first degree course dedicated to artificial intelligence: an Associate in Applied Science in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning Development, hosted by Wilbur Wright College. The first courses of the sixteen-week semester begin on August 20, 2026, with a second session opening from September 20.
The choice of format is not insignificant. It is a diploma credited within a network of community colleges, i.e. an institution with a low financial barrier and no selection at the entrance, and not a short certificate or an optional module grafted onto an existing computer science course. The message conveyed by the management — Mark Potter, academic director of the network, Ayoka Noelle Samuels, assistant vice-chancellor, and Andres Oroz, president of Wilbur Wright College — insists precisely on this accessibility, and on the alignment of the program with the demand of employers in the region.
The movement is not isolated: The University of North Carolina at Charlotte has opened bachelor's and master's degree programs in AI, and two public universities in Kentucky are launching equivalent degrees at the beginning of the academic year. What sets Chicago apart is the target segment — short, local vocational training rather than long college courses.
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