What’s new this fall, Cards

Every year, Cardinals arrive at the University of Louisville and UofL faculty and staff work to create new programs and improvements to support the student experience.

From new resources to new programs, here's a list of what's new for the 2026-27 academic year:

• SafeZone

The University of Louisville Department of Public Safety announced the university's new official emergency alert system, SafeZone.

SafeZone replaces the RAVE university alert system as well as the Card Armor safety mobile app. RAVE and Card Armor will be retired Sept. 1., and SafeZone will become the university's sole emergency notification and personal safety platform. Look for an email invitation to download the SafeZone app from [email protected].

The new platform provides students, faculty and staff with emergency help, non-emergency assistance, check-ins, support services and official university alerts.

• Bingham Humanities Building renovation

All students will benefit from redesigned classrooms with updated technology, new spaces for collaboration and study, improved accessibility, upgraded infrastructure and enhancements that bring more natural light into the Bingham Humanities Building.

A reopening ceremony coincided with Welcome Week festivities as new Cardinals arrived for the fall semester.

• UofL Dining is cashless

In an effort to improve the dining experience, UofL Dining locations will no longer accept cash transactions. Students and guests may continue to use meal swipes, Flex Points, credit and debit cards and mobile payment options for food purchases.

• Campus construction

Over the spring and summer, University Planning, Design and Construction completed several projects on Belknap Campus to enhance the pedestrian experience and improve accessibility. Upgrades were made to existing pedestrian ramps throughout campus walkways. Additionally, new light fixtures were added to campus light poles, both new and existing, to improve visibility along pedestrian pathways before sunrise and after sunset.

The Bridwell Art Library, located in Schneider Hall, is in the final stages of a complete south-side window renovation overlooking the Cochran Fountain.

• Cardinal Intelligence

This spring, the University of Louisville launched Cardinal Intelligence to empower the university to lead and learn in the age of artificial intelligence (AI) with human-centered guidance and responsibility to develop new innovative initiatives and projects.

The latest AI-resources for Cardinals include:

Career readiness with AI

The UofL Career Center is adopting Quinncia, an AI-powered career readiness platform, to provide students with personalized feedback on resumes, mock interviews, job skills analysis and other preparation. Rather than generating content for students, Quinncia coaches users through an iterative process of feedback and revision that strengthens student career readiness.

Google Gemini

Information Technology Services announced the campuswide deployment of Google's premium AI ecosystem and tools. With a @louisville.edu user ID, Cardinals can now access the Google Gemini AI assistant for brainstorming, drafting text, writing code, generating images and streamlining workflows. Louisville account holders can also access Google Workspace Plus tools including Google Drive, Docs, Sheets, Slides, Meet, Forms, Notebook and more.

Kentucky Center for Digital Innovation

This summer, UofL launched the Kentucky Center for Digital Innovation to support a secure and advanced digital future for Kentucky and beyond as part of the UofL Office of Research and Innovation. The center's collaborative work will include faculty from the UofL School of Medicine, J.B. Speed School of Engineering, the Colleges of Business, Education and Human Development and Arts and Sciences and UofL Health. Additionally, the university plans to construct secure facilities suitable for classified research and contract work as well as a cyber range to simulate cyberattacks for training.

• #BeWellUofL

A cross-campus student wellness initiative led by Student Activities and in partnership with several units such as Campus Health, Counseling Center, PEACC, Campus Recreation and Wellness, and University Housing & the Resident Experience is launching this fall. The #BeWellUofL program highlights eight specific dimensions of wellness including: emotional, environmental, financial, intellectual, physical, social, spiritual and career.

• New with libraries

Digital Collections, a subset of Archives & Special Collections, is working on revamping the digital archive's interface, which makes millions of images and photographs available and accessible online.

Librarians Amber Willenborg and Tessa Withorn recently published an open textbook, "Critical AI Literacy for College Students," designed to provide students with a deeper and more nuanced examination of AI and its implications. Intended for college students, the textbook includes an instructor's guide in each chapter with suggested activities and assignments. Faculty can also incorporate individual chapters into courses or assign them as pre-work for library instruction sessions to encourage discussion and critical engagement with AI.

• Program additions at UofL

UofL is rolling out several new academic offerings across campus. In the College of Business, students can now pursue a bachelor's degree in global supply chain management. Meanwhile, the College of Education and Human Development is adding a business of college athletics minor, and the College of Arts and Sciences is expanding the graphic design major with two new tracks - interaction design and product design.

Students also can learn in some of the newest AI-focused programs, including a bachelor's program in computer science with a focus in AI, a minor in AI in business, a minor in AI in digital communication and certificate programs focused on AI in medicine and instructional computer technology.

• Innovation Park project development

UofL announced plans for a federally funded Center for Bioscience, a research and innovation facility and the first building to be constructed in an innovation park on the former Kentucky Trailer property just south of Belknap's campus. A $70 million federal appropriation will fund construction of the approximately 70,000 square foot building. The Center for Bioscience will be designed as a collaborative space for research and innovation teams from UofL's Health Sciences Center and Belknap Campus, bringing together researchers from biosciences, engineering, computational science and related disciplines to accelerate discovery.

• New LED stadium lights

Earlier this year, the University of Louisville Athletic Association (ULAA) Board approved a stadium lighting enhancement project at L&N Cardinal Stadium that will be supported by Isac and Carrie Roths. The essential infrastructure update will not only enhance game-day guest experience, visibility and safety, but the LED upgrade will bring L&N Cardinal Stadium in line with current standards for Power 4 football programs.

• Reduced energy improvements

The university is currently in process of upgrading its Chilled Water Plant. UofL's main Belknap Campus central utility plant will deliver up to 12,000 tons of cooling capacity and comfort to campus while achieving more than a 20% reduction in energy consumption. The Chilled Water Plant's improvements will play a key role in meeting UofL's Climate Action Plan 2030 goals.