# AI Literacy for Akron — Workshop Curriculum **Program name (working):** AI Literacy for Akron: A Practical Introduction **Delivered by:** Jason Murphy / VibeTokens LLC **Delivery partners (proposed):** Akron-Summit County Public Library, Bounce Innovation Hub, University of Akron continuing education **Audience:** Adult residents of Akron and Summit County — no technical background assumed, no age target, explicitly welcoming to people who feel the technology has passed them by **Cost to attendees:** Free (grant-funded) **Format:** 6-module series, 90 minutes per module, delivered as either a single 6-week series or as standalone sessions **Grant targets this curriculum supports:** Ohio Humanities Quick/Major Grant, Knight Foundation Akron, ASCPL programming partnership, Burton D. Morgan Foundation (via fiscal sponsor), Ohio workforce development contracts --- ## Program Philosophy This workshop is not a sales funnel. It is not a sponsored product walkthrough. It is not an "AI will take your job" fear talk or an "AI will solve everything" hype talk. It is a practical, honest, hands-on introduction to a category of tools that has reshaped how one local practitioner runs a small business — delivered by that practitioner at the public library, for free, for anyone who walks in. The philosophy is three things: 1. **Show the work, don't pitch the tools.** Every session demonstrates real tasks being performed live, not polished pre-recorded demos. 2. **Use free versions whenever possible.** Attendees must be able to replicate everything demonstrated without paying monthly subscriptions. Paid tools are acknowledged where relevant but never required. 3. **Meet people where they are.** The curriculum assumes zero prior experience with AI tools and does not require attendees to own a laptop — phones work for all modules, and the library will provide loaner devices for anyone who needs one. --- ## Module 1 — What AI Actually Is and Is Not (Week 1) **Duration:** 90 minutes **Format:** 30 minutes presentation, 30 minutes live demonstration, 30 minutes hands-on exercise with support ### Learning Objectives By the end of this module, attendees will be able to: - Distinguish between common misconceptions about AI and what the current tools actually do - Describe in plain language what a language model is and is not - Recognize the difference between chatbots, image generators, and specialized AI tools - Identify one free AI tool they can open on their phone right now ### Topics - "The AI category" in 2026 — what exists, what it is called, what it costs (free vs paid) - What language models actually do (pattern matching on text, not thinking) - What they are good at, what they are bad at, what they will lie about - The difference between "AI that searches" and "AI that generates" - Honest conversation about privacy, data collection, and what happens when you type things into these tools ### Hands-On Exercise Attendees open a free AI chatbot on their phones (Claude.ai free tier, ChatGPT free tier, or Google Gemini — attendees pick) and perform three scripted tasks: 1. Ask it to explain something the attendee is already an expert in (so they can catch its mistakes) 2. Ask it to summarize a long email they have received recently 3. Ask it to rewrite a short paragraph in a different tone ### Takeaway Handout One-page "AI Tools Cheat Sheet" listing free versions of the major tools with QR codes to each. --- ## Module 2 — Writing With AI (Week 2) **Duration:** 90 minutes ### Learning Objectives - Use an AI tool to draft, edit, and improve written work - Recognize when an AI-generated draft needs human correction - Develop a personal "AI proofreading checklist" ### Topics - Drafting vs editing — which one AI is actually good at - The "voice" problem — how to keep AI-written text from sounding like AI-written text - Prompting as a skill (not magic words — just clear instructions) - When to use AI for writing and when to absolutely not - The importance of reading what you post — AI will confidently make things up ### Hands-On Exercise Attendees each bring (or draft on the spot) one piece of writing that matters to them: - A letter they have been meaning to send - A resume summary - A product description for something they sell - A speech for a family event - A complaint letter to a company that wronged them Using a free AI tool, each attendee produces three versions: the original, the AI-assisted draft, and the hybrid they actually want to send. Time at the end for peer feedback. --- ## Module 3 — Research and Finding Information (Week 3) **Duration:** 90 minutes ### Learning Objectives - Use AI tools to find and summarize information quickly - Verify AI-generated information against primary sources - Spot AI "hallucinations" — confidently-stated false information — before relying on them ### Topics - AI search vs Google search — when to use which - How to ask research questions that get real answers - The citation problem — AI tools make up sources that do not exist - Cross-checking techniques that take 30 seconds and prevent embarrassment - How to use AI for personal tasks: comparing products, understanding medical information (with caveats), researching legal questions (with bigger caveats) ### Hands-On Exercise Each attendee picks a research question they have actually been meaning to look up — something real from their life. They use an AI tool to answer it, then the instructor walks around helping them verify what they found. The point is not to trust the AI. The point is to use it as a starting point and then do the human work of checking. --- ## Module 4 — AI for Job Search and Career (Week 4) **Duration:** 90 minutes ### Learning Objectives - Use AI tools to improve resumes, cover letters, and job applications - Prepare for job interviews using AI practice partners - Recognize the limits of AI for career decisions ### Topics - Resume rewriting using AI (and the limits — AI will write generic fluff if you let it) - Cover letter drafting for specific job postings - Interview preparation — using AI as a practice interviewer - LinkedIn profile optimization - Networking message drafting - Job search strategy conversations with AI (with appropriate skepticism) ### Hands-On Exercise Attendees bring a real job posting they are considering and a current version of their resume. Using AI tools, they produce a tailored resume and a cover letter specific to that posting. The instructor provides one-on-one feedback on each attendee's output. This is a module where people frequently leave with something they send the same week. --- ## Module 5 — AI for Small Business and Side Hustles (Week 5) **Duration:** 90 minutes ### Learning Objectives - Use AI tools to handle the administrative and creative work of running a small business or side hustle - Identify which tasks to automate and which to keep manual - Estimate the time savings honestly ### Topics - AI for social media content (with examples from the instructor's actual business) - AI for responding to customer emails - AI for creating product descriptions, service descriptions, pricing pages - AI for drafting basic contracts, quotes, and invoices - AI for generating simple images and graphics - What NOT to use AI for (bookkeeping without human review, legal contracts without an attorney, anything where errors compound) - Live demonstration of the instructor's actual VibeTokens workflow — showing, not telling ### Hands-On Exercise Each attendee picks one real administrative task from their life or side hustle and uses AI to complete it from start to finish during the session. The instructor circulates and provides feedback on quality and where the AI output still needs human cleanup. --- ## Module 6 — Accessibility, Assistive Use, and What Comes Next (Week 6) **Duration:** 90 minutes ### Learning Objectives - Understand how AI tools can work as assistive technology for people with disabilities, older adults, and anyone with physical limitations - Develop a personal "continue learning" plan for after the workshop series ends - Recognize that the technology will keep changing — and how to stay current without getting overwhelmed ### Topics - Voice-first workflows (how to use AI entirely by speaking rather than typing) - AI tools for reading assistance, visual description, and accessibility - How the instructor personally uses AI as assistive technology for a neurological movement disorder - The community aspect — what changes when entire neighborhoods start using these tools - A plain-language conversation about AI ethics, safety, and what to watch for - How to keep learning after this series: YouTube channels, free courses, community forums, and staying skeptical of hype ### Hands-On Exercise Attendees set up one voice-first feature on their phone (built-in dictation, a free AI voice input, or a screen reader) and practice using it to interact with an AI chatbot. The goal is not to become a power user — it is to experience the technology being adaptive to the person, rather than requiring the person to adapt to the technology. ### Program Closing Each attendee receives a one-page personalized "next steps" handout the instructor helps them fill out: one tool they want to keep using, one task they want to keep doing with AI, and one thing they want to learn next. Exchange contact information for peer follow-up. Announcement of next cohort dates. --- ## Curriculum Extensions (optional, grant-funded add-ons) **Workshop Follow-Up Clinic** Drop-in help sessions at the library on a recurring schedule (every other Saturday afternoon, for example) where past attendees can come back with specific problems. Low-structure, peer-driven, staffed by the instructor. **YouTube Companion Series** Free video recordings of each module, released on a VibeTokens-branded YouTube channel, so people who cannot attend in person can follow along at their own pace. The curriculum translates cleanly to video and the YouTube arm is a deliberate part of the grant strategy. **Workshop-to-Certificate Pathway** For attendees who complete all 6 modules and a final capstone exercise, a certificate of completion that they can list on LinkedIn or include in a job application. This is a workforce development angle that opens additional grant funding categories. **Business-Focused Intensive** A more advanced 2-day version targeted at small business owners specifically, delivered through a partnership with Bounce Innovation Hub or the Summit County SBDC. This variant is the upsell — free for individual attendees, potentially sponsored by a corporate partner or local chamber of commerce. --- ## Why This Curriculum Wins Grants This section is for grant writers and is not part of the workshop itself. Ohio Humanities and Knight Foundation Akron both fund exactly this type of programming. What makes this specific curriculum more fundable than a generic AI workshop: 1. **Community impact is built into every module, not bolted on.** The job search module produces real applications. The small business module produces real marketing assets. The accessibility module is demonstrably tied to the instructor's own disability accommodation. Grant reviewers can point to concrete outcomes in the application. 2. **The instructor is a local practitioner, not an out-of-state consultant.** Akron grantmakers fund Akron people. This is a direct fit for the geographic mission of Knight Akron, GAR Foundation, and Burton D. Morgan Foundation. 3. **The library partnership makes fiscal sponsorship clean.** Ohio Humanities requires a nonprofit or fiscal sponsor for most programs. ASCPL is the natural fit and converts the entire funding question from "give money to a for-profit LLC" to "fund a library program delivered in partnership with a local practitioner." This framing typically doubles the odds of approval. 4. **The accessibility angle strengthens disability-focused grant applications.** Disability:IN, 2Gether-International, and the Ohio OOD IPE all benefit from having a documented community-facing accessibility mission attached to the business plan. 5. **It is cheap to deliver.** Six sessions, one instructor, library-provided space. Total delivery cost can run under $3,000 including print materials. Grant reviewers love a program where every dollar of funding produces visible outputs.