At a time when universities around the world are regulating student use of artificial intelligence (AI), a case from Northeastern University has raised questions about whether educators themselves are playing fair.

A student caught her professor using Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools to prepare classroom content while actively discouraging students from doing the same.

This went against the guidelines by Northeastern University, stating that AI-generated material must be properly cited by both students and professors, as per a report by The New York Times.

Ella Stapleton, a student at Northeastern, filed a formal complaint after noticing odd content in her class notes, including typos, strange AI-generated images with extra limbs, and even a citation that mentioned ChatGPT. She later discovered that her professor, Rick Arrowood, had used a mix of AI tools to create his lectures and presentations.

“He’s telling us not to use it, and then he’s using it himself,” she told The New York Times. 

She filed a formal complaint and demanded a full tuition refund of $8,000 (approximately Rs 6.8 lakh), calling the teaching “subpar and automated.” The university eventually dismissed her request. 

Meanwhile, Professor Arrowood admitted he should have reviewed the material more carefully and said he hoped others could learn from the situation.

This controversy adds to growing concerns over the role of AI in higher education, where questions of fairness, academic standards, and transparency are becoming increasingly urgent. Students are often restricted or closely monitored when using AI tools like ChatGPT, while policies around faculty use remain vague or inconsistently enforced.