A policy brief argues that generative AI is exposing long-standing misalignments across faculty classification, HR functions, and accreditation frameworks. The author says universities have treated faculty as interchangeable instructional labor while HR focuses on compliance, leaving institutions poorly positioned to integrate AI into teaching, research, and operations. The piece maps AI adoption across domains—teaching, research, student services, and administration—and warns that without intentional role redesign and capability-building, AI will automate tasks but not preserve core human relationships. It invokes the Texas adage “don’t eat your seed corn” to caution against short-term cost-cutting that undermines future capacity. Academic leaders and accreditation bodies are urged to treat AI as a systems issue: revise faculty roles, align HR incentives with capability-building, and use accreditation as a vehicle to certify institutional readiness rather than bureaucratic compliance.