Dean’s Update, March 2026

Happy equinox, FCEA family! I write to you just as the Sun is about to enter Aries. Here in California, the coming of spring feels more like summer. We are in the midst of a heat wave, while several of our tutors in the Midwest and East Coast United States and Canada are buried under snow. Our poor planet Earth! Well, we move ahead with another astrological year with the Sun’s ingress into the sign of the ram. Happy International Astrology Day! 

When preparing to write this brief Dean’s Update, I did my mandatory Google search to inquire who was the first to proclaim, “International Astrology Day.” I turned to Google’s handy AI chatbot assistant, “Gemini.” Got to love that name! Apparently, our cosmic holiday was first named by members of AFAN (Association for Astrological Networking) back in the early 1990s. True? I suppose so. But, of course, I can’t know for certain and, with Gemini, there always seems to be two sides of the same coin. I wouldn’t be surprised if “International Astrology Day” is significantly older than the internet revolution. Then there is the popular interest in the “Aries point” (all 0° of Cardinal signs) as a significator of possible “fame” or “gateway” into serving the public domain. No matter what approach you take to the meaning of the Sun’s entrance into Aries, the vernal equinox in the northern hemisphere (autumnal “down under”) seems to carry the hopes and aspirations of our “New Year.” We wish all of you a joyous year ahead!

Recently, Steven has written about the positive uses and possible pitfalls of using AI in the professional world of astrology. Considering Uranus will reenter Gemini soon in late April and the planet of sudden innovation and radical insight will form a trine to Pluto in Aquarius and a sextile to Neptune in Aries, I’d like to respond to our current AI revolution and add my own “food for thought” for this powerhouse of a time for thinking outside the box. So much possibility to improve our school’s efficiency and organization! 

For example, our FCEA staff has been working hard on creating a tutor handbook, drawing not only from our many years of collective hands-on experience, but also through AI tools, summarizing key points from our tutor training workshops and through utilizing notes. A special thank you to our senior staff members, Penelope Love and Paula Wansley, for their hard work in making this handbook a reality. I also wish to thank our two Instructional Assistants, Andrea Ash and Ruby Glasspool, for contributing their wisdom and skill sets to our use of AI tools to improve the FCEA experience. We anticipate similar handbooks to help FCEA students throughout their studies as well. I am so grateful for our gifted staff! 

Penelope shared with me that at the time of the school’s opening, we really had no idea of the potential of AI to assist us in running the school, because the general public’s access to AI tools did not yet exist. In her words, “It is our years of work with the school that enabled us to assemble various pieces from the school’s earliest days up until the present day, so our handbooks are a truly holistic reflection, accounting for our core, unchanging principles and the necessary evolution as we grew over the years.” 

The pros of AI are certainly evident, but we also need to consider the flaws. Recently, our instructional assistants have been working with our tutors to discuss the best ways we can respond when we encounter AI-generated writing in our courses. This is never an easy subject to address with a student! At times, in the FCEA classroom, our tutors detect possible AI use in responding to posts or assignments. All of us at the FCEA find this subject so difficult to bring up with our students. Who wants to hear a reprimand about relying on AI? Yet, we feel we must create awareness around this topic. AI can certainly be an asset at any level of astrological study. But key is the development of our own voice and critical thinking when working with an individual’s chart. 

How else can we aspire to be the best evolutionary astrologer we can be? How do we hope to remain needed as professionals who offer a human soul connection with our clients or friends and family as we read their charts? So, I ask our dear students: Please, if you hear from our staff about a possible use of AI, don’t fret and please don’t feel discouraged. Realize we are all a team at the FCEA and we want the best educational experience for you we can provide. Let us hear your words, your ideas and your unique analysis. And if we contact you in error, please don’t hesitate to respond and please, please don’t lose faith in your studies. We know you got this! Equinox blessings to you. May we celebrate “International Astrology Day” with open hearts and with hope, AI and all, for a wonderful year ahead.

Catie Cadge, PhD
March 2026