This session explores how AI can expand—not replace—creative thinking in the illustration classroom. Rather than enforcing or rejecting AI, the assignment presented students with choice: work traditionally, digitally, collaboratively with AI, or not at all. Through a book cover series project using traditional and digital tools alongside platforms such as Firefly, Midjourney, and DALL·E, students compared workflows, tested hybrid methods, and reflected on authorship and creative agency. Some embraced AI for ideation and efficiency, while others questioned or resisted it, revealing meaningful differences in process, control, and intuition. Critiques became a space to evaluate output with and without AI, encouraging critical decision-making, material exploration, and personal voice. This session will share student work, methods, and outcomes, offering practical strategies for guiding AI use in illustration education.