Erin Lewber

Building strategy. Developing talent. Driving growth.That’s the work - inside Amazon and inside the careers of the women I support.At Amazon Business, I lead Account Management for a multi-billion-dollar portfolio, supporting Fortune 100–1000 customers. I manage a multi-layer team (leaders and ICs) and built global strategic account management strategy to close gaps in customer adoption and retention - creating a model now used worldwide.The work sits at the intersection of sales, consulting, and customer success:- solve complex customer problems- drive adoption and retention- build durable growth engines- develop high-performing teamsI’m consistently rated in the top tier of people managers at Amazon, based on daily team feedback.Outside of Amazon, I’m the founder of Erin Lewber Coaching - a boutique coaching firm supporting women in two key seasons:1) Career pivots + job search executionResume strategy, LinkedIn, interview prep, and momentum - supported by my coaching team.2) Executive advisory + strategic thinking partnershipFor women navigating complex career and leadership decisions - where getting it right matters. This is judgment-driven work, not templates or assessments. We lay the full situation on the table, pressure-test options, and move forward with clarity and confidence.If you’re navigating a pivot, promotion, or a decision that deserves real discernment, you’re in the right place.Focus areas: Sales leadership • Growth strategy • Strategic account management • Executive advisory • Leadership communication • Career pivots • Interview strategy • Women’s leadership

Head of Strategic Adoption, Sr. B2B Sales Leader

I lead a team of 12 to drive adoption of Amazon Business within AB's Fortune 1000 customer base.  

In this role, I've developed, launched, and scaled the Strategic Adoption role across Amazon Business.

Educator ➡️ Freelancer | Content with EI | Learning AI

I didn’t come to chase trends, I came to build what education needs.

I’m Jessica Maddry, co-founder of BrightMinds AI, architect of the PURPOSE framework for ethical AI in schools, and author of Beyond the Machine: Teaching with PURPOSE in the Age of AI.

With over two decades in education — from classrooms to leadership in the UAE to building district-level strategy in the U.S. — I’ve seen firsthand how disconnected tools, top-down mandates, and compliance-driven systems erode the joy of learning and the power of teaching.

That’s why I help school systems and edtech leaders cut through the noise. Through research-backed consulting and hands-on frameworks, I support:

*School districts building safe, ethical, and sustainable AI integration plans
*Leadership teams evaluating tool adoption through strategic, student-centered lenses
*Edtech organizations aligning products to actual classroom needs and policy guardrails

My work is rooted in the belief that purpose must lead — in pedagogy, technology, and policy.
If you're seeking guidance that centers equity, intention, and impact — not just innovation — I’d be honored to support your next move.

Jessica Maddry, M.EdLT

AI made answers instant.
Policy shifts made content fluid.

Research across disciplines points to the same conclusion:

The most durable thing education can protect
is the ability to think.

#TeachingForThinking #RigorRedefined #AIinEducation
#CivicLearning #EducationLeadership #EducationWithPurpose #BrightMindsAI

Co-Founder @ BrightMinds AI | Building Safe & Purposeful AI Integration in K–12 | Strategic Advisor to Schools & Districts | Ethical EdTech Strategist | PURPOSE Framework Architect

AI in Curriculum 

Happy #SocialSaturday ☀️

Here’s why I believe in using LinkedIn to its fullest.

I left the #classroom — but I never left #education.

Since then, this platform has helped me:

• Meet my cofounder Claire Smizer (must follow)
• Build BrightMinds AI into a real #educationalservices company
• Collaborate with #superintendents and #founders
• Turn conversations on #AIinEducation and #EdTechPolicy into partnerships
• Share #research, frameworks, and bold ideas publicly
• Collaborate with amazing people to contribute a book

Yes — the book is officially live. 📘
https://a.co/d/02HWwVm3

This book exists because of conversations that started right here.

#LinkedIn isn’t just a resume site.
It’s a thinking space. A collaboration engine. A launchpad.

If we’re not connected yet, let’s change that:
https://lnkd.in/g5WFbwNQ

Your next opportunity might start with one post.

#transitioningteachers #educationalleadership #socialsaturday #k12education #aiineducation #opportunity

𝐖𝐞 𝐦𝐚𝐲 𝐛𝐞 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐭𝐨𝐨𝐥𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐡𝐮𝐦𝐚𝐧 𝐡𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲…
while raising a generation struggling to function.

𝐓𝐰𝐨 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐬. 𝐀 𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐥𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞.
Smarter machines.
More fragile humans.

Part of the work Claire and I do requires staying on top of very different perspectives shaping the future of education and emerging technology.

🔷 Optimists.
🔷 Skeptics.
🔷 Researchers.
🔷 Policy leaders.

Not to choose a side.
But to understand the signals leaders need to see.

𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐈 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐝𝐢𝐠𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐰𝐨 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐬:

1️⃣ Machines of Loving Grace by Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei — a forward-looking essay exploring how AI could dramatically expand human capability.

2️⃣ The Sapien Labs Global Mind Health Report — a global study documenting declining mind health across 85 countries.

Two completely different conversations.
Placed side by side, they reveal a question education leaders cannot ignore:

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐚𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬… 
𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐡𝐮𝐦𝐚𝐧 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐝𝐞𝐜𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬?

Education sits directly at that intersection.

Over the next few weeks I’ll unpack insights from both works:
• the fears surrounding AI
• the documented global trends
• and what education leaders can do about it

Because when systems lose sight of their purpose:
🟣▶ Processes get refined.
🟣▶ Systems get optimized.
🟣▶ Efficiency increases.

Until the system drifts away from the reason it existed.
I call that 𝘙𝘦𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘥𝘦.

𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐞.

#AIinEducation #EducationLeadership #FutureOfEducation #EdTechPolicy
#HumanCenteredAI #SystemicChange

New connections welcome! 💛
Happy #socialsaturday 

If we just connected, hi! You’ve officially entered the #education + #AI + #edtech questions corner of LinkedIn.

If you’re a #teacher, #educationalleader, #founder, #policymaker, #researcher, or building in #edtech... you’re in the right place.

Follow along. Nothing wild.
But there’s always something new.

That’s the best way to stay tuned. 😉

I searched for “Macbeth essay questions.”
Then I searched “Compare and contrast the ambition of Macbeth with that of Lady Macbeth.”

Same ecosystem.
Very different cognitive starting lines.

This isn’t a moral panic.
It’s an architectural shift.

If we want to assess thinking, we have to design for it.

Swipe through.

#AIandEducation #AssessmentShift #TeachingWriting #EducationPolicy #LearningDesign #CriticalThinking #EdLeadership #BeyondTheTool

Changing the task...

𝟐𝟎𝐭𝐡 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐓𝐞𝐜𝐡𝐧𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐲, 𝐄𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐃𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞...Presentation complete #INTED2026

Claire & I have been building quietly.

2026 won’t be incremental.
It will be architectural.
More coming soon.

#AIinEducation #EducationLeadership #BrightMindsAI

𝐒𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐀𝐈 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥𝐬… 𝐨𝐟𝐟.

Everyone is debating the tools.
💻 Should students use them?
💻 Should teachers ban them?
💻 Will they replace writing?
💻 Will they replace thinking?

But the real shift might be happening somewhere else entirely.
Students are struggling more with:
⚠️ sustained attention
⚠️  frustration tolerance
⚠️ ambiguity
⚠️ delayed gratification

☯️ The Global Mind Health Report from Sapien Labs documents declining mental functioning among younger generations across dozens of countries.

𝐍𝐨𝐭 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞... 
𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞.

☯️ At the same time, leaders in AI development, like Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, are openly describing how dramatically machine intelligence may accelerate.

What if we didn’t lose productive struggle because of AI…
What if we’ve been optimizing it out for years?

AI may simply be accelerating something education systems have been optimizing for years:
🏁 Speed.
🏁 Efficiency.
🏁 Outputs.

Many leaders describe the same tension:
Students who are incredibly capable with tools…
but struggle with the stamina required to solve difficult problems.

So what’s the first step in reversing 𝘙𝘦𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘥𝘦?

🛡️ Protect productive struggle.
🛡️ Not every problem should be solved faster.
🛡️ Some problems are meant to be wrestled with.

That’s where resilience — and real thinking — are built.

The goal of education has never been efficiency.
It has always been growth.

If you’re thinking through these questions in your own school or organization, I’d love to hear what you’re seeing.

#AIinEducation #EducationLeadership #FutureOfEducation #HumanCenteredAI #PurposeDrivenEducation #Refinicide

𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐎𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐌𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐬, 𝐒𝐨 𝐃𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐀𝐜𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲.

More responsibilities were shifted out of the U.S. Department of Education through interagency agreements.

𝐍𝐨𝐭 𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝. 
𝐑𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝.

➡️ School safety grants.
➡️ Community schools funding.
➡️ Family engagement programs.

𝐀𝐝𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐞𝐥𝐬𝐞𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞. 
𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐦𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐫𝐚𝐥. 
𝐈𝐭’𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭.

Because oversight determines:
• Who writes the guidance
• Who interprets compliance
• Who monitors implementation
• Who districts call when something goes wrong

𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐟𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐦𝐨𝐯𝐞, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐦𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐬. 
𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐬 𝐰𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥 𝐢𝐭 𝐢𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐲; 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲’𝐥𝐥 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥 𝐢𝐭...

💬 When reporting requirements change.
💬 When guidance language shifts.
💬 When enforcement patterns evolve.

𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐬𝐧’𝐭 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐎𝐄 𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬.
𝐈𝐭’𝐬 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐬.

While many of us debate AI literacy and digital fluency…
the governance structure around education is quietly being reconfigured.

𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞’𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭:

Students can master AI tools.
But if they don’t understand how agencies shift authority, how oversight migrates, and how bureaucratic power reorganizes…
they will inherit systems they were never taught to interpret.

Structural change rarely trends.
But it determines everything downstream.

So here’s the real question:
Are we teaching students to analyze tools…
or to analyze systems?

#EducationPolicy #FederalGovernance #CivicLiteracy #USDepartmentOfEducation #EducationLeadership #GovernanceMatters #AIandEducation

𝐖𝐞’𝐫𝐞 𝐀𝐫𝐠𝐮𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐄𝐬𝐬𝐚𝐲𝐬. 
𝐏𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐈𝐬 𝐁𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐑𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐮𝐭𝐞𝐝.

And what we choose to notice says everything.

While entire feeds debate whether writing is sacred…
the architecture governing U.S. education is being rearranged.

Not hypothetically.
Right now.

• U.S. DOE responsibilities are shifting through interagency agreements.
• Oversight is moving without a dramatic abolition vote.
• Budget authority was reasserted by Congress.

Here’s what strikes me:
We will spend weeks arguing about writing.
About banning phones.
About banning AI.

Meanwhile, institutional power is shifting through paperwork.
If writing is about thinking, logic, and civic capacity…
then this is the test.

Can students:
• Trace how authority moves?
• Understand how budgets shape priorities?
• Recognize when institutional design changes?
• Ask why the vehicle exists in the first place?

If we only measure product,
we miss whether students understand governance.
And governance is moving.

This is the shift we help schools design for.
If you are in the driver’s seat, rethinking direction, let’s talk.

#EducationPolicy #CivicLiteracy #Governance #EducationLeadership #AIinEducation #K12Education #AssessmentDesign #FutureOfEducation

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟖 𝐄𝐃𝐔𝐂𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐋𝐋𝐈𝐆𝐄𝐍𝐂𝐄 𝐃𝐈𝐕𝐈𝐃𝐄
𝘈 𝘋𝘪𝘴𝘱𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘢 𝘍𝘶𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘞𝘦 𝘊𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦

A memo titled “The 2028 Global Intelligence Crisis” went viral this week.
Not because it predicted a crash.
Because it identified a threshold.

𝐈𝐭𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐠𝐮𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐬𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐞:
When AI makes human intelligence abundant, 
the economic systems built on its scarcity begin to shift.

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞:
AI becomes highly capable →
Firms reduce human labor →
Spending contracts →
Markets reprice risk →
A feedback loop accelerates disruption.

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙩𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙜𝙚𝙧 𝙬𝙖𝙨𝙣’𝙩 𝙥𝙖𝙣𝙞𝙘. 
𝙄𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙘𝙖𝙥𝙖𝙗𝙞𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙮.

Education also runs on a scarce input:
𝘏𝘶𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘤𝘰𝘨𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯!

If AI automates drafting, summarizing, procedural reasoning, and foundational thinking at scale, we have to ask:

What shifts?
What erodes?
What strengthens?
What loops form?

This week, I’m mapping the education parallel.
Not to predict collapse.
But to examine design.

Because the divide won’t begin with failure.
It will begin with optimization.

Tomorrow: When AI became “good enough” for schools.

#AIinEducation #EducationLeadership #SystemsThinking #K12 #FutureOfLearning #FutureOfEducation

𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐁𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐬 𝐚 𝐅𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐋𝐨𝐨𝐩

In the memo, the danger wasn’t the first substitution.
𝘐𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘱.

🔁 AI displaced workers.
🔁 Displaced workers reduced spending.
🔁 Reduced demand pressured firms.
🔁 Firms adopted more AI.

ᯓ➤Acceleration ᯓ➤The system reinforced itself

𝐄𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐢𝐭𝐬 𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐩.

🔁 Students offload foundational reasoning.
🔁 Less practice reduces cognitive stamina.
🔁 Reduced stamina increases reliance.
🔁 Increased reliance justifies more offload.

Automation → reduced friction → increased dependency → more automation

It looks efficient...
✔️ Grades hold
✔️ Time is saved
✔️ Assignments get submitted

But capacity compounds downward just as quickly 
as efficiency compounds upward. 

𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐩.
ⓘ The first offload feels helpful.
ⓘ The tenth offload feels necessary.
ⓘ And necessity reshapes norms.

The loop doesn’t stop itself.
Design the counter-loop.

🤖 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐥𝐨𝐰-𝐥𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥 𝐭𝐚𝐬𝐤𝐬.

𝘙𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰:
• Ambiguous problems with no template
• Multi-step reasoning students must narrate
• Projects that require transfer, not recall

𝙃𝙪𝙢𝙖𝙣𝙨 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙨𝙮𝙣𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙨𝙞𝙨.
Build a loop that compounds capacity.

𝐓𝐨𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐫𝐨𝐰: 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐝.

#AIinEducation #EducationLeadership #EdPolicy #SystemsThinking
#K12Leadership

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐌𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐃𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐍𝐨𝐰…
𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘬 𝘪𝘴 𝘷𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦.

Both paths use AI.
Both increase efficiency.
Both look modern.

This is no longer a technology question.
It is a leadership question.

AI will continue to improve.
Reliability will increase.
Optimization will compound.
The only variable left is design.

🤔 𝐒𝐨 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐝𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐝𝐞?

• What thinking is non-negotiable?
• Where must productive struggle remain intact?
• Which assessments measure independence?
• When does assistance become substitution?
• How will reclaimed time be reinvested?

If AI compresses lower-level work, that time cannot disappear.
It must be redirected...

Into ambiguity.
Into synthesis.
Into transfer.
Into reasoning.

Because the divide will not be defined by access to tools.
It will be defined by the courage to protect cognition.

Leaders are not choosing between innovation and tradition.
They are choosing between speed and strength.

𝐈𝐟 𝐀𝐈 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐯𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤, 
𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐠𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐞𝐭 𝐠𝐨 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐯𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤  
𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐬 𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞?

#AIinEducation #EducationLeadership #EdPolicy #SystemsThinking
#K12Leadership

$𝟏𝟐 𝐁𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐨𝐧. 𝟓𝟒𝟎 𝐉𝐨𝐛𝐬. 𝐋𝐞𝐭’𝐬 𝐓𝐚𝐥𝐤.

Louisiana just announced three new Amazon data centers.
Headline: $12 billion investment.

That number is designed to impress you.

Here’s the quieter number:
540 permanent full-time jobs.

Let’s sit with that.

Twelve billion dollars.
Five hundred forty jobs.

My dad used to say,
“Numbers don’t lie, but liars use numbers.”

So let’s use them honestly.
1️⃣ 540 jobs at roughly 150% of the average local salary ≈ $90,000 per year
2️⃣ 540 × $90,000 = $48.6 million in total annual wages
3️⃣ $12 billion ÷ $48.6 million

‼️𝐈𝐭 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐲 𝟐𝟒𝟕 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐩𝐚𝐲𝐫𝐨𝐥𝐥 𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐞𝐪𝐮𝐚𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭.

That doesn’t make it insignificant.
It makes it worth analyzing.

➢ Who qualifies for those 540 roles?
➢ What credentials are required?
➢ How many are operational versus highly specialized technical positions?
➢ What does automation do to that number over the next 15 years?
➢ What public incentives helped secure the deal?

𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧...

If students graduate without the ability to interrogate economic headlines, interpret workforce data, and ask second-level questions, then they will inherit systems they did not help shape.

💡 Data centers reshape energy usage.
💡 They reshape infrastructure.
💡 They reshape labor markets.
💡 They reshape who benefits.

𝐒𝐨 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞’𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧:
Are we preparing students to plug into the system…
Or to examine it?

#DataWithContext #BeyondTheHeadline #EducationShapesEconomy #AIInfrastructure #WorkforceDevelopment #EducationMatters

𝐍𝐨 𝐕𝐨𝐭𝐞. 𝐍𝐨 𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧. 𝐉𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐚 𝐒𝐥𝐨𝐰 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐟𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐏𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫.

If you were waiting for a dramatic vote to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education, you missed it.

It’s not happening with fireworks.
It’s happening through paperwork.

Today, additional responsibilities were transferred out of the U.S. Department of Education to other federal agencies.

Not abolished.
Not publicly debated.
Transferred.

School safety oversight is moving.
Community school grants are moving.
Family engagement programs are moving.

𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐢𝐬 𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐟𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠.

And when authority shifts, accountability shifts.
When accountability shifts, influence shifts.
When influence shifts, power shifts.

While entire feeds debate AI detection tools and prompt literacy…
the architecture governing education in the United States is being rearranged.

Quietly.

Structural change doesn’t trend.
It happens anyway.

If students graduate fluent in AI prompts but illiterate in how institutions move and restructure, we have failed them.

Reality? The ground is shifting.

The question is whether we are teaching young people to recognize it while it’s happening.

#EducationPolicy #CivicLiteracy #FederalGovernance #FutureOfEducation
#AIandEducation #USPolicy #EducationalLeadership

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐈𝐧 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐑𝐨𝐚𝐝

Feedback loops do not ask permission.
They compound.

By now, two paths are forming...

They begin in the same place:
AI becomes reliable.
Efficiency increases.
Time is saved.

But what happens next determines everything.

𝐏𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐎𝐧𝐞: 𝐎𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐳𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐖𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐃𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐧
AI drafts.
Students edit.
Teachers refine outputs.
The system looks modern.

𝐏𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐓𝐰𝐨: 𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐖𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐀𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞
AI handles compression.
Humans handle complexity.
Low-level tasks are automated.

Time is reinvested in:
• Ambiguous problems
• Multi-source synthesis
• Real-world reasoning

Efficiency funds depth.
Depth builds independence.
Independence makes AI use strategic.

The fork is not about access to AI.
It is about what schools choose to protect.

Both paths begin at the same threshold.
Only one builds resilience.

𝐓𝐨𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐫𝐨𝐰: 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐝𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐰.

#AIinEducation #EducationLeadership #EdPolicy #SystemsThinking #K12Leadership

𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐝𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐟𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐩 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐜𝐫𝐨𝐬𝐬 𝐝𝐨𝐳𝐞𝐧𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬.

One statistic from the Global Mind Health research should make education leaders pause.

Not older adults.
Young adults.

The generation raised with the most access to information and technology in human history.

The challenge isn’t intelligence.
It’s the capacities that make intelligence usable:

⚠️ sustained attention
⚠️ frustration tolerance
⚠️ navigating ambiguity
⚠️ persistence through hard problems

Now place that beside what’s happening in AI.

Smarter tools.
Faster answers.
Less friction.

And suddenly a pattern appears.

If resilience is declining while intelligence tools are accelerating, the most important question for education isn’t: How do we use AI?

It’s this:
How do we rebuild the human capacities that make intelligence matter?

This is where systems fall into Refinicide... optimizing for speed, efficiency, and output until the conditions required for growth quietly disappear.

So what’s the first step in reversing it?

🛡️ 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐠𝐠𝐥𝐞.

Not every problem should be solved faster.
Some problems are meant to be wrestled with.

That’s where resilience and real thinking are built.

This is the tension many leaders Claire and I speak with are trying to navigate right now: how to integrate intelligent tools without losing the developmental purpose of education.

If your team is wrestling with this balance, let's chat.

#AIinEducation #EducationLeadership #FutureOfEducation #HumanCenteredAI #PurposeDrivenEducation #Refinicide

𝐇𝐮𝐦𝐚𝐧 𝐝𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐛𝐞 𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐞𝐝.
𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘵𝘰𝘰𝘭𝘴 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘦, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘦𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘴𝘺𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘮𝘴 𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘩𝘶𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘥𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘱𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵.

After reading both 𝘔𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘓𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘎𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘦 by Dario Amodei and the  𝘎𝘭𝘰𝘣𝘢𝘭 𝘔𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘏𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘵𝘩 𝘙𝘦𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵 by Sapien Labs, something became clear...

𝐄𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐬 𝐦𝐚𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐚𝐬𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐀𝐈 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐚𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠.

Here’s the uncomfortable question:
𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘤𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘶𝘭𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘴𝘺𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘮𝘴 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯?

Think about what we’ve optimized for over the last two decades:
✔ clearer rubrics
✔ step-by-step instructions
✔ instant feedback
✔ fewer wrong answers
✔ smoother pathways to completion

All well-intentioned.
But friction plays a role in development.

When friction disappears, so does 𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞.
Now add AI to the system.

Tools that can:
⚡ summarize instantly
⚡ generate ideas instantly
⚡ solve problems instantly

AI didn’t create this pattern.
It simply amplifies it.

This is why the real challenge for education is:
𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘥𝘰 𝘸𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘯 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰𝘰𝘭𝘴 𝘦𝘹𝘪𝘴𝘵… 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘨𝘨𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘶𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘴 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘵𝘩?

A small design shift can make a big difference.

Instead of: Summarize the chapter.
Try: Ask AI the same prompt three separate times.

Then:
• compare the summaries
• identify what changed
• defend which one is strongest

Suddenly, the lesson becomes about:
🌻 evaluating information
🌻 recognizing patterns
🌻 understanding how AI actually works

Same tool.
Completely different thinking.

𝐈𝐟 𝐰𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐨𝐛𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐜𝐥𝐞 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠… 
𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐞𝐱𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞?

#AIinEducation #EducationLeadership #FutureOfEducation #HumanDevelopment #HumanCenteredAI #Refinicide

𝐌𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐬 𝐝𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐚𝐧 𝐀𝐈 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐲. 
𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐀𝐈 𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐭𝐲.

New tools.
Pilot programs.
Vendor demos.
Policy drafts in progress.

𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐞’𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟓 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲:
Only 31% of public schools have written AI policies.
Roughly 60% of districts have no official guidance for generative AI.
Only 19% of teachers report having school-level AI policy.

Some systems have policy but little professional development.
Some have enthusiastic PD but no governance.
Many are somewhere in between.

𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞. 
𝐈𝐭’𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐚𝐠𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧.

Architecture connects policy, practice, and purpose.

It answers harder questions:
💬 What cognitive work are we protecting?
💬 Where does human judgment remain non-negotiable?
💬 What problem are we actually solving?

When adoption outruns shared design, inequity scales.

𝐁𝐮𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨𝐨𝐥𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐲. 
𝐁𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩.

Who is accountable for alignment in your system?

#Superintendents #DistrictLeadership #PublicEducation #AIinEducation
#EducationLeadership #EdTechPolicy #K12Leadership #EdTechEquity

𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐀𝐈 𝐁𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐦𝐞 “𝐆𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐄𝐧𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡” 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐒𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐥𝐬
𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴𝘯’𝘵 𝘢 𝘤𝘳𝘢𝘴𝘩...

In the original memo, the crisis did not begin with a market crash.
It began with a capability shift.

AI agents became good enough to replace meaningful white-collar work.
That was the trigger.

From there, the sequence followed:
Capability → substitution → optimization → feedback loop.

𝐄𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐢𝐭𝐬 𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐝.
It will not be marked by scandal.
It will not be marked by policy.
It will not be marked by outrage.

𝙄𝙩 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙗𝙚 𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙠𝙚𝙙 𝙗𝙮 𝙧𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙖𝙗𝙞𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙮.

– Draft structured essays
– Generate coherent lesson plans
– Summarize complex texts
– Solve procedural tasks
– Scaffold arguments convincingly

𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐚 𝐰𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭...

Before AI, students wrestle with structure.
✍ They revise weak transitions.
✍ They reorganize paragraphs.
✍ They hold multiple claims in working memory.
✍ That friction builds argument architecture.

𝐍𝐨𝐰 𝐀𝐈 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐞𝐬 𝐚 𝐜𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐝𝐫𝐚𝐟𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐬.
🛜 The student edits.
🛜 The paper improves.
🛜 The grade improves.
🛜 Time is saved.

On paper, productivity rises.
But what moved?
The cognitive load.

Schools are built on a scarce input:
𝘏𝘶𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘤𝘰𝘨𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯.

When foundational reasoning becomes abundant through automation, 
the system doesn’t collapse.

It optimizes.
Optimization increases visible output.
It does not automatically increase capacity.

𝘼𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙡𝙙.

Not misconduct.
Not collapse.
Substitution.

If we do not define what thinking must remain human, 
the system will define it for us.

𝐓𝐨𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐫𝐨𝐰: 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐩𝐮𝐭 𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐞𝐬, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐜𝐚𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬𝐧’𝐭?

P.S. I am still learning to get what I want from video prompting. What do you think?

#AIinEducation #EducationLeadership #SystemsThinking
#K12 #FutureOfLearning

Calling all #educators, #educationleaders, #researchers, and curious #thinkers.

It’s #SocialSaturday, and I’d love to open the door to new connections here.

As a long-time educator and someone who now spends much of my work exploring the intersection of education, emerging technology, and human development, I spend a lot of time reading across different perspectives.

This week’s content was shaped by two pieces:
• Machines of Loving Grace by Dario Amodei
• The Sapien Labs Global Mind Health Report

Looking at them side by side raised an important tension:

𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐦𝐚𝐲 𝐛𝐞 𝐚𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠. 
𝐇𝐮𝐦𝐚𝐧 𝐝𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐛𝐞 𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐞𝐝.

Throughout the week we explored questions like:
• What happens when intelligent tools accelerate while resilience declines?
• Have learning systems optimized friction out of development?
• If inquiry begins with a question, what happens when students encounter answers first?

If these questions resonate with you, feel free to connect or follow.
I’ll continue unpacking these ideas next week.

#AIinEducation #EducationLeadership #FutureOfEducation #HumanDevelopment #HumanCenteredAI

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Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Jessica Maddry, M.EdLT's LinkedIn Performance

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