The funding, announced Oct. 28 by the university’s Graduate School of Education, will allow the university’s Pioneering AI in School Systems (PASS) program to expand to five school districts and regions across Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware beginning in December.
Launched in spring 2025, PASS was first piloted in the School District of Philadelphia. It provides professional development to help educators and administrators understand and implement AI responsibly in schools. The curriculum addresses data privacy, algorithmic bias, access and ethical use, according to the news release, and feedback from the Philadelphia pilot has been positive.
“To truly harness the potential of AI in learning, we need more than just tools — we need a scalable strategy for human capacity,” Tequila Lamar, Google’s education engagement lead, said in a public statement. “By building expertise at every level, from district administrators setting policy to school leaders and educators, this initiative creates a comprehensive, system-level framework that has the potential to become a national model for public education.”
The program operates on three levels. In a two-day-long training, district leaders focus on policy and system planning. School leaders learn to identify risks and opportunities, define ethical-use standards, and support staff development in a weeklong workshop. Finally, classroom educators learn to apply AI tools in a 10-week online module.
