Artificial intelligence initiatives, cybersecurity threats, interoperability demands and the need for increasingly sophisticated tech infrastructure are reshaping what districts require from technology leaders — and, some experts say, transforming how districts should conduct searches for those positions.
EVOLUTION OF THE CTO/CIO ROLE
Sandra Paul, a self-employed ed-tech consultant who spent over three decades working in education as both a teacher and IT director in New Jersey public schools, said that districts have been elevating tech-savvy teachers, librarians or instructional coaches into technology leadership roles for years. Their work used to focus largely on classroom integration and curriculum support, she said, but those roles have evolved alongside the technology itself.
“Your librarian was really the person in charge of your laptop carts, and they were the ones that used to show students skills, and also prepare teachers,” Paul said. “But, what is it that, technically, they understand about networks? What is it they technically understand about cybersecurity? Or what do they really understand technically about interoperability, and data privacy? It’s not just a matter of the curriculum, but ensuring that you’re providing the bandwidth and the services that are needed for fulfilling the requirements of the curriculum for the year.”
From Springtown Independent School District (ISD) in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, CTO Amanda Lanicek agreed that the “tech-savvy teacher” pipeline may have worked in the past — even just three to five years ago — but she said districts now face a much more advanced technology landscape.
“Now there’s all kinds of legislation out and guidelines and things that need to be done that it really takes someone that either has a little bit of knowledge about infrastructure, or can gain that knowledge from a mentor or something, in order to make sure that the district is cyber safe,” Lanicek said. “I think previously, moving someone in from a teaching role was OK. You had time, right? You had time to send them to trainings and get to know things, but now I really think you have to have a little bit of a technical background, because ... all the bad actors see [K-12] as a very easy target.”
Lanicek herself transitioned from teaching into digital learning leadership before becoming CTO, acknowledging that when she stepped into the role, she was also a beginner in cybersecurity and infrastructure fundamentals. She said she immediately pursued cybersecurity training and partnerships, beginning with a district cybersecurity assessment.
The shift in responsibilities is also exposing a broader challenge: According to both Paul and Lanicek, many district leaders still do not fully understand the scope of the role they are hiring for.
Paul highlighted that superintendents often see only the visible outcomes of technology systems functioning smoothly, but not the infrastructure planning, cybersecurity protections and interoperability work required behind the scenes.
“A CTO should be sitting at the table, because everything is dependent completely on the technology nowadays,” Paul said. “There is nothing that happens in a school district that does not depend on the technology.”
Lanicek echoed that concern, pointing to digital infrastructure components like firewall rules, network configurations and management systems that ordinary district leaders may not fully grasp. Those misunderstandings, she said, can affect the hiring process itself, including who participates in searches and how candidates are evaluated.
SKILLS TO DISCERN IN A POTENTIAL CANDIDATE
At Springtown ISD, where Lanicek is currently in the process of helping find her own successor, the interview committee includes the superintendent, assistant superintendent of business and finance, assistant superintendent of academics, director of human resources and representation from the technology department — whether Lanicek or another member from her team. She noted that this holistic group of school leaders is better equipped to recruit “hybrid leaders” — candidates who understand both enterprise tech systems and the realities of teaching and learning.
“It has to be a person that is able to communicate the technical aspects of what they do or what their department does, and how it relates to the climate and culture of the school district — how it relates to where the strategic plan and the mission, the vision of the school district, wants to go,” she said.
Both Paul and Lanicek emphasized that the communication piece is especially important when working with school boards, vendors, educators and communities that may not understand technical terminology.
As districts rethink searches, both Paul and Lanicek suggested that hiring committees move beyond resumes and certifications and instead evaluate how candidates think through future challenges.
Lanicek recommended scenario-based interview exercises, including hypothetical AI situations.
“There are multiple teachers that have found this AI tool on TikTok,” she said. “How do you vet it? How do you ensure data integrity with that tool?”
She also said districts should ask candidates future-oriented questions, like “Where do you see classrooms in five years? Where do you see the infrastructure in five years?”
Paul said external search firms or consultants can also help districts evaluate technical competencies that school leaders and boards may not fully understand internally, particularly around interoperability, data systems and infrastructure planning.
Lanicek suggested that districts build interview questions using established cybersecurity resources such as the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Cybersecurity Framework and Cybersecurity Rubric.
Moreover, even though the demand for qualified technology leaders is growing as districts become more dependent on digital systems, and as longtime technology administrators retire, Paul noted that schools will find it tough to compete with private-sector salaries. Still, she and Lanicek both said districts can no longer afford to treat CTO hiring as simply filling a technical support role.
“It has to be planned,” she said. “It has to be strategic.”
