Now is the perfect time for private school leaders to start thinking about federal funding and next year's priorities. My knowledgeable colleague, Marc Hoban , will be leading a quick webinar on this essential topic. I encourage every school to learn about this and ensure that the money you have access to is being used to help your students! You can register here: https://events.zoom.us/ev/Av9VpqzF3Jnd655wyOSlmngj6MavWWH3YdXV4tzRi_tyAvnjOSGz~AtEK0bqrHWi1jmmc7d6fe-bezSwAcSKvUa

Excited to share my first guest post for the  FACTS  blog! When we first interact with a large language model (LLM), such as ChatGPT, Gemini, or Claude, we see a standard input textbox. We might resort to our usual search queries, as if we were using Google or another search engine (shout-out to Ask Jeeves!). However, due to the construction of their model, the accumulation of their training data, and the tool’s neural networks, the skill of prompting is the key to unlocking

Dr. Catlin Tucker , a leading author and presenter on education, whose work I have found highly valuable when looking at Tier One and MTSS, released an AI framework in early January of 2026. Given the value of her work in other realms, her thoughts on Generative AI are worth the price of admission. The framework and a series of podcasts/articles detailing the framework can be found on her website. What's In It The framework is clearly focused on the idea of skills - building

Dr. Tim Uhl discussed Pope Leo XIV's October Apostolic Letter " Drawing New Maps of Hope " with Faustin Weber on his podcast, Catholic School Matters . The document was issued on the "60th anniversary of the Conciliar Declaration Gravissimum educationis " and owes much of its structure to a close reading of that document. However, Pope Leo highlights the big change in the last 60 years: " a complex, fragmented, digitized educational environment" (1.2) and one which requires p

Released on January 14, 2026, " A New Direction for Students in an AI World: Prosper, Prepare, Protect " seeks to analyze the current moment, globally, with education and AI and present a path forward. Like many treatments and the way education handles innovation in general, the rapidly changing nature of Artificial Intelligence, fueled by capitalistic drive, can make it seem to be older than one month. However, the reports basic approach and tenets can prove valuable for edu

In December, with a group of like-minded friends in the neighborhood/school/parish, we purchased Tin Can Phones. They arrived last week and we quickly set them up. Since, then I have seen the promise and blessing of having a real phone in the house (for cheaper!). The children call each other to check in on playing and organize activities - which is great in itself. More importantly, I have seen my youngest call and speak with his extended family nearly every day. The blessin

Published in 2025 by Meaghan Crowley Sullivan of LMU's iDEAL Institute , The Catholic Companion Framework For Technology and Innovation: Faithful Guidance for Catholic Educators Navigating Technology, Artificial Intelligence,& Innovation seeks to be "an invitation to reflect, to engage, and to act" in our Catholic community (4). It is certainly a solid initial first step in how our schools and educators can engage with the problems and solutions AI presents. Before diving i

Some quick thoughts on two deeper reads related to AI. If you want to know what's going on... The Scaling Era: An Oral History of AI, 2019-2025 by Dwarkesh Patel. Patel is one of the best podcasters on AI and the current tech era. His interview style blends the best of popular podcaster like Joe Rogan - engaging and following along with the conversation - and Tyler Cowen - deeply knowledgeable, focused, and ensuring each minute of time is worth a listen. His book captures a

From Google : Google for Education is launching a landmark initiative with ISTE+ASCD to provide free, comprehensive Gemini training to all 6 million K-12 and higher education faculty in the U.S. These lessons will be divided into modules and promise to include :real-world examples." Teachers that complete these modules will receive a micro-credential (presumably similar to Google's certification program. Most interestingly is Google's connection with ISTE+ASCD: Materials wi

One of my reading goals for 2026 is to re-read Ann Garrido's trilogy on redeeming the aspects of leadership that feel "icky" in ministry and nonprofit. The books are all worth reading and reflecting on; prior to application to the daily practice of a school leader. So rather than pursue my usual review format - review followed by assessment. These Review-ishes will be more of a digital notebook offering up what I see as highlights especially in the context of school leadershi

MagicSchoolAI shared on their social media , a great idea that gets to the benefit of having nonjudgemental AI at hand: You may not have slides, but even laying out a "here's what I need to cover...should this be an email?" followed up by assistance in drafting an engaging email or drawing up a working agenda can be a great way to check your self with faculty planning. Too bad AI can't make people read emails.

Excited to share my first guest post for the  FACTS  blog! As generative AI exits the terrible twos and fully moves into toddlerdom, I wanted to share some advice from my own successes and failures, along with insights from the many educators I’ve worked with in and outside of FACTS. Like a cool pool, I don’t recommend a cannonball in the deep end, but a gradual acclimation and accommodation as you move down the stairs. Let’s put on our AI suits, grab a prompting towel, and g

Every Connection Matters by Michael Creekmore and Nita Creekmore. Clocking it at 136 pages, this brief ASCDpublished book offers advice...

One of my reading goals for 2026 is to re-read Ann Garrido's trilogy on redeeming the aspects of leadership that feel "icky" in ministry and nonprofit. The books are all worth reading and reflecting on; prior to application to the daily practice of a school leader. So rather than pursue my usual review format - review followed by assessment. These Review-ishes will be more of a digital notebook offering up what I see as highlights especially in the context of school leadershi

After spending some time with Bethesda Christian School of Fort Worth, I have to highlight a great idea that Mr. Michael Klefeker suggested in our session in January. Mr. Klefeker pointed to the difficulty many schools have with theater backgrounds and design. Well with AI image creation and projectors/screens; this can be solved! He plans to use image generation to create a series of images for the various scenes in a production of Willy Wonka, then setting up the images as

One of my reading goals for 2026 is to re-read Ann Garrido's trilogy on redeeming the aspects of leadership that feel "icky" in ministry and nonprofit. The books are all worth reading and reflecting on; prior to application to the daily practice of a school leader. So rather than pursue my usual review format - review followed by assessment. These Review-ishes will be more of a digital notebook offering up what I see as highlights especially in the context of school leadershi

An excellent book and one that doesn't quite fit the usual review format, Leading Change , is well-worth the read for system leaders in business and school. So rather than pursue my usual review format - review followed by assessment. These Review-ishes will be more of a digital notebook offering up what I see as highlights especially in the context of school leadership. Today's review-ish is on Leading Change by John P. Kotter. Kotter's emphasis lies in differentiating betw

Eric Curts published an awesome post on creating Graphic Novels with Gemini and Notebook LM. Highlights : As easy as graphic novels are to consume, creating them is a much more challenging task. Certainly the best graphic novels are going to be created by skilled and hard-working authors and illustrators, and I strongly encourage everyone to support them in this work. However with new AI tools, educators and students now have free options to enter into this world and create b

This week's review is on AI Goes to Church by Todd Korpi.  There is a clear need for our religious leaders to think deeply about AI and its role in ministry, institutions, and society - especially in its contrast to human nature. Todd Korpi, a protestant professor and church leader, seeks to do so in AI Goes to Church. Korpi struggles to engage directly with deeper theological or philosophical issues; focusing on a pastoral response. Korpi proceeds systematically, establishi

This week's review is on If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies by Eliezer Yudkowsky & Nate Soares. Also informing this piece, their supporting website, https://ifanyonebuildsit.com/ , and the following review articles: " The case for AI doom isn't very convincing " by Timothy B. Lee. Understanding AI . Substack. September 25, 2025. " Book Review: If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies " by Scott Alexander. Astral Codex Ten. Substack. September 11, 2025. Long a Cassandra of the