White House Sets Sights on AI Education

• By Rhea Kelly
• 04/30/25

A new executive order from President Donald Trump aims to advance America's position in artificial intelligence technology by incorporating AI into education and providing AI training for educators.

"AI is rapidly transforming the modern world, driving innovation, enhancing productivity, and reshaping how we live and work," the April 23 order declared, noting that "America's youth need opportunities to cultivate the skills and understanding necessary to use and create the next generation of AI technology." In turn, the order said, this requires "investing in our educators, providing them with the tools and knowledge to both train students about AI and utilize the technology in the classroom."

As a first step in promoting AI literacy and proficiency, President Trump is creating a White House Task Force on AI Education. Chaired by the Director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, the task force will:

• Implement a Presidential AI Challenge, to "encourage and highlight student and educator achievements in AI, promote wide geographic adoption of technological advancement, and foster collaboration between government, academia, philanthropy, and industry to address national challenges with AI solutions"; and
• Establish public-private partnerships to provide resources for K-12 AI education.

In addition, the order directed that the Secretary of Education will prioritize the use of AI in discretionary grant programs for teachers training, while the Director of the National Science Foundation will prioritize research on the use of AI in education.

The order also touched on a number of efforts to prepare the country's workforce for AI:

• The Secretary of Labor is instructed to "leverage authorities and financial incentives to increase participation in AI-related apprenticeships," as well as "encourage States and grantees to use Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) funding to develop AI skills and support work-based learning opportunities within occupations utilizing AI";
• The Secretary of Labor, Assistant Secretary of Labor for Employment and Training, and Director of NSF will collaborate with state and local workforce organizations and training providers to "identify and promote high-quality AI skills education coursework and certifications across the country"; and
• The Secretary of Labor, the Secretary of Education, and the NSF Director will "work together to create opportunities for high school students to take AI courses and certification programs."

In a statement, CoSN, the professional association for K-12 ed tech leaders, urged the White House to include all key stakeholders in the development and implementation of AI education policies. "We stand ready to collaborate, offering our expertise to ensure that AI advancements in education are both innovative and effective, preparing all learners for success in a rapidly evolving technological landscape," the association said.

"To ensure the effective and successful integration of AI in K-12 education, it is imperative that the voices of school district leaders, educators and other frontline practitioners are actively involved in shaping these initiatives," commented CoSN CEO Keith Krueger. "Their leadership and experience are crucial for developing practical, scalable strategies that will help students and educators navigate and leverage AI."

"We're moving toward a world where AI could dramatically streamline teachers' daily workflows," noted Khan Academy founder Sal Kahn, in a statement. "It can help them create lessons, do administrative tasks, and allow for more differentiation in the classroom. AI can free up time for the very human work of instructing a classroom full of kids. But providing professional development is key — so that we're giving teachers time and space to learn new tools. AI is a tool in the toolbox that can help improve educational outcomes. To be clear, it's not a silver bullet and it is still early days. But AI is quite promising and we see a lot of potential."