Applying AI for Operational Purposes in a District

Washington’s Peninsula School District uses generative tools in human resources, data analysis and other functions

As the chief information officer at Peninsula School District in Gig Harbor, Wash., I have witnessed firsthand the transformative power of artificial intelligence. Our district is living it. From the superintendent’s office to the classroom, AI is revolutionizing how we operate, setting a new standard for K-12 education in the digital age.

When the district’s school board built its strategic plan in 2023, innovation was not just a goal but a strategic imperative. Superintendent Krestin Bahr and her staff seized new opportunities in emerging areas, such as AI, to apply throughout the organization.

At this year’s fall retreat for administrators, the superintendent told us she expected AI “will disrupt every aspect of our work, both instructionally and operationally. We must embrace it and learn how to use it to guide this disruption in the direction that improves everything we do.”