With the start of every school year, students walk through school doors ready for new opportunities. Educators return eager to inspire another generation of learners. Families look ahead with anticipation, excited about the new experiences and possibilities this school year will bring for their children.

That sense of optimism has long been one of public education’s greatest strengths. It reflects a shared belief that every child deserves the opportunity to learn, grow, discover their strengths, and build a brighter future.

Preparing for Change

The students entering school this year are preparing for a rapidly changing world. Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming how students learn and how educators teach. That creates urgency for the K-12 system to adapt so students are prepared to learn and thrive alongside AI, while educators have the support and tools to harness its potential. 

Helping students thrive in a changing world means not simply preparing them for what comes next but giving them opportunities to help shape it. I’ve seen that firsthand all across the country.  

This summer, for example, at America’s Youth AI Festival, 98 student “senators” representing all 50 states came together at the Edward M. Kennedy Institute in Boston to explore questions surrounding AI and education. They considered how AI is affecting their learning and their future, exchanged ideas with peers from across the country, and developed student-led policy recommendations.

What stood out was not simply what these students produced, but how this experience gave them the opportunity to shape their learning and engage with AI while doing so.

These young people were trusted to wrestle with a complex issue that will help define their generation. They listened to one another, challenged assumptions, shared their experiences, and brought their voices to a conversation about their future.

Shaping What Comes Next

Public schools have an important role in creating opportunities for students to explore new ideas, apply what they are learning, and take part in decisions.   

Students tell us they want more chances to be heard and to contribute their perspectives on the issues that affect them. When schools create those  opportunities, students gain more than knowledge. They gain confidence, curiosity, and a sense of agency, and they begin to see themselves not only as preparing for the future, but as capable of shaping it. Reaching more students this way takes a sustained commitment to strengthen our public schools.  

Investing in Opportunity

Experiences like these depend on conditions schools have to deliberately build: educators who have the support to create them, partnerships with families and communities, and public school systems equipped to respond to emerging opportunities, including AI.

With a member network spanning the K-12 system, the Learning First Alliance (LFA) is uniquely positioned to support that work and bring voices from the field into the conversation to shape the next chapter of public education. LFA brings together organizations that represent the individuals who make public education work, and we share a vision of a public education system that is stronger, fairer, and more resilient. That vision has to include room for experiences like the one those students had in Boston—spaces where young people take on hard questions, test their thinking against others, and have a real hand in decisions about their own future. We don’t know what the future will hold for these students, but we can help make sure public schools prepare them to shape it.

As I begin my term as chair, I am excited to help lead this work and ensure the experiences and expertise of the students, families, and educators who experience public education every day have a meaningful voice in shaping its future.

Now is the time to work together, build on what is working, and invest in what our schools and students need. Strong public schools provide that foundation, creating opportunities for young people to imagine a brighter future and the confidence to help build it.

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David R. Schuler, Ph.D. is the executive director of AASA, The School Superintendents Association, a member institution of the Learning First Alliance (LFA). Schuler also serves as LFA Board Chair for the 2026-2027 school year.