Letter from the Dean

Across classrooms, campuses, and communities, generative artificial intelligence is changing how we teach, learn, and lead. AI offers real promise and poses real risks. Penn GSE is doing more than reacting to this change. We are shaping it through our research, academic programs, and partnerships.

This year, in collaboration with the School District of Philadelphia, we launched Pioneering AI in School Systems (PASS), a professional learning network that equips superintendents, principals, and teachers with practical knowledge and resources for using AI in school settings. We welcomed a cohort into the Ivy League’s first master’s program focused on Learning Analytics and AI. We recruited two new faculty leaders to join our already tremendous group of faculty connecting learning science, data, and design. We also convened state and local policymakers from across Pennsylvania at a summit on how to unlock AI for the public good.

Penn GSE approaches this technology with an abiding commitment to research-informed practice and practice-informed research. For us, innovation is not simply about chasing what is new; it means developing and using tools that communities need, grounded in what we know about how people learn. We seek tools and practices that supplement rather than supplant the human work at the heart of teaching and learning. We measure what matters for students and educators, scale what works, and change what does not.

In these pages, you will see that work in action. The future of education is unfolding before us, and Penn GSE is proud to be at its forefront.

All best,