• Focus: What AI can do right now to boost operational capacity and reduce costs.
• Key Content:
  • High-value use cases in Admissions, Advancement, Communications, IT, and Business Office.
  • Live demos of AI tools (e.g., ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, Canva) that improve writing, data analysis, and communications.
  • Immediate ROI considerations: cost vs. time saved and best practices for staff training.
  • Practical steps to start safely and responsibly: data privacy, policy updates, staff upskilling.
  • Dangers of not adopting AI—falling behind on efficiency and innovation.
• Outcome: Participants gain tangible AI strategies and quick wins to implement in their school offices.

• Focus: How agentic AI and rapidly evolving enterprise AI tools will transform school workflows.
• Key Content:
  • Overview of agentic AI (Operator, Manus, Google “Agentspaces,” etc.) and capabilities that automate multi-step tasks.
  • Roadmaps from major vendors (Google Workspace, Microsoft 365, Veracross (possibly), Blackbaud (possibly)) and critical adoption questions (when to jump in vs. wait).
  • Creating in-house benchmarks to evaluate AI tools rather than relying on vendor claims.
  • Strategic staffing implications—how AI-augmented teams deliver greater value with fewer people.
  • Risks of early vs. late adoption, data security, and cultural readiness.
• Outcome: Leaders understand how to position their schools for the next wave of AI breakthroughs and integrate new capabilities strategically.

• Focus: Preparing for a future in which AI may be fully agentic and/or approach superintelligence—and its impact on school operations and educational value.
• Key Content:
  • Envisioning AI-driven operations: a small team accomplishing the work of many.
  • Business continuity, the independent school business model at risk, and planning for disruptive enrollment/cost scenarios.
  • Academic implications: ubiquitous AI tutoring, shifts in teaching and assessment, and the heightened importance of human connections, arts, sports, and entrepreneurship programs.
  • Long-term cost savings vs. reinvestment strategies, staffing re-skilling, and maintaining cultural and ethical standards.
  • Action steps for strategic planning, evolving roles, and reimagining the school’s value proposition in an AI-saturated world.
• Outcome: Heads and CFOs will be able to build a forward-focused plan, shaping both operations and educational offerings to thrive in a deeply AI-integrated environment.

For nearly twenty years, Michael has lived and led in independent schools—first as a teacher in math, physics, and computer science, and later as a school leader. Before becoming the Associate Head of School for Academic Affairs at Carolina Day School in Asheville, North Carolina, he served as Dean of Studies at ‘Iolani School in Honolulu and as Director of STEM Programs and New Faculty Development at Rabun Gap–Nacoochee School, where he taught and designed courses that bridged science, computation, and creativity. Michael also served as the Senior Consultant for AI and Large Language Models at MehtaCognition, where he helped organizations navigate the promise and peril of emerging technologies.

Michael holds a doctorate in Educational and Organizational Leadership from the University of Pennsylvania and a master’s degree in Applied Mathematics, and has been teaching and thinking about machine learning and AI since long before it became fashionable. His work centers on helping schools—and increasingly, hospitals, churches, and nonprofits—respond to AI in ways that are safe, humane, and mission-aligned. It’s not enough to live on the cutting edge; schools are places that prize responsibility, integrity, and care for young people. His coaching helps leaders and teams operate on the smart edge of AI—where innovation meets wisdom, and technology strengthens rather than replaces human capacity.