How might educators and students employ AI as a tool to promote critical consciousness, and how, if at all, might AIEd inform the trajectory and scope of liberatory education? 

It’s that time of the year again… The sweet smell of blossoms fills the air, wildlife meanders about, plucking grubs from the grass, and beescome out of hiding, rushing to embrace newly-bloomed flowers like long-distancrelatives. As the calendar turns, students, parents, and educators begin diligently preparing for testing season. Students review content, learn about the process of elimination, eat a well-balanced breakfast, and race to hit the pillow before their bedtimes.

When asked why I chose to dedicate my life to social justice and educational equity, I often say it was a spiritual calling. For as long as I can remember, I have viewed the world through a socio political lens. During middle and high school, I often walked through halls and sat in classes, lostin deep, existential questions about life, fairness, and equity: Why are some kids rich and other kids poor? Why aren’t any of the Black or Latinx kids in AP classes? Why do kids make fun of each other for their differences? Why are all my teachers White? Why don’t I learn about anyone who looks like me in my History class? Questions like these became the foundation of my drive to challenge the systems that perpetuate inequality and to work toward meaningful change in education.

After the death of George Floyd and the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement, DEI took the American Public School System by storm.

Throughout my tenure as an educator, I have often been asked to reflect on the concept of a “problem student”— one who is difficult to reach and subsequently difficult to teach.

In the words of Langston Hughes, “Life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.”