Ken Shelton

Educational Leadership Strategist, Learning Experience Designer & Educational Equity Thought Leader

Ken Shelton

Educational Leadership Strategist, Learning Experience Designer & Educational Equity Thought Leader

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Biography

Ken Shelton is a leading national thought leader on the future of learning in the age of artificial intelligence, helping education systems rethink what teaching, literacy, and leadership must look like in a rapidly changing digital world. Drawing on more than two decades of experience as a classroom educator and learning designer, Ken brings a rare blend of practical insight and big-picture vision to conversations about AI, equity, and innovation. Rather than focusing on tools, he centers people, power, and purpose, challenging leaders to ask not just what AI can do, but what education should be. His work pushes the field beyond compliance and efficiency toward deeper questions of justice, access, and what it means to prepare learners for a technology-driven society.

A sought-after strategist and speaker, Ken helps schools, districts, higher education institutions, and education organizations navigate the ethical, cultural, and pedagogical implications of AI. He partners with leaders to design policies, professional learning frameworks, and systems that position AI as a catalyst for creativity, critical thinking, and inclusion rather than a driver of inequity or surveillance. His thought leadership is rooted in the belief that AI is not simply a technical shift but a civic, cultural, and educational one, requiring leaders to reimagine assessment, authorship, information literacy, and what counts as knowledge. Through keynotes, workshops, and advisory work, Ken inspires audiences to lead with clarity, courage, and a commitment to human-centered innovation.

Ken is the co-author of the best-selling book The Promises and Perils of AI in Education: Ethics and Equity Have Entered the Chat, a foundational text for leaders grappling with the opportunities and risks of AI in learning environments. His influence extends into policy and practice through his service on the California State Superintendent’s Education Technology Task Force and his ongoing collaboration with state agencies, nonprofits, and global education organizations. Recognized with major honors from ISTE and CUE, and as an Apple Distinguished Educator, Google Innovator, and Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert, Ken is widely respected across the edtech ecosystem as a bridge between educators, policymakers, and technology developers.

Globally, Ken advises ministries of education, international schools, and leading technology companies on responsible and equitable AI design. He serves on multiple Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion boards, helping shape platforms, policies, and hiring practices that center belonging and accessibility. Ultimately, Ken’s work is driven by a singular mission: to ensure that AI expands human potential, strengthens democratic participation, and helps build an education system where every learner is seen, supported, and empowered to shape the future.

Speaker Videos

The Danger of Data

TEDx: Using the Past, to Explore How to Make Students Future Ready

Speech Topics

AI in Education: A Leadership Guide for Policy, Implementation & Best Practices

Artificial intelligence is already reshaping classrooms, instruction, and decision-making, creating both opportunity and uncertainty for today’s education leaders. In this high-impact program, Ken Shelton helps leaders move beyond hype and fear to lead with clarity, equity, and purpose. Participants will gain the insight and confidence needed to make informed decisions about how AI and technology should support teaching, learning, and student success at every level.

Building on that leadership foundation, the session explores how AI and digital tools can be strategically implemented to transform teaching and learning in real, practical ways. Participants will examine proven frameworks for integrating technology into curriculum and instruction to increase engagement and design more inclusive, learner-centered experiences. The focus remains on leadership, not just tools, ensuring AI is used intentionally to strengthen practice, empower educators, and drive meaningful, sustainable impact.

Revolutionizing Education: Reimagining Learning with AI for Empowerment, Equity & Digital Literacy

Artificial intelligence is actively reshaping how students write, research, create, design, and access information, redefining what it means to be literate and prepared in a digital world. In this powerful keynote, Ken Shelton challenges education leaders and educators to look beyond surface-level adoption and examine how AI is influencing learning culture, expectations, and equity across entire educational environments.

With that broader context in mind, the keynote turns to the practical and ethical implications of AI at scale. The session examines both the unprecedented potential and real risks of AI, including personalization and time efficiency alongside concerns around flawed data, biased design, and over-reliance on automated tools. Participants will gain strategic and actionable insight into how AI can be used to increase engagement, strengthen information literacy, and support creative, meaningful learning experiences. The focus is on leadership and empowerment, ensuring AI expands opportunity, builds critical digital skills, and helps institutions prepare learners to thrive in a technology-driven world.

Design Matters: Rethinking Learning Environments

In today’s age, the terms learning and classroom (learning space) have taken on a myriad of different and newer meanings. Both regularly occur and are associated with physical and digital environments. Oftentimes, the design of these environments can be a determining factor in the desired outcomes. In both cases, the designs of each can influence not only the learner but also the breadth and quality of their learning experience.

It is this experience that can mean the difference between successful engagement in learning and disengagement. During this keynote, we will examine ways in which we can leverage the designs of physical and digital space to create a unique learner experience, as well as strategies for the effective design of learning environments. Because Design Matters.

Techquity™: Creating Learning Environments For Sustainability, Equity & Access

This interactive keynote will address how to navigate one of the biggest challenges educators face today—providing students with equitable and culturally inclusive learning opportunities. This talk will include a detailed analysis of the varying levels of culture, addressing our social-emotional needs and why we must ensure our students are provided a diverse and equitable educational experience.

Further expanding on the primary purpose will be a look at how technology serves as both a needed and critical component to that end. Embedded within the keynote are personal narratives aligned with the central theme of incorporating both a culturally relevant and culturally responsive pedagogy into any content area.

Navigating Digital Frontiers: Confronting Bias & Power for Equity in Education Through AI

Navigating our new digital frontier requires us to examine the critical intersection of AI and education at a juncture of innovation and equity. This talk will explore how AI can either perpetuate disparities or empower transformative learning experiences, emphasizing the need for ethical implementation to ensure technology bridges rather than widens both digital and learning divides. This discussion simultaneously invites and challenges educators, leaders, and policymakers to explore strategies for creating/implementing AI systems that enhance teaching and learning while dismantling barriers to an equitable education. Join me as we look into pioneering solutions that confront AI’s challenges, ensuring a more empowering and equitable educational landscape.