Crescent Builds AI Confidence with Faculty & Staff

As Crescent boys enjoyed their final hours of the Winter Holiday break on January 5, staff and faculty gathered on campus for a day of professional learning (PL). The series grew out of an “AI in Action” PL session in August, designed by Director of Educational Technology and Innovation Natalie Vera. After receiving feedback, Vera intentionally expanded the focus for this most recent PL series to include educational technology and AI, with 25 peer-led curated sessions relevant to both faculty and staff.

Vera connected with division leaders to identify faculty and staff already using the tools, and those subject experts built outlines that evolved based on participant feedback, discussion boards, and “golden nuggets” (key takeaways) shared across the community. The sessions included programs like ChatGPT, Gemini 3, Canva, and Google Sheets, allowing participants to augment their skills and processes for work, including enhancing classroom instruction, producing visually engaging teaching materials, and streamlining administrative tasks, among other benefits.

A key objective was scaffolding: Vera felt that sessions tailored to different skill levels would allow participants to have an experience more closely aligned with their needs. “ We were able to offer different workshop levels based on feedback,” says Vera. “That’s how I learned what our faculty and staff needed, and it’s how we were able to reach people, regardless of their starting point.” 

With this work, the series is advancing strategic goals that aim to give faculty and staff an advanced understanding of and ability to use AI, and to share a school-wide value of ethical and responsible use. The results, say Vera, are already surpassing expectations. “ That's partly because we have such amazing, strong people in the building who have helped run these sessions, and others who are keen to learn how AI can enhance their roles.”