A national effort to understand and advance practical, equitable uses of AI in rural schools.
Why Rural? Why Now?
Generative AI is rapidly reshaping conversations across education, with leaders exploring how this technology can expand access, strengthen instruction, and support student learning. Yet rural perspectives—representing more than 40% of U.S. districts—are often less visible in these conversations.
That gap matters. Rural schools and districts bring important strengths, including deep local knowledge, community-driven design, and a long history of creative problem-solving. At the same time, they often navigate distinct constraints, from limited staffing capacity, fewer specialized roles, geographic isolation, and tighter budgets that require leaders and educators to take on multiple responsibilities at once. As AI adoption accelerates, rural communities offer essential insight into what practical, equitable implementation can look like in real-world settings.
Led by FullScale in partnership with All4Ed, the Rural AI Strategy Lab is designed to elevate rural perspectives, learn alongside educators and leaders, and turn that learning into models, tools, and resources that can support rural communities across the country.
Nationwide Field Scan
The Rural AI Strategy Lab begins with a nationwide field scan to better understand how rural schools and districts are using AI today. This work explores where promising applications are emerging, what enabling conditions support progress, and what barriers still need to be addressed.
Read the full report to learn what we’re seeing across rural schools as they adopt AI, including patterns of use in practice, common use cases, and the systemic conditions shaping implementation.
Cohort-Based Learning Network
Building on insights from the field scan, the Rural AI Strategy Lab is a six-month learning network supporting rural schools and districts to design, test, and share practical, equitable uses of AI—grounded in rural realities across the country.
This collaborative experience brings together educators from rural communities to explore, pilot, and implement AI in ways that reflect their local priorities and realities. Teams are identifying meaningful challenges or opportunities in their contexts and testing AI-enabled approaches in response.
Through ongoing coaching, access to AI and innovation expertise, and structured opportunities to learn from one another, participants are surfacing practical challenges, identifying what works, and building shared understanding across diverse rural settings.
This work will result in practical tools, guidance, and models that can support rural districts—and the broader field—in navigating AI thoughtfully.
Meet the Rural AI Strategy Lab Cohort Teams
From more than 100 applicants across 34 states, the Rural AI Strategy Lab cohort brings together 13 teams representing diverse contexts, leadership strengths, and starting points with AI.
- Berkshire Hills Regional School District, in Great Barrington, Massachusetts
- Cape Flattery School District, in Sekiu, Washington
- Davenport School District, in Davenport, Washington
- Elko County School District, in Elko, Nevada
- Griswold Public Schools, in Griswold, Connecticut
- Ionia County Career Center, in Ionia, Michigan
- Louisa County Public Schools, in Mineral, Virginia
- Martin County Schools, in Williamston, North Carolina
- Mason County Eastern Schools, in Custer, Michigan
- Mount Greylock Regional School District, in Williamstown, Massachusetts
- Mohave Valley Elementary School District, in Mohave Valley, Arizona
- Pikeville Independent Schools, in Pikeville, Kentucky
- Polk County Schools, in Benton, Tennessee
Resources & Publications
Stay tuned as we share emerging insights, tools, and updates from the Rural AI Strategy Lab.