Why one former instructional technology coach stepped into the principalship—and what GenAI demands of today’s school leaders.
GUEST COLUMN | by Kip Glazer
EDTECH DIGEST FETC 2026
I have publicly shared that my favorite job was being a district Instructional Technology Coach more than once. Recently, someone asked me whether my bosses or the school community knew. I think that person was actually a bit concerned that someone might take that the wrong way as in I didn’t like being a principal.
People who know me know that I am very direct and honest to a fault, and they all know how much I didn’t intend to become a principal. In fact, I wrote about why and how I became a principal in my new book Ready to Lead with AI: A Practical Guide for School Leaders. Even though I was a very happy Instructional Technology Coach at a large district in charge of districtwide technology implementation, I had to become a site leader to truly make an impact because I realized that the “tools, strategies, and plans have little impact if the person in charge of the building doesn’t believe in them” (Glazer, 2026).
‘I had to become a site leader to truly make an impact because I realized that the “tools, strategies, and plans have little impact if the person in charge of the building doesn’t believe in them…’
Why Leadership Matters
With the disruptive force unleashed by the introduction of GenAI, I am not sure any leader feels steady about how to lead their institution. John Kotter once said, “Management is about coping with complexity. Leadership, by contrast, is about coping with the change” in his famous Harvard Business Review Article “What leaders really do.” He argues that leaders don’t necessarily solve problems; rather, they prepare the entire organization for change and help everyone cope with it as they struggle (Kotter, 1990).
As much as I understand my role as a leader, what is challenging is not having the wise and the experienced of our field who can support us. Just as no school leader had anyone to call upon during the pandemic, we have no one who can tell us how to manage the AI revolution. This poses an additional challenge as many look to me, the principal, to lead the way.
Owning Our Practice
However, ceding our responsibilities to outsiders is the worst thing that educators can do. In fact, we have the greatest opportunity to own our practice as professionals. Educators and school leaders live the life of building relationships within our schools. We see that the young people we serve want human connections and want to learn from one another. Many want to experiment with AI tools safely and responsibly. Many students I work with have asked for clear guidance from their teachers.
While some may try to take shortcuts, just as some adults have done when they were children, many understand that productive struggle is required to acquire knowledge in schools.
‘While some may try to take shortcuts, just as some adults have done when they were children, many understand that productive struggle is required to acquire knowledge in schools.’
5 Ms of Digital Wellness: Model, Mentor, Monitor, Mastery, and Meaning
So how do we help our students? Dr. Michael Rich, a pediatrician and founder of the Digital Wellness Lab at Boston’s Children’s Hospital, recommends the five M’s of building digital well-being in children.
As Dr. Rich argued, I believe that all educators should model proper use of all digital and GenAI tools. As our students use GenAI tools more frequently, we need to monitor their use in an instructional setting while mentoring them to use tools productively and responsibly. To do so, we must create a developmentally appropriate monitoring plan that guides all students in mastering all types of digital tools, including GenAI tools.
Ultimately, our goal is to help our students lead meaningful lives as independent adults. I believe the schools must create a structure to intentionally invite such behaviors from our students.
An Uncertain Yet Hopeful Future With Relevant Projects
In January of 2026, I took six students to the Future of Educational Technology Conference in Orlando, Florida (see photo, above), so that they could present on the program that we built at Mountain View High School in Mountain View, California. Through the program, our students have hosted professional development workshops for local elementary schools and trained our own staff on GenAI tools such as Gemini and NotebookLM. Our students are approaching mastery because they have been modeling for and mentoring one another.
‘Our students are approaching mastery because they have been modeling for and mentoring one another.’
These student leaders have also acquired self-monitoring skills through meaningful projects that help their community by sharing their ideas on ethical GenAI use.
In this GenAI age, school leaders must work to create meaningful opportunities for our young people to exercise their skills. By doing so, we can truly prepare our schools for the changes yet to occur.
If you would like to learn more about our program, please visit my website.
—
References
Kotter, J. P. (1990). What leaders really do. Harvard Business Review, 68(3), 103–111.
Digital Wellness Lab. (2023). The 5 M’s of digital wellness [PDF]. The Digital Wellness Lab, Boston Children’s Hospital. https://digitalwellnesslab.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/5Ms-Digital-Wellness.pdf
Glazer, K. (2026). Ready to lead with AI: A practical guide for school leaders. Connectedd Publishing.
—
Kip Glazer is principal of Mountain View High School in Mountain View, California, and author of Ready to Lead with AI: A Practical Guide for School Leaders. A former instructional technology coach, she works with educators nationwide on responsible and innovative uses of GenAI in schools. Connect with Kip on LinkedIn.
0 Comments