BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — The state is working with Google, Adobe, IBM, and Microsoft to expand AI learning in public schools and colleges.
- California partners with Google, Adobe, IBM, and Microsoft to expand AI education.
- Over 2 million students will gain access to AI tools and training.
- Community colleges play a central role in reaching underserved communities.
California is partnering with some of the world’s leading technology companies to bring artificial intelligence tools and training into classrooms across the state, and Kern County is part of the plan.
The initiative, announced by state leaders this week, will include collaboration with Google, Adobe, IBM and Microsoft. The goal is to give more than 2 million students access to AI-focused education and tools in public high schools, community colleges and universities.
“We need to have a society and communities that are AI literate and AI fluent,” said California Community Colleges Chancellor Sonya Christian.
Christian, who leads the largest higher education system in the nation, said the state’s 116 community colleges are in a unique position to serve students in rural and underserved communities, including those in the Central Valley.
“The mechanism to do it is through the community colleges because of the reach into California and communities that are hard to get to,” she said.
Christian added that faculty also need support to modernize how they teach.
“Our faculty need to be engaged with these tools to offer the curriculum and the pedagogy that is suitable for the 21st century,” she said.
The new programs, offered at no cost to schools, are designed to provide students with industry-ready skills. The partnerships will also include updated courses, certification pathways, and tools developed by the tech companies for classroom use.
Ian Anderson, a political science professor and political analyst who also works with the Kern Literacy Council, said giving students early access to AI is a step in the right direction.
“No matter what, AI technology is the future,” Anderson said.
But he cautioned that new tools come with risks.
“What it’s doing is bringing curricular tools, data analyst tools, things like this, to the schools early on so students are prepared for industry going forward,” he said. “But of course, there are challenges with that.”
Anderson said one major concern is overreliance on technology, something educators have seen before with calculators and spellcheck.
“We’ve seen just like with the calculators, spellcheck things like that, overreliance degrades fundamental skills,” he said.
He also pointed to declining writing skills in Kern County and across California, and said AI must be implemented in a way that supports, not replaces, literacy and critical thinking.
“Kern County and in California, literacy rates I’ve seen a real reduction in the quality of writing,” Anderson said. “So it is something that we have to manage carefully.”
State officials said the goal of the initiative is to prepare California students for high-demand careers in AI and emerging technologies, while ensuring communities like Kern County stay competitive in a rapidly evolving economy.
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