More than 30 years ago, I found myself immersed in the early days of the Internet—not just as a spectator, but as a builder. I was developing and managing websites for publicly traded companies when most people were still asking, “What’s a browser?” That era was raw, untamed, and full of potential—much like the current moment we’re living through with artificial intelligence.
Back then, I made a bold decision: I stepped away from a steady career in education to start my own tech company. The venture—ABC Digital—helped pioneer integrated web hosting, digital design, and application development. We served clients from entertainment giants like 4Kids Entertainment to community institutions like Iona Prep. We ran our own data center. We built ecommerce systems from the ground up. And we learned how to scale fast in a world that never stopped changing.
I don’t share this to relive the past. I share it because it’s deeply connected to where we are right now.
As an educator, I’ve always believed that schools must evolve with the world—not lag behind it. Whether in the 1990s, when the web first reshaped business, or today, as AI redefines the future of work, the question remains the same:
Are we preparing students for the world as it is—or as it’s going to be?
That question has never felt more urgent. The pace of AI development is staggering. Entire industries are being reshaped not over decades, but in months. I’ve chosen to immerse myself fully in this next frontier—not just to understand AI, but to explore its implications for education, equity, and opportunity.
And here’s what I know for certain:
AI will radically transform how we work, think, and create.
Students who lack AI literacy will be left behind.
The classroom must evolve into a launchpad for innovation, not a warehouse for outdated skills.
So here I am—three decades after launching digital solutions for the first wave of the Internet—once again at the edge of what’s next. Only now, I’m bringing everything I’ve learned back to the field that started it all: education.
We are on the cusp of reimagining what school can and must be. And I’m all in.