Project Spotlight: AI as a Cross-Sector Emerging Industry

Sector: IT 

Lead Organization: West Sound STEM Network 

Key Partners: Snohomish STEM Network, Mid-Columbia STEM Network, Overcast Innovations, ATCA Services Corp., Benton PUD, Snohomish County & PUD, WWU Poulsbo/Cyber Range, Peninsula College, WSU Everett, Everett Community College, Olympic College, Columbia Basin College, Everett School District, Kennewick School District, and 15+ additional districts across Kitsap and Olympic Peninsulas. 

Challenge: Washington employers face a growing shortage of workers with AI skills across manufacturing, clean energy, cybersecurity, healthcare, and public services. Nationally, 71 percent of employers prefer candidates with AI skills, even if they are less experienced. 

Solution: Embed scalable AI and data-literacy modules into CTE, STEM, and Running Start programs, paired with teacher training that supports long-term AI-enhanced instruction. These approaches ensure students gain employer-aligned AI competencies through programs they already access. 

Projected Outcomes: 

  • 1080 students participating in Explore events. 
  • 1125 K–12 students receiving AI-enhanced instruction. 
  • 75 students earning micro-credentials or certifications. 
  • 20 educators trained in AI implementation. 
  • 20 employers supporting training and program delivery. 
  • 6 school districts participating. 

Impact: 

  • Students: Gain early exposure to AI-enhanced pathways through hands-on learning and clearer transitions into postsecondary opportunities. 
  • Employers: Regional employers help shape AI-aligned learning experiences, strengthening future talent pipelines across sectors. 
  • Educators: Build confidence and capacity to integrate AI literacy and sector-specific skills into instruction. 
  • Systems: A coordinated regional approach to AI education emerges, aligning K–12, postsecondary, and industry around shared pathways. 

Project Update

West Sound STEM Network, in partnership with Snohomish STEM Network and Mid-Columbia STEM Network, continues to expand AI education and career-connected learning across three Washington regions, strengthening connections among K–12 education, industry and workforce development.

During the 2025–26 school year, 2,077 students participated in career exploration experiences with industry professionals, gaining firsthand insights into how AI is transforming workplace practices, decision-making and emerging skill requirements.

Educator professional development is creating a sustainable, multiplying impact. An initial cohort of 57 educators across 11 districts is projected to reach 5,130 students through AI-enhanced instruction in fall 2026. By September 2026, an additional 26 educators from two new districts completed AI competencies training, expanding the projected reach by 2,340 students.

Collectively, 83 trained educators across 13 districts are projected to reach 7,470 students during fall 2026. This approach builds lasting instructional capacity while equipping students to engage with AI confidently, critically and responsibly.

Looking ahead, partners will continue expanding employer engagement and career exploration opportunities, with a goal of reaching at least 2,077 additional students.

“As artificial intelligence continues to shape workforce needs across sectors, it’s important that students have opportunities to build relevant skills early,” said Alyssa Jackson, Director of the Snohomish STEM Network. “This partnership helps align education with emerging industry demands while supporting the long-term economic vitality of our region.” – Alyssa Jackson, Director, Snohomish STEM Network

8th graders explored tech careers at Snohomish STEM Network’s Explore IT Careers™ event, using real-world tools and AI.

8th graders explored tech careers at Snohomish STEM Network’s Explore IT Careers™ event, using real-world tools and AI.

Highlights and Impact 

Building AI Literacy Through Educator Training

Across three regions, 83 educators representing 13 school districts have received AI competencies training, with a projected reach of 7,470 students receiving AI-enhanced instruction in fall 2026.

The lasting impact extends well beyond a single semester. As teachers incorporate AI into their curriculum and everyday classroom practices, successive groups of students gain opportunities to explore and use the technology. This sustained exposure helps demystify AI, builds confidence in its responsible use and encourages students to see AI as a tool they can understand and control. By investing in educators, the project is building long-term capacity for AI literacy across schools and districts.

AI in Action: Sparking Curiosity and Exploring Careers

Snohomish STEM Network is helping students discover the excitement and possibilities of technology careers while exploring how AI and emerging technologies can be applied across a wide range of professions. Through hands-on experiences that bring STEM and artificial intelligence to life, students are learning to understand, evaluate and use technologies that are transforming the workplace.

At Girls Explore STEM, hosted by WSU Everett, 110 students in grades 6–12 explored nine interactive stations featuring everything from software engineering and AI to rockets, circuits, cybersecurity and whale research. Students designed games using AI, built wind turbines, decoded ciphers and discovered how drones collect data on gray whales. One enthusiastic student shared, “Software engineering was awesome, AI even helped me make a game.” The excitement translated into measurable results, with students reporting increased STEM knowledge, interest in STEM careers and confidence imagining themselves in STEM professions.

At Explore I.T. Careers™, 82 Everett Public School eighth graders worked with real-world technology tools, experimented with AI and collaborated on hands-on challenges. Students reporting high technology knowledge jumped from 37% before the event to 86% afterward. As one student shared, “Working in groups and teamwork was my favorite part.” The comment highlights another important benefit of hands-on career exploration: students discover that technology careers involve teamwork, communication and creative problem-solving, not just technical skills.

These experiences demonstrate how engaging, hands-on activities can spark curiosity, build confidence and help students envision themselves in careers they may never have considered. As a partner in the three-region AI initiative, led by West Sound STEM Network, Snohomish STEM Network is helping students recognize how AI and emerging technologies are reshaping work across industries. By connecting technology exploration with real-world career applications, these experiences encourage students to see themselves not simply as users of technology, but as individuals equipped to apply it creatively, critically and confidently in whatever career paths they choose.

Looking Ahead

The project will continue expanding AI competencies training for educators, integrating AI-enhanced instruction into classrooms and connecting students with employers through career exploration activities across all three regions.

Employer partnerships will support the development of scalable, classroom-ready resources demonstrating real-world applications of AI. For example, an October STEM Café with a focus on construction, led by an industry partner, will feature an AI-driven construction challenge teachers can recreate with their students.

STEM Cafés connect educators directly with industry professionals, broadening their understanding of careers, emerging technologies and workforce skills. Through hands-on activities developed with industry partners, teachers gain practical ways to bring authentic career-connected learning into their classrooms.

Opportunities for students to experience AI in the workplace firsthand are also expanding. A student tour of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) is being coordinated to explore research and development in AI and cybersecurity. The proposed visit is currently undergoing internal facility access approval and has not yet been confirmed.

Career exploration activities will continue with a goal of engaging at least as many students as the previous year, while expanding employer partnerships and opportunities for students to discover how AI is transforming careers across industries.

Resources 

Potentially transferable practices include the AI+ Educator professional-learning model; classroom integration of AI literacy, ethics and critical evaluation; employer-led activities demonstrating how AI changes real workplace tasks; and, a phased district implementation approach that accounts for local AI policy, privacy and IT readiness. Partners can also share lessons from the AI+ Everyone pilot and cross-region coordination. Useful public background: Snohomish STEM’s “Snohomish STEM Joins Multi-Region AI Learning Initiative,” “WSU Everett Hosts Girls Explore STEM: A Day of Hands-On Learning and Career Exploration” and “Explore I.T. Careers 2025 Impact Summary.”

For questions about this project, please contact Dr. Kareen Borders, borders@skschools.org