• BrightMinds-AI
  • Posts
  • AI at War, Classrooms in Wait: What the National Agenda Means for Education

AI at War, Classrooms in Wait: What the National Agenda Means for Education

BrightMinds Bulletin

Author

Jessica Maddry
July 29, 2025

Part 1: The National AI Agenda

On July 22, 2025, the Trump administration released America’s AI Action Plan—a 25-page blueprint declaring AI the frontier of geopolitical power, industrial transformation, and national security.

The message? Win the AI race—or get left behind.

But here’s the question:
What does this mean for classrooms still waiting for working Wi-Fi?

AI Action Plan

The Action Plan is fast, sweeping, and unapologetically pro-industry. It includes:

  • Dismantling Biden-era AI safeguards (EO 14110 revoked)

  • Deregulating AI across nearly every federal agency

  • Penalizing states with “burdensome” AI laws

  • Building defense-focused AI infrastructure (data centers, manufacturing hubs)

  • Stripping DEI, climate, and misinformation standards from frameworks

  • Prioritizing open-source frontier models—even without clear safety protocols

AI isn’t framed as a tool, and we’re expected to build, educate for, and deploy it.

Meanwhile, in Education…

On the same day, the U.S. Department of Education issued a Dear Colleague Letter.

Its tone? Caution over clarity. Risk over reinvention.

Key points:

  • Use existing funds for AI in tutoring and instructional design

  • Don’t replace teachers

  • Ensure ethical, FERPA-compliant, and accessible use

  • Train educators first

In short: no new funding, no infrastructure, no real shield—just reminders to follow the rules.

Education Is Barely a Footnote

The Action Plan lists over 100 directives. Education appears only as workforce prep, not as a protected space for ethical, human-centered AI learning.

There’s no guidance for:

  • Equitable AI access

  • Age-appropriate tools

  • Student data protection

  • Cognitive or emotional safety

A 2024 RAND study found that 65% of districts still lack AI governance structures (Sawchuk, 2024). Meanwhile, AI tools are reshaping student writing, grading, and feedback in real time, with little oversight.

They gave defense agencies billion-dollar roadmaps.
They gave schools a compliance checklist.

And Schools Are Still…

  • Debating phone bans

  • Drafting vague policies on outdated Chromebooks

  • Navigating AI tools without standardized frameworks

  • Hoping someone, somewhere, names teachers in the national conversation

The Real Divide

This isn’t about whether AI belongs in schools. That debate is over.

It’s about:

  • Who shapes the rules

  • Who gets protected

  • And who’s left scrambling to write AI policies under outdated conditions

As Black et al. (2024) warn, top-down AI decisions without educator input are already widening equity gaps, especially in under-resourced districts.

Our Take: Purpose Over Panic

At BrightMinds AI, we reject both tech panic and blind adoption.

Instead, we lead with:

✅ Educators- Discover your strengths and align tools to the purpose that drives you
✅ Leaders Ask: Who is this serving? Who might it harm? Who’s missing from the table?
✅ Policymakers Want AI-ready schools? Invest in capacity, not just compliance.

That means funding, training, and time.

Where We Fight Back

💥 BrightMinds In-Person PD Is Now Booking

We help schools:

  • Discover each educator’s tech and teaching strengths

  • Build strategies that align AI use with life purpose

  • Train educators to use AI without being used by it

🛡️ Not another PD.
This is your shield.

Final Word

The AI arms race has already started.

But classrooms aren’t code labs—they’re where democracy is taught… or lost.

So here’s the BrightMinds take: If you're not at the table, you're the dataset.

Let’s flip the script.
Let’s fight smart.
Let’s teach with purpose.

Resources:

  1. Full AI Action Plan (White House PDF) — The complete policy document, including infrastructure strategy and procurement mandates. https://www.insidegovernmentcontracts.com/2025/07/trump-administration-issues-ai-action-plan-and-series-of-ai-executive-orders/

  2. Legal Analysis: Hunton Andrews Kurth & Babst Calland — Explore regulatory takedowns, ideological neutrality contracts, DEI rollbacks. https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/07/23/trump-ai-action-plan-big-tech/

  3. Time / Washington Post / The Verge summaries — Digestible analysis of national tech alignment and policy framing. TIME The Washington Post The Verge

  4. RAND Education Reports — Insight into AI adoption trends, district training gaps, equity divides. https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA134-25.html

  5. Academic AI Governance Study — Real-world university governance strategies and ethical frameworks. arXiv+1arXiv+1

  6. NEA Sample Board Policy — Example template for crafting district-level AI guidance grounded in equity and ethics. National Education Association