Learning Activities:
Four sideby sessions: Three peer-based sideby Sessions + one Solo Reflection Session (~20 minutes each)
Develop and implement an AI-enabled leadership workflow to increase operational efficiency
Share your reflections on the observed effects of their AI-enabled workflow
(Optionally) Post related Small Win stories about their practice in the sideby platform
(Optionally) Attend Office Hours with course facilitators
The AI for Leading Efficiently Badge learning experience runs from July 21 - August 28, 2026.
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Session 1: Operational Problems of Practice & Goal-Setting
Leaders take stock of how they spend their leadership time and energy, then identify a high-friction operational challenge—such as substitute coordination, master scheduling, or communication workflows—that gets in the way of leading change for equity. With a partner, they unpack their problem of practice to identify root causes and envision a more ideal state.
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Session 2: Exploring AI Tools for Operational Leadership
Participants build background knowledge of existing AI tools & strategies that can increase efficiency and consider how to leverage them to address their operational problem of practice. They plan to develop and try an AI-assisted workflow.
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Session 3: Exchanging Operational Small Wins (So Far)
Participants share their successes and lessons learned thus far with implementing their AI-assisted workflow. Together, they troubleshoot challenges, exchange ideas, and determine next steps to increase their operational efficiency with AI.
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Session 4: Presentation of Learning
Participants tell the story of their learning & progress toward increased operational efficiency through use of AI. They share their AI-assisted workflow, and take stock of its impact by reflecting on how it has influenced not only their operational responsibilities but also their leadership to support continuous improvement for equity.
Enroll Today
AWSP Members get the discounted rate for the formal WA state clock hours.
Guiding Question & Description
How might we use AI to reduce time spent on operational leadership—so leaders can focus more deeply on instructional, relational, and equity-centered leadership?
This learning experience equips school leaders (Principals, APs, Coaches, Team Leaders) to harness AI for the operational challenges that consume disproportionate leadership time and energy. Participants will move from identifying an operational problem of practice (e.g., weekly communications, schedules) to actively designing AI-supported workflows that reduce time & cognitive load, and free up capacity for the instructional, relational, and equity-centered leadership that matters most.
We have designed this learning experience so busy leaders can learn in the context of their actual work, rather than through disconnected tasks. The badge is job-embedded, experiential, and peer-driven: participants will learn from colleagues in the cohort and from applying new approaches to their everyday work. They will also build background knowledge through curated, high-quality resources and tools aligned for operational leadership.
By the end of this badge, leaders will have practiced an AI-supported leadership workflow and will have reflected on the impact of leading more efficiently.
PSEL and CCDEI Standards Addressed
What past participants in badging have to say
Real educators, real results from sideby’s 2025 Impact Report
Your Learning Facilitators
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Erica Crane, EdD
Erica is a former teacher and high school founding principal. She is a current ceo and co-founder at sideby, a platform that connects educators for guided conversations along learning pathways to accelerate community-driven innovation at scale. She is also a faculty associate and course designer in Ed Leadership at ASU where she currently coaches principal interns. With an emphasis on liberatory practices, she has taught, coached, consulted, and led in schools and supported school systems across the United States since 2006, from the South Bronx to rural Northern California.
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Mike Mendelson
Mike brings deep experience at the intersection of teaching, learning design, and applied AI in education. He began his career as a high school math and technology educator and later served in a district-level role supporting the implementation of personalized, competency-based learning systems. Across these roles, he focused on designing structures that support educator practice, student agency, and coherent learning pathways at scale.
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Kippy Smith
Over the last 20 years, Kippy has held roles on all sides of professional learning—from classroom teacher, to programs designer and facilitator, leadership coach, and organizational leader. Kippy has spent her career at the intersection of school design, edtech innovation, and educator collaboration. Her work is grounded in the belief that transformational learning isn’t top-down — it’s co-created in schools, classrooms, and teams. As SVP of Learning at sideby, Kippy continues to lead SWD while influencing how we grow sideby’s learning network.
Limited Enrollment
Limited Enrollment
✺ Frequently Asked Questions ✺
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No. This is a peer-driven learning experience designed to fit into the real work of education professionals. You’ll spend short, focused time learning with a peer. Then, you’ll apply what you’re learning directly to your practice through authentic challenges and reflection.
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The synchronous commitment is light: a 20-minute guided peer session every two weeks. Asynchronous work is flexible and embedded in your day-to-day work — not through extra homework or long written assignments. The total time spent on this course is equivalent to 3 hours all together.
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Peers! We have education leaders from across the state of Washington and the country who engage in our sideby badges. Past badge participants have appreciated the chance to engage in learning with peers who understand the real work in schools and educational organizations.
Why sideby?
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We’re real educators too who designed sideby for transformational professional learning. We’ve taught, led, and facilitated great PD in real schools.
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AWSP and sideby have partnered to bring exciting new learning opportunities for education leaders to earn official clock hours.
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AWSP heard from ed leaders that they wanted clock hours through authentic learning opportunities and connection with peers.
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Education leaders should learn how they’d teach. Our approach to more personalized, peer-driven, application-based experiences models deeper learning in action
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Our learning experiences offer an opportunity for collaboration and cross-pollination across leadership contexts. They are first offered to AWSP members first. Then registration opens to the 12 state School Leader Collaborative before it becomes nationally available.
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Leaders deserve the best learning, just like students do.
✺ Contact Information ✺
For questions about the learning experience or technical support within sideby, reach out to: team@sideby.ai
For questions about your clock hours issued through AWSP or for info about registration in AWSP’s Learning Lab, reach out to: dameon@awsp.org