Elmbrook partnered with Google for Education at the Sharon Lynne Wilson Center for a first-of-its-kind Student AI Summit, bringing together students, educators and industry leaders to explore how artificial intelligence is changing education and the workplace.

Students and staff from Elmbrook’s LAUNCH program, Racine Unified School District, Fond Du Lac, Columbus, and Oconto Falls participated in the event, which combined student presentations, an industry panel and product demonstrations with Google tools.

The summit centered on a question schools across the country are navigating: how do we prepare students to use rapidly evolving AI tools effectively, responsibly and ethically?

Elmbrook Director of Technology Dan Scott shared the District's approach to that work, emphasizing that the goal extends beyond simply teaching students how to use individual AI platforms. Instead, Elmbrook is focusing on what it calls AI agility, strengthening the human skills that become increasingly important as artificial intelligence becomes more capable.

Those skills include critical thinking, creativity, agency and judgment, built around three core principles: think critically, amplify agency and act with integrity.

"The positive is that we have access to an abundance of intelligence and in order to access it in a way that elevates you we are going to prioritize agility," Scott told students. “As AI technology continues to evolve it’s important that we provide you (students) with the skills to remain agile so they can use AI successfully and ethically now and in the next phase of their college and career pursuits” Scott also stressed that students remain responsible for anything they produce with the help of artificial intelligence.

Connecting Students With Industry

A featured panel brought together leaders from education, healthcare, manufacturing and technology to discuss how AI is already being used in their fields and what they will be looking for in future employees and leaders. The discussion was moderated by Todd McLees, co-founder of humanskills.ai.

Panelists included Gabriel Velez, PhD, Associate Professor in Marquette University's School of Education; Kate Weiland-Moores, President of Concurrency, Inc.; Mark Dreikosen, Director of Operations at Husco Automotive; Dr. Phyllis King, Chief Innovation Strategist at Waukesha County Technical College; Sarah Alt, President and Owner of Triple Ten Consulting; and Caitlin Dunn, AVP of Population and Digital Health at Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin.

Google for Education was represented by their Solutions Engineer, Program Manager and Workspace Specialist, who also joined students throughout the summit, sharing perspectives on the evolving role of AI in education and leading demonstrations of tools including Gemini and NotebookLM.

Students Put AI Into Action

Elmbrook LAUNCH students played an active role in the summit, demonstrating projects and sharing how they are already applying AI to real-world challenges.

The event included student-built Gemini "Gems," customized versions of Gemini designed around specific tasks or needs, along with demonstrations focused on getting more out of Gemini and NotebookLM.

The hands-on demonstrations reinforced a central theme of the summit: AI can expand what students are able to accomplish, but students must still critically evaluate its output, protect personal information and understand when and how the technology should be used.

Scott encouraged students to verify AI-generated information, question potential bias and respect expectations set by their teachers.

"When you put your stamp on the work that AI helps you produce, you own that work," Scott said. "That's your work. That's your brand. That's your name."

By bringing students, educators, Google and industry leaders together, the summit gave students an opportunity to explore not only what artificial intelligence can do today, but the skills they will need to navigate what comes next.

Pictured above: Students demonstrate the Gems they built; below: panel