AI is rapidly becoming part of the way we work, learn, and solve problems across nearly every industry. As a result, educators are increasingly looking for ways to build their own understanding of AI while helping students prepare for a changing future. Through NAAIC and its partners, high school educators have access to multiple free professional development opportunities designed to support different teaching goals and strategies. 

Whether you’re hoping to strengthen your own AI literacy, bring ready-to-use lessons into your classroom, connect learning to workforce skills, or explore the technology in greater depth, there are opportunities that can support you. This guide is designed to help you understand what each pathway offers and identify the experiences that align with your professional goals. 

Your Goals

As you explore available training opportunities, consider what you hope to accomplish. Are you looking for practical classroom activities? Interested in earning industry certifications? Want to better understand how AI systems work or connect AI to career paths? The answers to these questions can help point you toward one or more learning opportunities.

‍Connect AI Learning to Career Readiness

Helping students understand how AI relates to future careers is becoming increasingly important across disciplines. aiEDU supports this goal by focusing on AI readiness, workforce-connected learning, and responsible AI practices. Designed for CTE teachers and career pathway educators, the program combines live sessions with asynchronous learning and covers topics including AI literacy, responsible AI, prompting, bias, privacy, academic integrity, and career pathways. 

With two cohorts beginning in August and September 2026, and application deadlines of July 15th and September 4, 2026, the program helps educators make meaningful connections between AI concepts and workforce preparation. For educators looking to bring career-connected conversations into their classrooms, this opportunity provides practical context alongside foundational AI topics. 

Build Confidence with AI Fundamentals

For educators looking to earn a certificate while establishing a strong foundation in AI concepts, the CompTIA AI Fundamentals offers a structured learning experience centered on foundational AI literacy and workforce development. Designed for CTE teachers, workforce development educators, and anyone interested in foundational AI concepts, the program combines a welcome session with primarily asynchronous coursework over approximately 50-56 hours. 

Running from July 7th through September 9th, 2026, with an application deadline of June 22nd, it provides participants with a 3-credit, plug-and-play course that delivers an industry-aligned AI curriculum and a Digital CompTIA CompCert, saving faculty from building curriculum from scratch. This opportunity may be especially valuable for educators who want a comprehensive introduction to AI through a structured format. 

Classroom-Ready Lessons & Activities

Some educators are looking for resources they can quickly integrate into instruction. Day of AI focuses on practical classroom implementation through workshops and a community of practice. Designed for educators across subjects like ELA, Social Studies, STEM, and Computer Science, the program explores topics such as what is AI, chatbots, productive AI usage, machine learning concepts, and AI systems. Participants also gain access to ready-to-use lessons and activities that can support classroom instruction. 

With multiple summer 2026 cohorts kicking off and application deadlines on July 8th and July 22nd, educators have flexible opportunities to join this practical pathway for bringing AI into the classroom. By participating, you will also gain exclusive access to our Day of AI Community of Practice series, a dedicated space for cohort members to collaborate, share implementation successes, and troubleshoot challenges together. 

Earn Industry-Aligned Credentials 

Some educators are interested in credentials that reflect real-world AI applications and can support workforce-focused instruction. 

Knowledge Pillars offers three specialized certification opportunities Knowledge Pillars offers three specialized, industry-aligned AI certifications tailored for teachers with at least 150 hours of relevant teaching experience:

• Coding-in-AI Specialist: For Computer Science, AI, IT, and programming teachers to prepare students for technical skills like Python, machine learning, computer vision, and hands-on AI project implementation.
• AI Business Implementation Practitioner: For Business, entrepreneurship, marketing, finance, and career-readiness CTE teachers to connect AI directly to workplace use cases, ethical decision-making, and corporate problem-solving.
• AI Industry Acceleration Specialist: For advanced CTE pathway teachers, academy leads, work-based learning teachers, and technology leaders to focus on large-scale AI adoption, ROI, change management, and client communication.

Participants complete a welcome session and primarily asynchronous coursework requiring approximately two hours of commitment per certificate. The program runs from July 21st through August 21st, 2026, with an application deadline of June 30th. Educators interested in specialized credentials tied to AI applications may find this pathway aligns well with their professional goals. 

Explore How AI Systems Work

For educators who want to spend more time engaging with AI concepts through projects and hands-on learning, AI4K12.org offers an opportunity to dive deeper into topics such as neural networks, image generation, text generation, prompt engineering, and classroom implementation. 

Designed for computer science teachers and educators interested in expanding their understanding of AI systems, the program consists of four cohort sessions running from September through December 2026. Applications are due by August 26th. By emphasizing project-based learning and exploration of core AI concepts, AI4K12 supports educators who want to build their understanding while considering classroom applications. 

Exploring More Than One Pathway

These opportunities are designed to complement one another rather than compete. Think of it as an a-la-carte-menu, which you keep coming back to for another upskilling treat. Participate in Day of AI to access classroom-ready lessons and collaborate with a community of peers while also exploring aiEDU and Knowledge Pillars’ AI Industry Acceleration Specialist or AI Business Implementation Practitioner to strengthen workforce connections. Pair specialized credentials from CompTIA AI Fundamentals or Knowledge Pillars’ Coding-in-AI Specialist with project-based classroom implementation strategies from AI4K12.org. The path depends on your goals, your classroom, and what you hope to bring back to your students.

Take the Next Step

As AI continues to shape education and the workforce, professional learning can help educators feel more confident integrating these concepts into their teaching. Explore the pathways that align with your interests, note the upcoming application deadlines, and consider participating in one or more programs that fit your professional goals. The skills and resources you build this summer can have a lasting impact on your classroom and your students.

‍Learn more about NAAIC's High School AI Initiative and explore all training opportunities here.