Washington Leadership Academy's Frontier Practice in Integrating AI into Teaching

Washington Leadership Academy, a public charter high school in Washington, D.C., held a hackathon in March 2025 where about 100 students built AI chatbots. The school began exploring AI soon after ChatGPT launched in November 2022 and formed an AI working group of administrators, students, and teachers. By December 2025, 63% of U.S. high-school students used AI for homework, up from 49% several months earlier.

WLA shows a possible path for AI education in a resource-constrained school, with equity at its core, and offers policymakers and educators a reference. Most students are Black and from low-income families, so AI education can narrow gaps in technology access. Teacher training and hackathons demonstrate practical integration, while the case may encourage policymakers to direct more resources toward disadvantaged groups.