When Whitney Criswell talks about education, her focus is on building student-centered classrooms where technology sparks curiosity and empowers learning. A digital learning coach and social studies teacher at Royal Spring Middle School in Georgetown, Kentucky, Criswell draws on 15 years of experience helping educators integrate digital tools.
At the upcoming Leadhership Network for Women conference, Criswell’s session titled “Shift Happens: Designing Student-Centered Classrooms With AI and Emerging Tech Tools” will highlight practical strategies and her vision for how technology can expand equity, engagement and personalization in schools.
Criswell says technology is “a lever for equity and empowerment—not just for students, but for educators, too.” Building confidence with AI, blended learning and tech integration is as much about leadership and mindset as it is about tools, she notes.
She also wants female educators to recognize the importance of finding their voice as leaders, even when they are guiding from the classroom or roles without formal titles.
For Criswell, leadership is about influence rather than position. “You can lead from your classroom by modeling innovation, building relationships and sharing your successes with colleagues,” she says.
Building student-centered confidence in teachers
Criswell has spent the past five years coaching educators while continuing her own classroom practice. That dual role allows her to test emerging technologies with students before recommending them to colleagues.
“Coaching is about listening first, meeting teachers where they are and helping them take meaningful next steps,” she says. Starting small and celebrating early wins is central to her philosophy. She frames professional development like her own student-centered instruction: “I do, We do, You do.”
Preparing students for a student-centered future
Criswell believes digital learning’s greatest opportunity lies in preparing students for an evolving world. “Sometimes it gives me chills to consider that as a middle school educator, I am preparing my students for jobs that don’t even exist yet,” she says.
Technology strengthens communication, collaboration and problem-solving while also giving students more ownership of their learning, Criswell expresses. Virtual field trips to places like Mount Everest or the Sahara Desert, she notes, can “open up windows and doors for all students” while broadening their worldviews.
For teachers, these experiences promote student-centered classrooms by streamlining grading and assessment, freeing time for relationship-building and bridging equity gaps with resources students might not otherwise access.
AI, digital learning and a student-centered classroom
Criswell, a member of her district’s AI policy committee and technology innovation cohort, helps educators explore artificial intelligence responsibly.
“Start with curiosity and experimentation rather than perfection,” she advises. Even simple tools such as AI-assisted feedback can reduce workload and engage students. Criswell encourages students to question outputs, test historical accuracy of AI-generated images and evaluate reliability.
Empowering students and educators
Beyond AI, Criswell sponsors the Student Technology Leadership Program, where students take on real-world projects and leadership roles. The initiative, she says, “has created a sense of pride in our school community, where students feel their voices and ideas matter.”
Criswell hopes educators leave her session with the confidence to experiment, adapt and lead a student-centered classroom. “I hope attendees walk away feeling empowered with practical strategies they can use right away, but also with the confidence that they can lead change in their own spaces,” she says.
“My goal is to continue helping educators navigate these shifts while keeping the focus on what matters most: empowering students to be critical thinkers, creators and leaders in a digital world,” Criswell adds.
