BROKEN ARROW, Okla. — Broken Arrow Public Schools launched a new course aimed at understanding artificial intelligence and what it can do. The A.I. Foundations course launched in January.
“Artificial intelligence is encroaching itself on everything that we do,” said Brandon Chitty.
Brandon Chitty is Broken Arrow Public Schools’ Executive Director of Instructional Technology. He explained the brand-new course at BAPS.
“We need to develop students to be successful in the market and in the world and functioning every single day,” said Chitty.
The A.I. Foundations class has about 150 students in-person and another 50 who take the class virtually.
Along with learning about the technology, students are learning to use it ethically and responsibly as good A.I. citizens.
“What we want to do is make sure students understand it,” said Chitty. “With any technology, there are really good things, and there are really scary things. It goes into ethics and what we need to be thinking about.”
Broken Arrow isn’t the only district with an eye on A.I. It’s been on educators’ minds for years. 2 News reported in 2022 when Tulsa Community College got a $40,000 grant to help teach students about artificial intelligence.
At the time, student Lawrence King was focused on making a difference with the tech.
“One thing I know is that is where the world is going, and if that is where the world is going, how am I going to make a positive impact. I feel like the best way to make that positive impact is getting into the field of technology,” said Lawrence King.
In April 2025, 2 News reported that Tulsa Public Schools said it was ready to add more technology to its classrooms to help students, including the current A.I. reading comprehension tool, Amira.
One parent interviewed by 2 News said she’s worried about the prevalence of A.I.
“There’s a limit to how much we should use, not to the point where we numb the capacity to have memories and quick thinking,” said Louise Suarez.
For Broken Arrow Schools, Chitty says the goal is to make sure students are ready for the future by understanding the technology that permeates our lives.
“We need to teach our students how to be really effective with that because their peers that are going to be really successful are people that really know how to utilize a tool to get the outcome that they want,” said Chitty.
Broken Arrow’s curriculum was created in partnership with code.org. It’s a nonprofit aimed at providing K-12 artificial intelligence curriculum across the globe.
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