AI-driven schools in Arizona

By Stacy Mantle
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Arizona has long been at the forefront of school choice by being home to the nation’s largest voucher-style programs known as the ESA program.

Now it may be the first to normalize artificial intelligence-led learning with the introduction of three new schools.

The funding fight has made Arizona a proving ground not just for school choice, but for the next frontier in education. Each of these AI-driven schools have made headlines for their unconventional approach to learning.

Arizona’s AI-powered schools span three models:

• Alpha, a private school with elite tuition,
• Novatio, a private school covered by ESA funds, and
• Unbound Academy, a tuition-free virtual charter school approved by the Arizona State Board for Charter Schools for the 2025-26 school year.

Each model raises questions about whether innovation will close gaps or widen them.

Reimagining charter schools

“At Unbound Academy, our model empowers teachers to meet each student where they are,” said Michael Goto, head of schools. “We don’t have a learning problem in schools today, we have an engagement problem. The AI lets us personalize academics so teachers can focus on relationships.”

“While AI can help deliver curriculum, our teachers are still there at every step to ensure all other needs are me," he said. "It's not uncommon for our teachers to pull students into a breakout room to make sure their mental space is where it needs to be in order to focus on academics. There's a real human aspect to what we do.”

Core curriculum is addressed in two-hour sessions during the mornings.  Afternoons focus on life skills, with workshops on public speaking, collaboration and leadership.

“We have three commitments,” Goto said. “That students academically grow more than they would in a brick-and-mortar setting, that they learn life skills and that they love school.”

Goto said he believes the education and teaching problem is systemic.

“For me this is about empowering our teachers to meet each student where they are at," he said. "The learning gaps that exist in the common classroom today are far greater than any teacher can achieve alone. Our AI model seeks to meet this need by empowering our teachers with the curriculum tailored specifically for each student meaning teachers can focus on building relationships to find out what keeps them motivated and working towards their academic goals.

Embracing the private market

A similar learning model is followed by Alpha School and Novatio. Mornings consist of a two-hour learning session (that varies for each student), followed by an afternoon of individual or team projects. 

Located in Scottsdale, Alpha School takes a more exclusive approach. Tuition is comparable to elite prep schools (ranging between $15,000 and $40,000) and it positions itself as a fast-track model for affluent families.  The school is accredited by COGNIA and prides itself on student outcomes and coaching students to success in life, no matter their goals.

Teachers are known as "guides" and six-figure salaries await the best of them, of which there are a very limited number of positions and a long list of applicants. 

“We want the best motivators, the best coaches,” said Matt Shenker, lead guide of Alpha School. “The ‘teacher in front of the classroom’ system was built for compliance in the industrial era, not curiosity or real-world readiness. By using AI, we can finally deliver true one-to-one mastery-based learning.”

“At Alpha, we believe kids are limitless, but most schools unintentionally strip away their natural enthusiasm and motivation year by year. By using AI, we can finally deliver true one-to-one mastery-based learning — meeting each student exactly where they are, accelerating their academics in a fraction of the time, and freeing space for teaching some of the most valuable skills needed to learn for modern life: financial literacy, public speaking, emotional regulation, giving and receiving feedback, teamwork.”

“Students receive elite social and emotional coaching and civic learning experiences,” Shenker said. “Our guides play a fundamentally different role than traditional teachers — because with lower student-to-adult ratios and the time that AI-driven academic learning allows, guides are freed from lecturing and grading and can focus on what only humans can do: connection, mentorship, coaching up skills for relating with others and relating with self. We create intentional structures like town halls where students debate, vote and practice civic responsibility by getting to have a real voice in shaping their learning environment.”

Accountability measures

Alpha students take the Northwest Evaluation Association's Measurements of Academic Progress tests multiple times a year. The NWEA MAP test is used by over 50,000 schools and districts in 149 countries. Alpha reports that their students consistently score in the top 1% to 3% nationally. But Alpha leaders say their true benchmark is in “tests to pass” for life skills — proving grit, public speaking or entrepreneurship through real-world performance.

“Instead of essays or multiple-choice tests, kids face real challenges with measurable outcomes,” Shenker said. “For example, to prove grit, a student might need to solve a Rubik’s Cube, juggle for 30 seconds and run a mile without stopping all in under 30 minutes. To prove public speaking, they may deliver a talk that’s scored by an AI coach for clarity, confidence and engagement, then validated by live audiences. To prove entrepreneurship, they might launch a business evaluated by outside experts, with revenue goals or customer feedback as benchmarks. In every case, the bar is set high and the evidence of mastery is tangible — students either meet the standard or they don’t, and the growth comes in the process of getting there.”

Still, the cost raises questions. Education advocates critical of the model’s exclusivity say that if AI is the future, it shouldn’t just be accessible to families who can pay luxury tuition. 

Zero-cost alternative

While Alpha targets the wealthy, Glendale-based Novatio markets itself as a virtual private school that is fully covered through ESA funding. 

"Traditional education often forces all students to move at the same pace, regardless of whether they’re behind, on level, or ready to accelerate," said Karissa Ham, Novatio’s leader. "This leaves some kids frustrated and others unchallenged. Novatio’s model solves this by using AI to pinpoint each student’s actual skill level and build a custom learning path. That way, no child is held back by grade-level constraints, and no child slips through the cracks. Families also gain flexibility in scheduling, while still getting a highly rigorous, individualized education."

Like Alpha and Oro Valley-based Unbound, Novatio addresses concerns about social and civic development by dividing schedules between two hours of AI-driven academics and afternoons of collaborative clubs.

“Students work in groups, build social connections, and practice leadership and problem-solving," Ham said. "Daily launch meetings, breakout rooms by grade level, and teacher-guided clubs provide the social-emotional framework and peer community that families expect, even in a virtual setting. Metrics include both test growth — tracked with NWEA MAP — and participation in clubs and independence in managing their own learning.”

“Our program has been reviewed and approved by the state of Arizona, so families can be confident it meets required standards,” said Ham. “Beyond that, we don’t rely solely on technology. Our team is constantly monitoring student scores, placement, and progress to make sure each child is receiving exactly what they need. The AI helps personalize the pathway, but human oversight ensures that recommendations are appropriate, accurate and aligned with state expectations.”

What’s at stake in Arizona

The promise of AI-driven education is seductive: shorter school days, customized instruction and measurable growth. Advocates point to research suggesting students retain more in focused two-hour bursts than in traditional six-hour schedules. Freed from teaching to the middle, AI can meet students where they are, driving growth and improving learning.

By condensing core academics into two-hour sessions, these schools free the rest of the day for project-based learning and real-world skill development. 

However, these schools are not without controversy. While supporters of vouchers argue the programs expand parental choice and fuels innovations (like these AI-driven school models), critics warn it diverts millions from public schools, which the majority (over 75%) of Arizona students attend. 

"We need to remember that AI is a tool, not a teaching strategy,” said Marisol Garcia, president of the Arizona Education Association. “When schools and districts use AI tools responsibly, they can reduce busywork and open up more time for teachers and administrators to focus on the needs of their students.”

But critics stress the risks.

“There’s a real danger in AI-driven decision-making, especially in areas like school discipline where machine bias can be acute," Garcia said. "Policymakers also need to be careful not to see AI as a replacement for fully funded schools or smaller class sizes.”

Other concerns include equity in access, bias in AI platforms and the loss of teacher-student mentorship.

Arizona’s experiment will be watched closely nationwide. If students show academic growth with only two hours of daily instruction, policymakers elsewhere may see AI as a way to stretch budgets and address teacher shortages. If Alpha and Unbound prove profitable, private investors could push expansion across metro areas.

For Arizona, the challenge will be balancing experimentation with safeguards.

The bigger picture

Arizona’s AI schools are less about replacing teachers than about redefining what school means. In a state where traditional district school enrollment is declining, funding is stretched, and parents demand options, AI offers a disruptive new path.

But disruption comes with risks. 

As Unbound launches, Alpha grows and Novatio scales, Arizona is writing the first chapter of a story that could reshape American education. Whether that story is one of efficiency and empowerment, or inequality and unintended consequences will depend on how the state, parents and educators steer the experiment in the years ahead.

“Policymakers also need to be careful not to fall into the trap of seeing AI tools as a replacement for fully-funded schools or smaller class sizes," said Garcia. "Trained, well-supported educators are mentors who lead with compassion, empathy and a personal commitment to their students — and those are things that a machine will never be able to replace…"

Editor’s note: A grant from the Arizona Local News Foundation made this story possible. The foundation awarded 15 newsrooms to pay for solutions-focused education reporters for two years. Please submit comments at yourvalley.net/letters or email them to AzOpinions@iniusa.org. We are committed to publishing a wide variety of reader opinions, as long as they meet our Civility Guidelines.