In this episode, we talk with high school English teacher and teacher-educator Casey Cuny about what it really means to teach in the age of AI. Rather than treating tools like ChatGPT and Gemini as shortcuts, Casey uses them as thought partners—to design lessons, differentiate for diverse learners, and deepen classroom dialogue. We explore why today’s students are “digital natives but not AI natives,” how intentional guardrails and AI literacy can prevent an emerging “AI divide,” and concrete ways AI can actually make learning more human, relational, and equitable, from English learners to students who have struggled for years in traditional classrooms. 

Bio:

Casey Cuny is the 2024 California Teacher of the Year and the CEO and Founder of Whitai.app. Cuny teaches 10th grade honors English and Senior mythology and folklore at Valencia High School in Santa Clarita, California. He serves as English Department Chair and the school’s Instructional Coach. He also teaches at National University in the Masters of Education program working with teachers from all over the country, and he was recently awarded the 2025 National University Academic Excellence Delphi Award. He is also currently working with ASU’s Mary Lou Fulton School of Education as a consultant and developer for their new California Teacher Credential program. Casey’s education software—WHIT, was recently selected as a 2026 Semifinalist for the Milken-UPenn Business Competition and was also selected as a 2026 Transcend Fellow.

In 2025, he spoke at the Open AI Forum as well as the Open AI Academy about the power of AI in the classroom and more broadly in education. In 2026, he delivered a keynote at Boston College about how AI can amplify UDL in STEAM. His passion lies in transforming classrooms through relationship-driven rigor, purposeful use of AI, and equity-focused instructional design.

References:

https://www.caseycuny.com/

https://www.whitai.app/

https://genai.calstate.edu/about/workforce-acceleration-board/casey-cuny