Generative AI has forced education to confront a question we can no longer avoid: What is school for when knowledge is everywhere and automation is cheap? When machines can generate essays and solve algebra problems, the answer is not to compete with technology. Instead, we need a new North Star: Human Flourishing. We must double down on the imagination, empathy, and purpose that remain uniquely ours.

As a high school superintendent in New York City, I spend my weeks visiting classrooms across the five boroughs. What stands out are the moments when learning feels deeply human: when a student’s eyes light up during a presentation, when peers debate an idea that matters to them, when a teacher listens with genuine curiosity. Creativity sits at the center of those moments. It is how students make sense of themselves and the world.

The Human Skills That Matter Most

• Self-knowledge: understanding one’s strengths, motivations, and values; knowing how one learns and grows.
• Relational intelligence: the ability to connect across differences, to collaborate, to listen, and to build trust.
• Creative and novel thinking: generating ideas, solving problems, and making meaning in uncertain contexts.
• Ethical and reflective reasoning: recognizing consequences, acting with integrity, and learning from feedback.

AI can process data and generate text, but it cannot exercise judgment, empathy, or purpose. These human capacities must be intentionally cultivated.

Rebecca Winthrop has argued that AI compels us to prioritize what machines cannot replicate: critical thinking, emotional intelligence, ethical reasoning, and creativity. These traits are not just skills; they are habits of mind that allow us to flourish as individuals and as citizens.

What It Looks Like in Schools

Our public schools can’t wait for policy shifts to make this happen. Across New York City, I see teachers and students already building these human capacities through meaningful, creative work.

At Bronx International High School, recently arrived multilingual students collaborate on climate-justice projects. They collect data on local flooding, interview residents, and produce bilingual multimedia presentations. Through this process, they practice inquiry, empathy, and voice. Creativity becomes the bridge between language learning and civic engagement.

At City-As-School, one of the city’s oldest performance-based high schools, students complete internships that connect passion to purpose. A student interning with an architecture firm designed a model for sustainable housing in the Bronx. Another working with a nonprofit produced a podcast on youth mental health. These projects develop self-direction, ethical reasoning, and creative synthesis.

At NYC Outward Bound schools, exhibitions replace tests. Students publicly present and defend their work, reflecting on how they have grown and what they have learned. An authentic audience transforms performance into a sense of belonging and responsibility.

Through our partnership with Playlab, we co-design AI tools that support reflection rather than replace thinking. Students use prompts to examine their reasoning, identify biases, and refine questions. As Mitch Resnick of MIT Media Lab notes, most technologies deliver instruction rather than cultivate creativity. Our aim is the opposite.

These examples show that creativity is not a separate domain or elective. It is the way students learn to know themselves, connect with others, and act with agency.

Building the Conditions

To make human-centered learning durable, it must be structurally embedded in how schools operate—through curriculum, assessment, and leadership.

1. Curriculum as Creation – Students should produce original, interdisciplinary work across subjects. Projects, exhibitions, and performances allow them to apply knowledge in complex, authentic contexts.
2. Assessment that Honors Process and Excellence –  Learning must value reflection, iteration, and voice, while still insisting on high standards. As Ron Berger wrote, excellence is not elitism; it is a way of honoring young people’s capacity for beautiful, meaningful work.
3. AI as a Tool, Not a Shortcut: Students need explicit guidance on how to use AI responsibly. With scaffolds and reflection, AI can amplify creativity rather than replace it.
4. Creativity as an Equity Imperative – Creative opportunities should not be limited to electives or advanced programs. Every student deserves the chance to imagine, design, and make. This is particularly transformative for multilingual learners, students with disabilities, and those who have been historically marginalized.
5. Leadership as Modeling – System leaders must create time for teachers to collaborate, experiment, and share student work. Real change grows through daily choices that signal what we value.

When Creativity Thrives, So Do Readiness and Belonging

Employers consistently say they seek graduates who can think independently, communicate clearly, and collaborate across disciplines. Colleges want students who can frame questions, not just answer them. And research shows that creative engagement improves student well-being and persistence. In our district, schools that emphasize authentic projects see higher attendance and stronger engagement.

Creativity also strengthens democracy. Deborah Meier reminded us that “the habits of free inquiry and multiple viewpoints are not luxuries; they are the required habits of a sound citizenry.” In classrooms where students create, discuss, and reflect together, they are learning to participate in civic life.

Creativity as a Public Good

When I first read Elinor Ostrom’s Governing the Commons, her framework for managing shared resources resonated deeply with me. She argued that communities sustain collective goods through local norms, participation, and shared responsibility. Creativity in public education is one of those goods.

Protecting it means:

• Establishing local norms for how AI and creativity intersect.
• Building co-governance models that include student voice.
• Dedicating time and resources to creative work.
• Supporting educators in designing and assessing creativity.
• Monitoring access to ensure that creative learning is equitable.

Like clean air or safe water, creativity requires stewardship. It is the renewable energy of human progress.

Looking Ahead

The good news is that schools are not waiting. Every week, I see students tackling problems that matter, teachers adapting lessons to spark curiosity, and leaders carving out time for reflection and design.

AI will keep advancing, but what defines us is not our ability to process information. It is our capacity to imagine, build, and care. Creativity sits at the intersection of all the human skills our students will need: self-knowledge, relational intelligence, ethical discernment, and the courage to make something new.

The work of education is to protect and grow those capacities. That is how we ensure our young people not only adapt to the world of AI but shape it for the common good.