A Voice for AI Leadership in Education
Dr. Foster delivers keynotes, workshops, and board sessions that help education leaders move from reaction to responsible leadership in the age of AI. His talks are grounded in the Foster Brilliance AI Leadership Framework™ and designed for superintendents, school boards, principals, and education organizations.
Grounded in a Framework
Every talk is built around the Foster Brilliance AI Leadership Framework™ — giving audiences a practical lens they can apply immediately.
Built for Leaders
Dr. Foster speaks to superintendents, boards, and cabinet teams — not just teachers or tech coordinators. The content is executive-level.
Actionable & Specific
Audiences leave with concrete questions to ask, decisions to make, and a framework for leading AI adoption with purpose and accountability.
Keynote Topics & Workshop Sessions
Keynote Topics
The War Against the Soft Bigotry of Low Expectations
What happens when educators refuse to accept that race, poverty, disability, or past performance determines a child's future? Drawing from his journey from foster care and juvenile delinquency to Harvard-trained educational leadership — and his work transforming schools — Dr. Foster challenges audiences to confront the beliefs and systems that quietly limit children. This keynote demonstrates how courageous leadership, rigorous expectations, and genuine belief can change student trajectories.
Ideal For
One Swing: Leading When the Crowd Is Rooting Against You
Leadership often means stepping forward when you are underestimated, scrutinized, or expected to fail. Through personal stories and lessons from school turnaround, Dr. Foster explores what it takes to remain purposeful when the pressure is greatest. Audiences leave prepared to turn adversity into agency, rejection into resolve, and their final opportunity into a defining moment.
Ideal For
From 1.4 to Harvard: The Transformative Power of Belief
Once a student with a 1.4 GPA, Dr. Foster ultimately earned degrees from LSU, Indiana University, the University of North Texas, and Harvard. His journey reveals how one relationship, one opportunity, or one adult's belief can redirect a life. This keynote reminds educators, mentors, and community leaders that young people do not need to be rescued — they need someone willing to recognize their potential and help them develop the power to transform their own lives.
Ideal For
People Change Systems — and Systems Change People
Sustainable transformation requires more than an exceptional leader or an inspiring initiative. Drawing upon his experience leading school turnarounds, coaching principals, and working across district and regional systems, Dr. Foster examines the relationship between individual agency and institutional change. Participants learn why meaningful improvement begins with people but must ultimately become embedded in systems that endure.
Ideal For
The Future Will Not Wait: Leading Schools in the Age of AI
Artificial intelligence is already changing how students learn, how educators work, and how organizations make decisions. The central question is not whether schools will use AI, but whether educational leaders will shape its use responsibly and equitably. Dr. Foster challenges leaders to move beyond fear and novelty to create thoughtful AI strategies that strengthen teaching, expand opportunity, and prepare students to lead — not merely survive — in a changing world.
Ideal For
Workshop Sessions
From Data to Analytics to Action: Turning Information into Student Success
Schools have more data than ever, but data alone does not improve outcomes. Dr. Foster helps educational leaders transform disconnected data points into actionable insights. Participants learn how to identify meaningful patterns, analyze performance across standards and student groups, diagnose possible root causes, and translate findings into targeted instructional and organizational responses. Participants leave with an analytics-to-action framework they can immediately apply within a classroom, school, district, or educational organization.
- Distinguish reporting from true analysis
- Connect academic, attendance, behavior, and engagement data
- Identify trends, inequities, and students requiring immediate support
- Move from percentages to student-, standard-, and skill-level insights
- Design targeted interventions and progress-monitoring cycles
- Create clear data stories for teachers, families, boards, and community partners
Ideal For
AI for Educational Leaders: From Curiosity to Strategy
A practical workshop that helps principals, district leaders, and governing teams develop a responsible and actionable AI strategy. Participants explore applications for instructional analysis, targeted intervention, operational efficiency, professional learning, and leadership decision-making. Each participant leaves with an initial AI leadership plan for their school or organization.
Ideal For
Story of Self: Turning Experience into Leadership
Participants examine the experiences, choices, and values that shaped their leadership identities. Using a structured storytelling process, they develop a compelling Story of Self that can be used to inspire teams, communicate purpose, build trust, and mobilize others around a shared mission.
Ideal For
Leading the Turnaround: Building Systems That Produce Results
Drawing from Dr. Foster's experience helping schools move from failing ratings to measurable academic improvement, this workshop guides leaders through the essential components of school transformation. Participants assess their current systems for instruction, culture, attendance, intervention, adult accountability, and family engagement and leave with a focused 90-day action plan.
Ideal For
Coaching for Impact: Developing Teachers and School Leaders
Effective coaching must create both trust and measurable improvement. Participants practice diagnosing needs, delivering actionable feedback, conducting evidence-based coaching conversations, and monitoring implementation. The workshop can be customized for principals coaching teachers, district leaders coaching principals, or organizations developing emerging leaders.
Ideal For
Past Speaking Engagements & Podcasts
Keynotes & Hosting
ASSABET Vocational School
Keynote Speaker
Allen County Juvenile Justice Center
Keynote Speaker
Indiana Literacy Celebration
Keynote Speaker
Indiana
The Exceptional Project
Hosting & Speaking Engagement
Podcasts
A608 Afterhours
Podcast Guest
Innovating Education
Podcast Guest
Panels
Harvard Can't Stop Hip-Hop
Panelist
Harvard University
Submit a Speaking Inquiry
Dr. Foster accepts a limited number of speaking engagements each year. To inquire about availability for your conference, district event, board retreat, or leadership institute, please complete the form and a member of his team will follow up within 3–5 business days.