By Aviv Weiss | Khan Academy Districts
With over 179,000 students and limited capacity for professional learning, Palm Beach County partnered with Khan Academy to deliver scalable, customized, and high-impact professional learning. See exactly how they did it in this case study on their solution to embed PL across the district.
Background: Palm Beach County School District, one of the largest districts in the United States, serves more than 179,000 students across hundreds of schools. In 2023, the district adopted Khan Academy’s AI-powered learning tools in all 58 high schools. Leaders quickly realized they needed a professional learning (PL) strategy that was scalable, responsive, and personalized to ensure successful teacher adoption.
Challenges:
- Vast geography and limited internal PL capacity
- Need for high teacher engagement with Khan Academy and Khanmigo tools
- Districtwide expectations for student interaction metrics
“I just came for the snacks. But this is a game-changer.”
Teacher
Solutions:
- A dedicated PL lead: Khan Academy deployed Tamsynn Storin, a veteran educator and PL specialist, as an embedded professional learning expert for Palm Beach County. Here’s what Tamsynn did:
- Created a Google Form to manage training requests
- Balanced in-person support (Tues/Thurs) with virtual support (Mon/Weds)
- Delivered custom, content-specific trainings three-to-four days per week
- Facilitated 45-minute PLC rotations spanning 7:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
- Sent tailored follow-up emails with session resources and materials
- Customized trainings: To make sure sessions were as relevant as possible, the team customized in the following ways:
- Teachers selected topics across six focus areas, including Khan Academy coursework, KIGO tools, and Khanmigo AI activities.
- Sessions were customized by subject area and aligned to district scope and sequence.
- Content-specific scheduling (e.g., all 6th-grade math) maximized teacher engagement.
- At Palm Beach Gardens High, teachers embraced a “Conquerors of the Swamp” theme, celebrating their Gator mascot. With t-shirts, snacks, and a festive environment, PD became a true community event
We were throwing everything at them and hoping something stuck. Now we have a structure. We’re coming back, and that’s when the magic happens.”
-District leader
Results
To maximize long-term impact, Khan Academy and Palm Beach leaders designed multi-touchpoint PL tracks:
- Session 1: Introduction
- Session 2: Tools deep dive
- Session 3: Instructional integration
- Session 4: Advanced use & troubleshooting
Today, they’re able to model this method for other districts, with an emphasis on the following lessons:
- Prioritize rostering early to enable full access to platform features.
- Build repeat sessions into your PL model from the start.
- Encourage content-aligned trainings rather than grade-level or mixed groups.
- Use student engagement metrics to guide training focus and follow-up.
