The AI Education Divide: Access, Opportunity, and the Power Skills That Still Matter

The AI Education Divide: Access, Opportunity, and the Power Skills That Still Matter

In this episode of Two Doctors and a Twist, Dr. Marilyn Carroll and Dr. Jamie Chesler explore a growing concern: as wealthy families invest in expensive AI-powered schools, private tutors, advanced technology, and experimental learning environments, who will ensure that every student has access to meaningful AI education?

The conversation moves beyond basic AI literacy and free introductory courses. Dr. Carroll and Dr. Chesler discuss the difference between simply learning what AI is and gaining the opportunity to use it in real-world projects, workplaces, apprenticeships, and entrepreneurial environments. Students with access to premium programs are often not only learning AI—they are building products, developing businesses, creating portfolios, and gaining experiences that could produce long-term financial and career advantages.

The doctors emphasize that AI education cannot become a privilege reserved for those who can afford the most expensive programs. Colleges, universities, K–12 schools, employers, community organizations, and technology companies must work together to create affordable and accessible pathways for students from every background.

Apprenticeships, internships, employer-sponsored training, community college partnerships, project-based learning, and paid work experiences could help close the divide. These opportunities are especially important for adult learners who may be balancing school, full-time employment, family responsibilities, and career transitions.

The discussion also examines why AI-savvy graduates are quickly becoming the new high-potential employees. Employers may not expect every applicant to be an AI expert, but they increasingly want professionals who can use AI responsibly to improve productivity, solve problems, support organizational goals, and make better decisions.

However, knowing how to operate an AI tool is not enough. Students and employees must be able to evaluate AI-generated information, identify bias and inaccuracies, verify sources, ask stronger questions, apply independent judgment, and explain how their use of AI creates measurable value.

As AI changes both white-collar and skilled-trade work, human capabilities are becoming even more valuable. Communication, critical thinking, adaptability, creativity, ethical judgment, empathy, trust, teamwork, and relationship building remain essential across industries—from education and healthcare to welding, HVAC, plumbing, technology, and business.

Dr. Carroll and Dr. Chesler also remind listeners that careers are built through more than credentials and technical knowledge. People must be willing to enter new rooms, participate in their communities, build authentic relationships, and allow others to see the value they can bring.

The episode closes with a powerful message: AI will change how people work, but it does not have to change what people value most.

Power skills are the human skills that power successful careers.

Key Questions Explored

• Will advanced AI education become available only to wealthy families?
• What is the difference between AI literacy and applied AI capability?
• How can schools and employers create more equitable AI learning pathways?
• What role should internships, apprenticeships, and project-based learning play?
• Why are AI-savvy graduates becoming the new high-potential employees?
• How can professionals verify AI-generated information and avoid misinformation?
• Which human skills will become more valuable as AI use expands?
• How can students and professionals build stronger relationships and career networks?

Core Takeaway

The future will not belong only to people who can use AI. It will belong to people who can combine AI capability with judgment, evidence, ethics, communication, trust, and meaningful human relationships.

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Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:38

Welcome back to Two Doctors and a Twist. We have another episode with Dr. Jamie and I. We do have some more guests lined up that we're going to be talking to. But these questions, the one on the last show and the one on this show, Dr. Jamie and I are just so passionate about. We just wanted to dive in a little bit deeper and make sure we cover for our audience the questions that they're asking around these particular topics. So on this one here, we got the question about AI private school divide and how the wealthy families are paying for AI-driven schools and tutors raising a new equity question, which is really who gets across uh who gets access to experimental AI education first. This is huge. There's a school in uh Texas, Austin, Texas. And the two issue, I think it was something like a lot. And the six figures for a student to go there. And then we have other AI schools, just $20,000. I remember I wanted to do a high school, all boys' high school, with AI only, and they would just do AI part of their day and go to work another part of the day, which is still on the table as a possibility. But um looking into all of that, I looked and I think I found one, uh, two potential partners for that one. And uh, we're just trying to see how that would work with them. But I do think there's a uh a need for somebody to come in and help us make sure that there is equity across the stage for students. Now, when you have wealthy people paying for something, you know it means something. What are your thoughts, Dr. Jamie?

SPEAKER_01 2:37

Well, I this this one really concerns me, Dr. Maryland, because we've kind of seen this pattern before with technology, because as you mentioned, the expensive schools, six-figure schools or 20,000, you know, in other words, those who have the most resources are are the ones who get access to those tools, to that to that education, to that knowledge. And and and when they do have that, those are the ones who get the new opportunities. While those who can't afford it are kind of left behind. Just just trying to figure out how they fit in. How do I catch up? And and the gap keeps getting wider and wider over time. So if AI becomes kind of a foundation, and it is, you know, then then AI education, it can't become a privilege just reserved for those who can afford it, right? I I agree, yeah. There's expensive tutors, there's that premium technology, all the things. You have to be able to, it has to go across everything. Like we said in our last episode, all the different positions in business organizations are looking for good qualified applicants who know how to use AI effectively, responsibly, and ethically. So if you don't provide that opportunity across the board or in higher education or in all schools, even K through 12 schools, you're they're gonna be left behind. There's not gonna be applicant pool available out there, and so many people are going to be, as I said, just left behind, not knowing what to do. How do we catch up?

SPEAKER_00 4:25

Yeah, I just think it's so important. I agree with you. I think it's so important that in order for you to have this across the board, a lot of people are taking the free classes. They'll take, oh, free. I want people to understand this. Most of these free classes, I don't say all, but the majority of them, especially the ones from big institutions, they're just teaching you literacy. Um, they're not teaching you really how to dive deep into AI. You really need to uh ensure that you're getting with some of these other companies that are teaching that and pay the fee. I mean, some companies don't have, you don't have to pay them $20,000 a year. It could be $5,000 a year or something like that, something more manageable. But believe you me, you're gonna have to pay something to get something. And things are just not coming free because what those people are paying into, they're not just paying to learn it, they're playing to demo it, they're paying in money to have whatever they bill while they're at the school become a business. That's why the fees are so much money. Um, it don't it won't just stay stagnant. Those school, even though you're paying that kind of money for your students, those students are possibly getting rich while they're going to school. You build in 200 and you may get a million back. Yeah. That's exactly what's going on here. And the sooner we realize everything is not what it seems on the surface, it goes a lot deeper than that. But you have to be willing to say, I want to be in that room or some rooms. You may not can be in the sixth-figure per classroom, but you can definitely be in some of the $25,000 or $10,000 rooms. And you can utilize those things, get smart about things, and say, okay, what are they doing that we need to do at our scale in order to grow and develop the individuals that we have that's coming through our school? That's the way I see it.

SPEAKER_01 6:30

I think it's it's for for an organization, it's about maintaining a competitive advantage out there. Here's an opportunity for higher education, even K through 12 schools, is to partner with some of these organizations based on those skill sets that are now needed to adapt to the new era that we're in. Just like when we we computers first happened, when when when we like learning the Microsoft Office suite just 20, 30 years ago, however long it's been, and the adjustment, those were key things that if you had those on your resume, you had a competitive advantage and a competitive opportunity. Right now it's is how how do you use how effective can you be using AI on the job, and no matter what your job is. And schools and employers need to partner together to make sure that otherwise they're the employers are going to have a smaller applicant pool to choose from. And then when you have a smaller applicant pool, what happens then? You're gonna have to pay a higher salary level for those positions that understand how to use AI responsibly. So it's in an employer organization's best interest to start partnering with higher education, even in K through 12 level. That's just my thoughts. Yeah, I'm glad you said it's a domino effect that's going to happen if it's not embraced fully like it needs to be.

SPEAKER_00 7:59

I I totally agree with you. And I've been writing a lot about apprenticeship programs and researching a lot around that. Uh, apprenticeships are very important. I um think I don't think. Uh matter of fact, was when I won the bright idea at at um the school where we were. I did. Congratulations. Yeah. Yeah. I was so proud of you. Yeah, thank you. I was talking about some type of apprenticeship, but it was unpaid. And that may not be realistic, but it was still some type of training that the person could receive and get the experience they need, sort of like what we were saying for the nonprofits. But even at that, these um having some type of apprenticeship that you do or you're a part of could open a door for you. And we're still researching more around that and how to help colleges and universities um uh come out uh to the best for the student, doing the best for everybody that's involved in that whole process. Uh, so once we get that done, we will have uh some more that we could possibly talk about here on the show as well.

SPEAKER_01 9:08

Well, businesses can partner with higher education for internship opportunities, even if it's not paid. Maybe a class requires you to work on it on a project, such as programmers. I remember working with a school that they had to do internships for programmers to go and work at a at an with an employer. So the college partnered with a lot of the employers in the community so that students could go in and actually work and do the job, get the experience that they needed. Same thing's gonna have to happen here with AI so they can learn to use it effectively and responsibly.

SPEAKER_00 9:47

Yeah. This is that to be careful because there were some rules around um people doing internships and the cost of the money that needed to be paid. Uh, now we have employers that want to invest specifically in talent that's going to be with them. So we just got to watch that. It's sort of like the welders at companies. We have um my son is doing a welding uh internship at the same time doing his job elsewhere. He sits very hard for all of this. So I'm trying to see how he's gonna come through this. But welding, uh, he can he goes through the class, takes the welding, and then the welding company gets them on a pr um internship with a company. And he goes and does that internship with that company and gets paid for the job. He's doing it part-time right now. But um, if it leads to full-time, then that's what he really wants to do, that welding. Uh, but he's still working his full-time job. So it gets kind of hard when you are an adult student. So that's another conversation we'll have to have too, Jamie. It's it's a lot out here and it's going to a lot.

SPEAKER_01 11:01

It's a whole lot. We could just keep continue on and on with these discussions about this and the issues that our audience are bringing to our attention with the questions they're asking and sharing.

SPEAKER_00 11:11

Yes. So that speaking of that, AI savage graduates are becoming the new high potentials. What about that? I well, I believe this is happening.

SPEAKER_01 11:22

I'm I believe, you know, and because employers, they're not necessarily looking for an AI expert per se. They're looking for, as we've been sharing, right? For professionals who know how to use AI responsibly to help them improve their productivity, to help them resolve problems, to help them make better decisions. They're asking a different question now, Dr. Marilyn. They're asking during the interview before they even bring them on. They want to know can you leverage AI to create value while still applying your own judgment, your own creativity, your own expertise. And if you can tell us how you've done that on the job.

SPEAKER_00 12:06

Exactly. Exactly. And that is uh what's happening. We we're gone away from the manager having to wait and tell you what to do. We need people who can manage their own career. We actually, I kind of see the world of employment being the world of entrepreneurship. Everybody is an entrepreneur. They've outsourced their services to this companies for pay payment. And the company will pay you for your services as long as you can bring to the table what they need to help them continue to grow. Once you don't have anything to offer them that can't help them continue to grow, then your services are no longer needed. And so I really see that becoming the new employment um package. Right.

SPEAKER_01 12:56

And you know, those those people out there who who are you know able to use AI effectively, that's going to be the differentiator for them. It's not just that you know it, and you don't even have to be an expert as I shared, it's how you use it. You're going to have to be able to communicate how you use it that could support that company's bottom line, support that company's goals.

SPEAKER_00 13:23

Yeah. And I think that really all of these, our last uh podcast episode and this one keeps pointing to what the workforce reports are telling us from all over, which is communication, critical thinking, adaptability, problem solving, relationship building as the skills that um uh will raise up the value, raise up your value as AI changes the white collar workload. As far as the blue-collar work, like the welder job my son is doing or trying to apply to or get into big time. Um, we have plumbers, we have HVAC. I can't tell you how many people I know. Uh, one of the, because I worked with HVAC before in the movie set, that group is now looking for more HVAC workers. They're saying, Marilyn, what do you know? What do you have? Who do you know in the community college space that can help us with this HVAC challenge that we have? We need more HVAC people uh because we don't have enough. And I was like, wow, these people can make good money in these jobs that they're not applying to. Now I can see plumbing. Plumbing is a dirty job, but at the same time, some people get dirty. Uh, some people are willing to climb poles, but they're not willing to go down in their ground and fix things. So I don't know.

SPEAKER_01 14:44

Yeah. Well, my son uh is a nurse and he's sharing with me over this past weekend, uh, over the July 4th weekend. Um, he was telling me, you know, how doctors and nurses use AI now in healthcare. Yeah. You know, to diagnose uh, you know, issues that the patient comes in with. He actually works in the emergency room, he's a travel nurse. So he is seeing it all across, you know, the nation based on the different places he's been, that how it is so important now to be able to understand how to use it appropriately. So I think from an educational standpoint, this means that we actually need to start teaching our students more than just the mechanics of using AI, you know, whether they use Claude or Gemini or or ChatGPT or Copilot or all of the plethora of AI tools that are out there. And each one is unique and what they can provide. But we need to be able to help them develop AI literacy, the ability to ask better questions and evaluate the quality of whatever they they are getting from AI that's generated, any type of information, recognize if there's biases or inaccuracies and how to make better ethical decisions, you know, on how AI should be used. We need to be doing that. But we as in higher education, we as in organizations, we as all over because it is here to stay. And we have to figure out what we're going to do to make all people, all the workforce more prepared.

SPEAKER_00 16:26

Yeah. It's something because I do know you get you have to distinguish between real, we real and what's phantom, what's made up, and it's a lot to that now because people can just write based on those things. But I think now it requires us to go dive deeper in our research to see if what we pulled is really true. Um, that we can search the uh go back and see where the references are coming from. When I utilize AI and it tells me something, I said, where did this come from? Who who said this? Uh, because I want to know. Um, and how I use AI is I start with my own stuff first. I start with my own research, my own writings, and all of that. And then if I'm looking for something, if I'm questioning something, I ask for additional information. I don't just take what is shown there. About like what I did with Google. I just didn't take what was in Google. I know my kids used to take it all the time. And they was like, oh, but Google said it. So what? Just because Google has it there, those people are marketing. Yeah. Google didn't say that. Well, Siri said it. Well, Siri's just using what's in her database and she's giving you that information, no more, no less. Yes. That's where the critical thinking uh really comes into play. But I think the bigger one here is that relationship building, because a lot of people are not good relationship builders. They don't have what it takes to build relationships because they've been so bobbed down into this phone that we have, as well as the computer or other objects that uh LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok. We haven't made real relationships. And we need these um this new generation to come in and work with us uh with the other generations. Yes, it's a lot of generations working at once, and we've never had that in this country before or any country, but it's neat, all of us are needed to get to the bottom line of where we need to go because people don't know history like they need used to. And uh it's unfortunate or unfortunate or fortunate for some of us. We know history. We know the history of that company, we know what the company has gone through, and we know how to answer questions specifically to what may have happened with the company. Right.

SPEAKER_01 18:58

And I think that at this point it kind of leads us into talking about and you're you're you've you've kind of led us in there, so it's a great segue for us. How the human skills come back into play. What are your thoughts about because this is a really good topic for us to kind of lead into here because I've been teaching for a long time, you've been teaching for a long time, and and since now AI has become part of the conversation and it is daily. It's something we're constantly bombarded with, with dealing with so you and and and I've told my students, you know, teaching personal branding and as a career consultant that those technical skills, you know, your resume, it's gonna get you that job interview. But what's most important are those human skills that's gonna help you, you know, whether you're going to be able to communicate your value, you know. And and you mentioned relationship building, critical thinking, all those soft, important skills are gonna come back and be more important now. It's gonna switch. What are your thoughts about that?

SPEAKER_00 20:09

Oh, I think it's great. I think it's great. And I think that not only in school, I mean, I teach a business class in school, um, but it's the business of not only understanding business, but understanding the business of them, which is a big part of what you what you guys talk about in personal branding class. How you carry yourself, how you build yourself, how you the rooms you put yourself into that you allow to open that door to go into, all of those are building what could be the potential to a bigger opening for you in the grand scheme of things, no matter which way you're going. For example, if I am a person and I decide, let's say my son, he wants to do welding, and he wants to do welding, and he comes to visit me at our little place in Alabama, and he goes to the place in Alabama. There's a lot of small companies around. There's a lot of welding he could do there. Say he he loves the house that I have in this country. I won't live here forever and a day. He might want that. So that could open a door to him doing business with one of the welders if he gets out and about in the community, goes to some of the boating shows, goes to the docks sometimes, and spends time boating with others or fishing with others, things of that nature, which is what this community does a lot of the parades and things of that nature. You have to get out and know people, get to know people, let them see you so that they can see, oh yeah. I, even though this is not my permanent home, it's my vacation tour, like home away from home. I get out, I join the chamber, I go attend meetings, I go to the library meetings, I go to the rotary meetings, I go to a lot of things when I'm here in town just to meet people whereas I'm in Dallas. I do something different there. I may go around to all of the restaurants and local breweries or whatever that's around me because they're in walking distance. But when I'm um in this town, I have to make a bigger effort to go and do things. We went like the fireworks, go to the fireworks show. Is that the lake? Let's go. Let's go sit around the lake and do the fireworks, bring your blanket and move on. I don't know, but people don't want to do those things. They just want to stay away from people. And I don't think that we're in that time where you can stay away or people can go to their rooms, the kids can go to their rooms like they used to and not be able to communicate with people. That's I I totally agree with you about getting connected and getting to know other people personally.

SPEAKER_01 22:54

You have to. You've mentioned him welding and stuff and going out to some of the fishing shows and and even some of the agricultural stuff. I can remember working for an agricultural company, and I did was in inventory control. Really interesting about that. Another story for another time. But you know, there were a lot of welders. We had a lot of welders on staff that would work on the tractors and work on the different stuff that they use out there. But I mean, businesses are all about people. Yes, and it's not that's not gonna go away, right? And we all businesses are only gonna do business with the people that they trust. And and people are only gonna follow leaders who can communicate clearly and who genuinely care about others. So, you know, you have to have those those soft skills and then kind of the kind of those skills I like to to refer to them now as kind of power skills, because they are the skills that power successful careers.

SPEAKER_00 23:58

I like that power skills, the skills that power success. I like that. That's a good one. Let's turn that into a quote.

unknown 24:07

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 24:09

Well, I think um anything else. I think that's it for we didn't want to carry a long show, we would, but we wanted to get the point across.

SPEAKER_01 24:17

Yeah, that you know, just at the end of the day, Dr. Marilyn, AI is going to change the way that we work, but it doesn't have to change what people value most, and that's relationship building, working on teams, you know, being authentic, being empathetic. All the things that are so important with characteristics and helping you grow in your career, helping you grow in your community, helping you be successful with relationships. AI is not going to take that away. It just isn't. It's just going to help us work more effectively and efficiently and be a great tool as long as we know how to use it correctly. And so we have so much we can continue to talk about, but I think that's kind of how I wanted to end it on my side.

SPEAKER_00 25:02

Okay. Well, wonderful. Well, that's it for another wrap with Two Doctors and a Twist. You heard it here. We were trying to tell you. Uh two experienced women, uh, but that are young at heart, but full wisdom. So uh that's it, two doctors and a twist. And our twist is that wisdom today. Thank you for joining us today, and we look forward to seeing you in our next show.