EDGE 2025: Making Instrumental Impact Together

This July, hundreds of K-12 education leaders from across the globe came together in Nashville, TN, for EDGE 2025, PowerSchool’s annual flagship conference. This year’s event focused on innovation, connection, and progress in K-12 schools and districts today. 

Over the course of the week, industry leaders, administrators, and educators explored the most pressing opportunities and challenges facing education:  

• Boosting student attendance 
• Better engaging families and communities 
• Retaining and hiring effective staff 
• Strategically managing budgets in evolving financial times, and 
• Modernizing operations and technology with AI. 

Powerful conversations, real strategies 

EDGE 2025 offered a blend of inspiring keynotes, collaborative roundtables, and dynamic breakout sessions—all designed to equip leaders with the strategies and tools to spark impact in their organizations.  

Attendees walked away with insights from industry experts and fellow district leaders putting ideas into practice every day. 

Shifting Mindsets: Creating a Culture of Innovation with Thomas Murray

Thomas Murray, industry leader, author, and Director of Innovation for Future Ready Schools, kicked off EDGE 2025 with a heartfelt keynote that inspired attendees to reimagine the possibilities that stem from a schoolwide culture of innovation, relationships, and purpose.  

With laughter, personal stories, and proven strategies, he challenged leaders to “fail forward,” focus on what matters most, and create learner-centered environments where students and staff can thrive among uncertainty. 

Instrumental Impact with PowerSchool CEO Hardeep Gulati

PowerSchool CEO Hardeep Gulati presented on education’s potential to drive lasting societal change. Sharing results from PowerSchool’s 2025 National Educator Spring Survey and spotlighting district leaders from Maryland, Florida, and Illinois, he showed how districts are successfully tackling today’s urgent issues—and what’s needed next.  

Watch the full keynote with Hardeep at: https://powerschoolstg.powerschool.com/video/from-innovation-to-leadership/

Commitment to Innovation with CPO Shivani Stumpf

Bringing energy to the room, Shivani revealed what’s ahead for PowerSchool, real-world success stories, and perspectives users from across the US and Uruguay, whose national platform was met by PowerSchool to successfully solve real problems faster and more effectively. 

Watch the full keynote with Shivani at https://powerschoolstg.powerschool.com/video/commitment-to-innovation/

Striking the Right Chord with CCO Paul Brook

Paul Brook’s keynote focused on the power of partnership, highlighting how leaders within Stride, Newark Board of Education in New Jersey, and ESOL Education in Dubai have used PowerSchool tools to improve student outcomes and operational efficiency. His stories underscored that impact isn’t just about the tools—it’s about the people using them.  

For Paul’s full keynote, visit: https://powerschoolstg.powerschool.com/video/striking-the-right-chord/

The Instrumental Impact of Leadership – A Panel of K-12 Change-Makers 

A passionate group of educational and industry leaders shared how they’re turning research into action, navigating complex systems, and re-energizing their teams for the year ahead. Their message was clear: in today’s climate, intentional leadership matters more than ever. 

Watch our expert panel’s presentation at: https://powerschoolstg.powerschool.com/video/instrumental-impact-of-leadership/

The takeaway: connection + action = impact 

EDGE 2025 was more than a conference—it was a community of leaders aligned to a singular goal: drive schools to success with courage, data, and heart.  

Whether through late-night networking, problem-solving workshops, or honest conversations about what’s working (and what’s not), attendees left EDGE ready to make their leadership instrumental and spark something new in their teams this school year. 

Join us for EDGE LatAm in October 2025 in  Cartagena, Colombia, prior to AMISA LeadCon.