The landscape of curriculum adoptions in K–12 education is changing rapidly. For years, much of the momentum around educational technology and standards was federally driven through initiatives like the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of EdTech and national technology plans. Today, however, responsibility for digital learning priorities and curriculum adoptions is moving decisively back to the states.

In a recent conversation with Ji Soo Song, Director of Projects and Initiatives at SETDA (formerly the State Educational Technology Directors Association), he described how this transition is creating both opportunities and challenges for education leaders, vendors, and policymakers.

“Under No Child Left Behind, federal programs like Title IID helped states create edtech offices and implement edtech plans,” Ji Soo explained. “But as those federal supports diminished under ESSA, states were left to determine their own priorities. Some, like Utah, have continued to invest in edtech capacity, even adding new roles like state-level AI specialists. Others have scaled back, leading to what I call ‘fracturing’ across the country.”

For vendors, this fracturing creates real complexity. In some states, edtech leadership is clear and centralized. In others, responsibility is dispersed across departments—special education, curriculum and instruction, or professional learning—making it difficult to know where to begin.

Ji Soo noted that while SETDA’s overall membership levels have remained stable, the value of those relationships has grown significantly. Members are engaging more deeply in SETDA-led projects, guidance development, and research initiatives—because that’s where much of the decision-making and leadership now takes place.

He also pointed to a few emerging trends that will shape adoption conversations in the coming years:

• AI Literacy: States are beginning to define what it means for graduates to be “AI literate,” including skills, competencies, and ethical considerations around how AI is used in school, work, and daily life.
   
• Data Literacy: Connected to AI, initiatives like Data Science for Everyone are pushing to bring foundational skills in data literacy into K–12 classrooms.<
   
• Partnership Networks: Beyond SETDA, organizations like CoSN (district-level edtech leaders), CCSSO (state superintendents and working groups), Digital Promise, Project Unicorn, CAST, and others in the EdTech Quality Collaborative are setting expectations around safety, interoperability, evidence, inclusivity, and usability. Vendors who engage with these groups strengthen both credibility and reach.
   

Two clear takeaways emerged from the discussion:

1. Build Trusted Relationships. Whether through SETDA membership, partnerships with CCSSO or CoSN, or engagement with quality collaboratives, relationships are key to accessing state and district decision-making spaces.
    
2. Align with Shared Standards of Quality. Vendors who can demonstrate alignment with indicators such as safety, interoperability, inclusivity, evidence of impact, and usability will stand out.
    

EdGate’s upcoming webinar, Thriving Amid Uncertainty: How EdTech Leaders Manage Adoptions & Win Contracts, will explore this topic in depth. Ji Soo will join leaders from Tennessee and Illinois to share perspectives on navigating state-level curriculum adoption processes and building stronger partnerships across the education ecosystem.

Join us on September 10th for this timely discussion.