Artificial intelligence (AI) is starting to find its way into the day-to-day operations of churches, Christian schools, and other faith-based organizations. Leaders are leveraging AI for research, content creation, administration, lesson planning, and instructional support. At the same time, many organizations continue to grapple with questions about AI privacy protection, accuracy, academic integrity, theology, and oversight by humans.
What Research Shows
Research shows that AI adoption is already underway. In a survey of church leaders in 2025, 61% said they were using AI weekly or daily, and 64% of respondents involved in sermon preparation said they were using AI at some point in the process. However, only a small number of ministries said they have a formal AI policy.
Christian schools are experiencing similar changes. Educators have utilized AI to create lesson plans, facilitate adaptive learning, automate repetitive tasks, and provide personalized instruction. While it is believed there is the potential for timesaving, there are also concerns about cheating, critical-thinking skills, AI privacy protection, security, and the influence technology could have on student development.
Recognizing the Challenge
The challenge for churches and schools is to build thoughtful guidelines before AI use goes any further. Leadership teams need to assess what tools are in use, what information should never be entered into public AI platforms, and when human review or approval is needed. Additionally, training alongside written policies should be provided, ensuring staff, teachers, volunteers, and students have clear expectations regarding accuracy, confidentiality, attribution, and responsible use.
Our team at Piedmont Technical Experts wants to hear from faith-based organizations to better understand local AI use, concerns about AI privacy protection, and training needs. Contact us today to get the conversation started.