Alma Trejo has been teaching mathematics and digital literacy at Conalep — Mexico's technical education system — for years. She's a mother of three, based in Querétaro, with a background in mathematics and sciences.
When generative AI tools started appearing in student assignments, many teachers saw it as a threat. Trejo saw something else: an opportunity. Rather than banning the technology or pretending it didn't exist, she decided to learn it herself — deeply — and then teach her students how to use it well.
She started with free Microsoft training courses: basic AI for teachers, Copilot, Microsoft 365, prompt writing. Two years ago, she completed Microsoft's fundamentals of generative AI course. Later, she took courses in cybersecurity and professional AI tools.
Today, Trejo creates customized AI learning experiences for her 56 students. Using Microsoft 365 Copilot and other AI tools grounded in her classroom content, she has built academic agents tailored to each student's needs. The agents help explain concepts, propose exercises, review assignments, and provide individualized feedback — giving students access to support beyond what a single teacher can offer in a classroom setting. There's also a programming tutor for computational thinking, and another agent for digital culture and cybersecurity.
The impact was almost immediate. Students who once turned in assignments they couldn't explain began arriving ready to discuss their ideas and reasoning. Others who rarely spoke up in class became more engaged, using AI-powered learning tools to review concepts at their own pace, strengthen their understanding, and build confidence.
"We cannot allow ourselves not to apply AI tools in education," Trejo says. "Otherwise, we are not preparing them for the present they need, or for the future."
She's not stopping there. Trejo is now pursuing a master's degree in AI through a scholarship program supported by Conalep. Her goal is to build AI-guided learning experiences that help shape the next generation of innovators — students who won't fear AI, but who will know how to use it to solve tomorrow's problems.
Her community in Querétaro has limited infrastructure and a small computer lab. The AI tools don't replace the teacher — they extend what one teacher can do. For Trejo, that's the point: she's not competing with the technology. She's using it to reach every student more deeply than she could alone.