Technically Speaking

School districts are often seen as easy targets for cyberattacks given an abundance of sensitive information but little security. According to the Department of Homeland Security, more than 1,300 cybersecurity incidents happened between 2018-2021 (not including non-publicly documented incidents). The Department of Education says that every week the average school district experiences 5 cyber incidents.

Over the last few years, SLED cloud strategy has played a pivotal role in public sector modernization efforts. Agencies have invested in application migration, utilized more software-as-a-service capabilities, and constructed increasingly hybrid environments across public cloud, private cloud, and on-premises infrastructure.

The defense industrial base is a critical partner in advancing the DOW’s national defense priorities. To accelerate industry participation, the DOW has launched the Golden Dome Hub as a practical digital entry point for organizations that want to contribute to the Golden Dome Initiative.

Over the last few years, AI has been the hot topic of conversation in SLED IT. We’ve seen AI move from theoretical to actual implementation. SLED agencies are now deploying AI across a wide range of use cases including citizen services, workforce productivity, document processing, case management, fraud detection, and analytics and decision support, among others.

Kirsten Baesler, Assistant Secretary for the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, made clear in an August 2026 Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) that technology certainly plays an important role in education. At the same time, vendors and partners need to increase transparency and shoulder accountability with schools regarding student success and outcomes.

In FY27, state and local governments are navigating a complex technology environment amid changes in policy, the accelerated adoption of emerging tech, and the rapid growth of digital services and citizen expectations. Cloud adoption continues to impact technology consumption; AI is introducing challenges around data, security, governance and contracting; and agencies are facing mounting pressures to modernize aging systems while becoming more efficient and generating measurable long-term ROI.