This article explores the adoption and integration of artificial intelligence (AI) within rural education, with a specific focus on the rural context of Idaho. While AI offers new possibilities for educational transformation, its implementation in rural schools presents unique paradoxes. Using a mixed-methods approach involving a statewide survey, working focus groups, and associated documents, this study investigates how AI can empower and challenge rural educational practices. Drawing on Rogers’s diffusion of innovations theory, we illuminate the AI opportunities and barriers perceived by rural education stakeholders. We conclude by discussing implications for advocacy, policy, practice, and research to ensure just and equitable futures for rural education amid rapid AI change.
Wargo et al. (2026) studied this question.