Catholic Schools in Albania Partner with AI Albania to Navigate Digital Education

Tirana, Albania - January 24, 2026

On International Day of Education, Albania's Catholic school network announced an ambitious plan to help teachers and students navigate artificial intelligence and digital technology - without losing sight of what makes education human.

The two-year initiative "Empowering the Network of Albanian Catholic Schools to Protect and Educate Teachers and Students in the Digital Age", launched by the National Commission for Catholic Education in Albania (KKEKSH) and AI Albania, will work with 41 Catholic schools across the country, reaching over 6,400 students and 400 teachers.

Starting from Real Problems

The project grew out of a national survey that revealed what many educators already suspected: teachers feel overwhelmed by technology they're expected to use but haven't been trained for.

More than 70% of teachers said they feel unprepared to use AI or advanced digital tools in their classrooms. Meanwhile, concerns about online safety, cyberbullying, and data protection have grown, particularly for students with disabilities or those in rural areas who face a widening digital divide.

"Catholic schools are good at moral education," said Father Michele Leovino, National Coordinator of KKEKSH. "But the digital world presents new challenges - and new risks - that we haven't fully addressed. We need to evolve while staying faithful to our core values: human dignity, inclusion, and ethical education."

What the Project Actually Does

Rather than simply introducing more technology into classrooms, the initiative focuses on building capacity and establishing safeguards.

Teachers will receive hands-on training in AI-assisted teaching methods, covering everything from lesson planning to identifying early warning signs of student distress. The training emphasizes ethics alongside technical skills.

Students across all 41 schools will learn digital literacy and AI ethics through modules designed for different age groups. Selected teachers will become "AI Ambassadors," trained to deliver these lessons in their own schools.

For students with special educational needs, the project will introduce tools like audiobooks, speech-to-text transcription, and adaptive interfaces - all developed in collaboration with the students, parents, and teachers who'll actually use them.

Building on KKEKSH's existing child protection framework, the schools will also implement AI-powered systems to detect potential risks like cyberbullying and enable confidential reporting.

The project will conclude with published guidelines on ethical AI use in Catholic education, available free for other institutions to adapt.

Technology That Respects Privacy

The technical implementation will be led by AI Albania in collaboration with Neura.al - Albanian EdTech provider, using open-source technologies adapted for the Albanian context.

The platform will let students interact with lecture materials through a chat interface - asking questions, reviewing content - with all data encrypted and processed securely. Audio recordings will be transcribed to text for accessibility; written materials will be available as audio.

Unlike many educational tech products, this one will be designed with privacy in mind from the start.

Faith Meets Innovation

Albania is a secular state, but KKEKSH's approach remains rooted in Christian values that put people at the center of education.

"We're not choosing between innovation and mission," said Malvina Pergega, Project Manager and member of the Commission for the Protection of Minors. "We're showing they work together - that technology can serve human dignity and relationships rather than replace them."

The Albanian Catholic Bishops' Conference called for exactly this kind of work during their recent assembly, emphasizing the need to understand AI's impact on education and pastoral life. The guidelines developed through this project will be integrated into the Church's updated Policy for the Protection of Minors and Vulnerable Young People.

Beyond Albania

The initiative is funded by Porticus, which has supported Catholic education in Albania since 2015. All training materials, ethical guidelines, and resources will be published in Albanian and English and shared freely through the KKEKSH website.

By the end of two years, the hope is that Albania's Catholic schools will offer a working model for how to integrate AI ethically and inclusively - complete with trained teachers, functioning tools, published guidelines, and documented results.

"On this International Day of Education," concluded Dr. Marjana Prifti Skenduli, Founder of AI Albania, "we're working to scale this model across Albania and the Western Balkan, demonstrating that responsible AI integration in education isn't just possible in well-resourced contexts, but can be pioneered in emerging markets where the need for equitable, accessible learning is most urgent."

About KKEKSH The National Commission for Catholic Education in Albania operates under the Albanian Catholic Bishops' Conference and coordinates 41 Catholic schools serving communities nationwide.

About AI Albania AI Albania is a non-profit promoting responsible AI development across Albanian society through partnerships, education, and advocacy.

For media inquiries: AI Albania: marjana.skenduli@aialbania.org KKEKSH: info@kkeksh.com | www.kkeksh.com