Driving America Forward with Chris Perkins
“The biggest thing I see Zum doing is sharing data in real time. It has so many applications and implications, and it’s truly game-changing.”
Chris Perkins
Chief Operating Officer
Roanoke City Public Schools
Chris is the COO of Roanoke City Public Schools (RCPS). A once-retired police chief, Chris worked in the senior care sector until 2018 he was approached by the RCPS Superintendent to join the team. Today, he oversees all operations for the school district, and in his free time enjoys cheering on his favorite sports teams—the Green Bay Packers, Boston Celtics and Red Sox, and all teams from his alma mater, the University of Tennessee.
How is RCPS driving innovation forward?
At RCPS, we’re embracing AI.
In general, and especially in education, a lot of people are afraid of AI, and are shying away from it. So many teachers and administrators just think about AI as a tool for students to cheat. Not here. Our entire school system is using it to try and improve the educational experience. I’m personally using it for scheduling, maintenance, and repairs. From a curriculum perspective, we’re using it to enhance the classroom experience, and rolling out tools and instruction to help teachers best use it in classrooms.
Leaning into AI and harnessing it to help—that’s top of mind, a big way that we’re innovating at RCPS.
From your perspective, how is Zum driving America innovation forward?
The biggest thing I see Zum doing is sharing data in real time. It has so many applications and implications, and it’s truly game-changing.
Two big examples come to mind. The first is how Zum’s data is empowering us to deliver better service. I had a high school athletics coach call me the other day at 4:50 PM, absolutely furious because his bus was late. In three clicks, I pulled up that bus’s information—and the on-time indicator was green. It was on track to arrive at 5:45 PM. I asked the coach what time he had requested the bus for—and he had accidentally requested it for 5:45 PM, not 4:45 PM. The data helped me defuse that particular situation—and it helps RCPS deliver top notch service on a daily (and hourly) basis.
The second big example is that Zum’s data is providing unparalleled peace of mind for parents. Before, we would have buses showing up 45 minutes late, with parents having no way of knowing where their kids were. Today, parents know exactly when a kid gets on and off the bus—and older students are even logging in to keep track of their younger siblings.
Our Zum buses currently have a 98% on-time performance rate—and that’s getting kids to school up to fifteen minutes before the bell. Attendance is up, academic performance is up, kids are getting to school with enough time to eat breakfast—and I know all of that because of Zum’s data.
Especially in the education sector, that’s true innovation.
When you think of the future, what role do children/the next generation play, and how can we set them up for success?
RCPS and Zum need to keep setting the example that we should embrace technology and specifically AI.
My own kids see me using a phone, and that inspires them to use technology. The kids in our schools see us using AI and advanced technology to improve their classroom and transportation experience.
By not fighting against AI, but leaning into it, we’re teaching our kids to expect more from us—and down the road, they’ll innovate and expect more of themselves.