Takeaways from the Salesforce Education Summit 2025 That Every Institution Should Know

The Salesforce Education Summit 2025 took place in Chicago from March 10-12. More than 1800 education leaders, tech experts, and innovators came together to discuss how AI and digital tools are shaping the future of learning. 

If your organization missed the event, this recap covers the key announcements, product updates, and real-world success stories to help you plan ahead. Want to get more value from future Salesforce Summits? See how institutions prepared for the 2025 event so you're ready for what's next.

Day 1 Highlights: AI Innovation in Higher Ed from the Salesforce Education Summit 2025

The Salesforce Education Summit 2025 opened with a clear message: AI isn’t a “future tool” anymore–it is here, now. It is already changing how institutions engage students, empower staff, and shape strategic goals to enhance learning outcomes, make campus work easier, and give each student more personalized support.

Salesforce kicked off the event by launching the Agents for Impact Accelerator, a new program that equips six mission-driven organizations with AI tools to improve student experiences, streamline operations, and build more inclusive, tech-driven campuses.

Agentforce Takes Center Stage

Salesforce introduced Agentforce, a powerful suite of AI-powered assistants built specifically for education. These intelligent agents support tasks such as admissions, academic advising, financial aid, and student services, offering 24/7 help.

Instead of just answering questions, Agentforce guides students through key steps such as course selection and scheduling appointments. Staff can hand off repetitive tasks to AI agents and focus more time on high-impact work, such as mentoring and intervention.

Institutions such as Chicago Public Schools and Genesys Works have already begun using Agentforce to boost operational efficiency and improve student experiences.

AI in Education Research

Salesforce also shared new research during the summit:

• 77% of students say they are open to using AI for academic guidance, time management, and course planning.
• 52% say they are more likely to apply to schools that offer AI-supported, easily accessible resources.

These findings show that students want digital-first, always-available support. Schools that deliver on this expectation will strengthen enrollment and retention.

Innovation in Action: Six Organizations Leading with AI

The Salesforce Education Summit 2025 showed how schools are already new AI agents for Impact Accelerator, Salesforce is supporting six mission-driven institutions with real AI tools and guidance. The goal: improve student engagement, ease staff workload, and build more inclusive, tech-forward campuses.

The participating organizations are:

• Chicago Public Schools (Children First Fund)
• Genesys Works
• Jobs for the Future (JFF)
• Unity Environmental University
• UP Partnership
• Dream.org

Here’s what some of them are doing:

Genesys Works is using  AI agents to help high school students get ready for the workforce. Their virtual assistant walks students through internship placement, resume prep, and career planning—giving staff more time to build relationships and mentor students.

Unity Environmental University launched Una, a custom AI assistant built with Agentforce. Una answers admissions questions, helps with registration, and guides prospective students to the right academic programs. The tool saves recruiters up to 17 hours a week, letting them focus on personal outreach.

Jobs for the Future (JFF) is using AI to support nontraditional learners and workers. Their assistant helps users access job readiness tools and navigate career paths, with a focus on underserved communities.

UP Partnership and Dream.org are exploring ways to use AI for equity-focused goals, like faster student services and real-time alerts for those at risk of falling behind.

These real-world examples show that AI in education automates tasks and also reimagines how schools serve students, scale impact, and reach every learner with the support they need. Now let’s look at how Salesforce Education Cloud is driving this AI-first shift even further on Day 2.

Day 2 Highlights: What's Next in AI-First Transformation with Salesforce Education Cloud

Day two of the Salesforce Education Summit 2025 focused on practical ways schools can lead with AI. Speakers shared insights on how to build smarter systems, support students more efficiently, and prepare for what’s next in Education Cloud.

AI-First Leadership in Action

Leaders from Unity Environmental University and UNLV showed how they’re already putting AI into action.

Unity launched “Una”, an AI-powered assistant built with Salesforce Agentforce. Una helps students select the right programs, answer questions about applying, and register for classes, without waiting for a human advisor.

“It’s not just about automation. It’s about fostering more meaningful interactions and ensuring every student feels supported and valued throughout their journey at Unity.”

—Dr. Melik Peter Khoury, President, Unity Environmental University

This tool is expected to save staff 25% of their time.

UNLV’s AI assistant, Scarlet, is already handling thousands of common student and faculty requests. It frees up staff for more personal support and improves response times across the campus.

“We see AI not just as a tool, but as a strategic asset. We believe that this strategic asset will give our students a more personalized and proactive experience.”

—Kivanc Oner, CIO & VP for Digital Transformation, UNLV

These examples demonstrate that AI isn’t a futuristic add-on; it’s a practical and scalable tool that's already improving how institutions operate. If your team is stretched thin or struggling with service backlogs, these examples show where and how to begin with AI.

What’s New in Education Cloud

Salesforce also shared upcoming features in Education Cloud designed to help schools run more efficiently and deliver better support.

• AI degree planning tools that help students map out their course path.
• Skills Generator that matches students with career-relevant skills.
• AI-powered forms that adapt to student needs in real-time.

These updates aren’t just about saving time. They create more personalized experiences, shorten student support cycles, and reduce operational complexity for staff.

Connecting Systems with Data Cloud and EDA

Several sessions highlighted how Salesforce Data Cloud and the Education Data Architecture (EDA) are helping institutions bring together SIS, LMS, and CRM data. This unified view empowers teams to automate nudges, personalize student outreach, and track engagement more effectively. For institutions looking to reduce fragmentation and boost operational intelligence, this integration is a powerful place to start.

Inspiration from Bill Nye

Renowned science educator Bill Nye delivered an engaging keynote titled “Through the Eyes of Nye” at the Salesforce Education Summit 2025. In this session, he emphasized the critical role of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education in addressing global challenges, particularly climate change. Nye highlighted how integrating AI and digital tools into educational strategies can empower students to become problem-solvers and innovators.​

He also discussed the importance of fostering curiosity and critical thinking in students, encouraging educators to leverage technology to create interactive and engaging learning environments. By doing so, institutions can prepare students not only for the jobs of tomorrow but also to be informed citizens capable of making impactful decisions.

For a deeper insight into Bill Nye's perspectives on the future of education and the integration of AI, you can watch the full session here, and dive deeper into other keynotes here.

Celebrating Innovation: Summit Awards 2025

The Salesforce Education Summit 2025 ended with the Summit Awards. These awards honored leaders who are using technology to solve real problems in education, such as student support, recruitment, alumni engagement, and fundraising.

These winners showed what can happen when schools pair the right strategy with the right tools. If your institution is figuring out where to start or how to do more–these stories offer real examples to follow.

Changemaker in Holistic Student Support

Jennifer Chicosky, Chester County Intermediate Unit (CCIU):

Chicosky used Salesforce to unify communication between staff, families, and students, consolidating multi-channel communication to speed up support. Her work enabled CCIU to proactively address student needs and improve engagement across the board.

Excellence in Advancement & Alumni Relations

Indiana University Foundation and Alumni Association:

IU revolutionized alumni engagement using Salesforce Marketing Cloud and Commerce Cloud. By creating smarter journeys and personalized touchpoints, they deepened donor relationships and increased operational efficiency.

Why it matters: Advancement and alumni teams can use IU’s approach to unify communications, improve donor conversion, and better measure lifetime value.

Excellence in Recruitment & Admissions Innovation

Louisiana State University (LSU):

LSU transformed their admissions process by centralizing prospective student data and engagement workflows in Salesforce. This allowed their teams to connect with prospective students more quickly and personally.

How this changes the game: If your admissions pipeline is scattered across platforms, LSU’s approach offers a clear model for consolidation, automation, and better yield tracking.

Community Champion Award

Evan Thrailkill, University of Alabama at Birmingham:

Evan was honored for leading community collaboration around digital transformation in higher ed. His efforts helped institutions learn from one another and drive shared progress on tech adoption.

What your team can learn: Peer-to-peer learning is one of the fastest ways to scale innovation. Evan’s model shows how leadership can build collective momentum.

David Perry Award for Excellence in Innovation

Dartmouth College:

Dartmouth received this top honor for using Salesforce to redesign core educational experiences. Their commitment to experimentation and cross-departmental collaboration set a new bar for what innovation can look like in higher ed.

What this means: Innovation isn’t just about flashy tools–it’s about strategy, governance, and sustained leadership. Dartmouth modeled all three.

Day 2 spotlighted how schools are already using AI to deliver faster support, free up staff time, and prepare students for the future with smarter tools in Education Cloud.  

Next, let’s explore how higher education leaders are using tech to drive workforce readiness and long-term student success.

Day 3 Highlights: Higher Ed Leadership & Workforce Readiness

The final day of the Salesforce Education Summit 2025 focused on leadership, inclusion, and helping students get ready for the workforce.

University Leaders Shared Real Strategies

University presidents gave clear advice on how to improve student success and support lifelong learning. They encouraged schools to use AI and digital tools to make education more personal and efficient.

At UNLV, leaders showed how their AI chatbot, Scarlet, is helping students, staff, and faculty find answers faster. It handles routine questions and tasks, allowing staff to focus more directly on helping students.

Jeff Selingo on Workforce Readiness

Higher education expert Jeff Selingo stressed the urgent need to align academic programs with today’s workforce demands. He shared key strategies schools can adopt to better prepare students for real-world careers:

• Offer more hands-on learning through internships and project-based assignments.
• Use AI and data to spot and close skill gaps in course offerings.
• Build strong partnerships with industry to keep programs relevant and future-ready.

Selingo emphasized that colleges must take the lead in reshaping education to produce graduates who are both knowledgeable and adaptable.

Learning by Doing: Hands-On AI Demos

On the final day of the summit, attendees joined live demos and interactive sessions to see how AI can make a real impact in education. These hands-on experiences gave them practical tools and strategies to launch AI-powered initiatives at their own institutions.

1. Building AI Agents with Agentforce: In dedicated workshops, participants learned how to build and launch their first AI-powered agents using Salesforce's Agentforce platform. In just 15 minutes, they created agents to handle tasks like admissions questions, academic advising, and student services. This quick build process showed how fast institutions can improve student engagement and simplify campus operations with AI.

2. Education Cloud Bootcamp: The full-day Education Cloud Bootcamp gave attendees hands-on training in using Education Cloud across the student lifecycle. Sessions focused on:

Advancement and Alumni Relations: Tools for mentoring, mentor matching, and prospect research.

• Degree Planning: How to use degree plan templates and compare programs intelligently.
• Student Records: Steps to set up and manage complete student records.
• Student Success: Using unified search and watchlists to track and support students.
• Recruitment & Admissions: Managing inquiries, tracking opportunities, and using admissions scoring.

These sessions gave participants real-world experience to improve operations and strengthen student support.

3. Real-world Case Studies: Middle Georgia State University: In a session hosted by Redpath, Middle Georgia State University shared how they improved student support by integrating Salesforce with their existing systems. By connecting Banner and Salesforce, they streamlined alerts, success plans, and data sharing–resolving 61% of alerts within just two months.

By joining the hands-on demos, attendees left with clear ideas and tools they can use to bring innovation and enhance student success at their respective institutions, Day 3 proved that tech-enabled transformation is already happening—now it's your turn to take the next step.

Want to Explore Salesforce Beyond the Summit?

Get the CUBE84 Higher Ed ebook–your step-by-step guide to choosing, implementing, and maximizing Salesforce across the student lifecycle.

This free resource breaks down key features, use cases, and strategies to help you build a connected, data-driven campus.

Download the playbook and start planning smarter student engagement today.

Ready to Turn These Insights into Action?

At CUBE84, we help institutions turn Salesforce innovations into measurable results. 

Whether you’re piloting AI tools like Agentforce, centralizing student data with Data Cloud and EDA, or upgrading your advancement workflows, we bring the strategy, support, and expertise to make it happen.

Let’s build your post-Summit roadmap together. Talk to our team to get started.