Knox County is showing what serious career preparation looks like. Knox Technical Center’s OTC+ program lets high school seniors take free adult technical courses, earn industry credentials and learn from instructors who actually work in the field.

That model matters far beyond health care, public safety and the trades. It belongs in AI-exposed office work too.

The Stanford Digital Economy Lab found that the employment shortfall for U.S. workers ages 22–25 in highly AI-exposed occupations widened from 15% in the July 2025 data vintage to 19% by June 2026. The adjustment is showing up mainly through reduced hiring of young workers.

Employers face a choice. They can use AI to eliminate the routine tasks that once gave beginners a foothold, or they can use it to move beginners faster into the work that builds judgment.

A junior employee should not spend half a day formatting a report if AI can do that in minutes. But the saved time should become training time: checking the numbers, identifying what looks wrong, tracing an exception, explaining a recommendation and getting feedback from someone experienced.

That is the white-collar version of the same principle Knox Technical Center is already using. People become capable by doing real work under supervision, not by watching demonstrations and collecting certificates.

Knox County employers should create a simple rule for AI adoption: every automated beginner task must be paired with a higher-value supervised responsibility. If software drafts the first version, the junior worker verifies it. If software summarizes the data, the junior worker investigates the anomaly. If software handles the routine customer request, the junior worker practices the exception.

Then measure time to independent competence. The goal should not be merely fewer labor hours per task. It should be faster development of people who can handle difficult work without constant oversight.

Knox County already understands that workforce development works best when learning is tied to real responsibility. AI should strengthen that path, not remove the first rung from it.

Dr. Gleb Tsiburksy

Columbus, Ohio

Dr. Gleb Tsipursky, a behavioral scientist and the author of The Psychology of AI Adoption at Work: From Resistance to Results (Georgetown University Press, 2026), helps technology-forward leaders stop overpaying for AI while boosting engagement and innovation. Called the “Office Whisperer” by The New York Times, he serves as the CEO of the future-of-work consultancy Disaster Avoidance Experts, which specializes in the future of work, and wrote eight best-selling books. His thought leadership was translated into Chinese and more than a dozen other languages. His expertise comes from over 20 years of consulting, coaching, and training for Fortune 500 companies from Aflac to Xerox. More info: https://disasteravoidanceexperts.com/glebtsipursky/