Developing AI Policy at the District Level

It’s no surprise that AI is a very popular topic in the education world. Still, conversations and results are relatively scarce when we move from reactions to actual policy implementation at the district level.?

As the leader of our efforts in El Segundo, one of the EDSAFE AI Alliance AI policy lab districts, I want to share with you what we in the EL SEGUNDO UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT (ESUSD) have done in response to the rise of generative AI, how we built those policies with feedback from our students, educators, and community, and the months of hard work that led to implementing policies that will ensure that our students, educators, and community are informed on this rapidly developing issue. We have openly shared our work and draft policies because we believe that the stakeholder engagement model we have pursued created model policies and built AI literacy throughout the process.?

I share this as one possible path forward that worked and potentially can be used as a guide for other districts who see the writing on the wall, feel a sense of urgency to act, and want to address this call to action now.?

As superintendent, I can say that generative AI requires a new way of thinking about policy. It requires ongoing monitoring and revision due to the rapidly evolving landscape of AI. This is undoubtedly not how superintendents typically consider policy matters. That’s why we need such a scaffold now more than ever. We don’t even know the full extent of the issue or the problems we will confront yet, but at least a policy provides a framework as a starting point to address common understandings.

Student Use of Technology Policy?

Like many other districts, ESUSD already had an academic honesty policy and a policy on student use of technology, so we had a clear starting point.?

We updated the academic honesty policy to include generative AI because when ChatGPT first emerged, plagiarism was a primary concern among educational institutions, families, and the public. The updated policy includes intentional language to address generative AI and demonstrates how we’re taking a deep look at all factors. For example, we are explicit about how students could use AI-assisted tutors or writing assistants to receive feedback on their original work.???

(Read the El Segundo Unified School District Board Policy: Academic Honesty)?

The existing student use of technology policy didn’t give the community the reassurance they needed regarding generative AI, so we developed an entirely new policy that explicitly addressed student use of emerging technologies. This specifically addresses generative AI and gives the community specific information and clarity regarding generative AI that the current Student Use of Technology policy simply did not address.?

(Read the El Segundo Unified School District Board Policy:? Student Use of Emerging Technologies, including Generative Artificial Intelligence)?

It was essential to overlap and develop these policies in conjunction with one another. In addition, the policies provide our teachers the foundation and framework they need to feel safe taking a risk and using these generative AI as a tool in the classroom. I look at this as we are in uncharted waters, and policies such as these, provide everyone with the necessary life vest when you encounter a rough patch.?

Changing our Thinking on Developing Policies?

Unlike other policies our Board of Education adopts, the Student Use of Emerging Technologies Policy will need to be reviewed every three months to ensure it remains current and relevant related to all user issues and unforeseen concerns (s) that may arise. That’s why school districts need to act now more than ever with an eye towards frequent iteration. generative AI is so new and rapidly evolving that we don’t even know the problems yet, but at least this way, we have a starting point.?

Keys to Success

One of the most surprising things about this entire process is that we’re one of the first school districts in the nation to write and adopt a Board Policy for Student Use of Emerging Technologies. Here are some key factors that helped get us across the finish line.?

ESUSD participated in a working group on Generative AI with Digital Promise. This collaborative group helped assist with asking stakeholders the right questions. We also worked with Solutionary Advisors as a thought partner and co creator throughout the process. In December 2023, ESUSD kicked off our AI Leadership and Literacy Initiative, a community-wide event to provide all stakeholders with the same foundational knowledge.?

In January and February 2024, our Leadership Team and I conducted three town hall focus group sessions with the community. Focus groups consisted of educators, students, and parents/community members. Stakeholder groups provided feedback on several critical questions so that we could learn how the community felt about Generative AI within the educational setting. The policies that we developed reflect the norms and values of our community, the families we serve, and the faculty who work here.? In addition to ensuring critical input and feedback, our ability to build foundational knowledge throughout our community developed AI literacy.?

(Read ESUSD AI Leadership and Literacy Brochure)

In December 2023, ESUSD was selected as AI Policy Lab district in partnership with the EDSAFE AI Alliance. As part of a nationwide network of similar policy initiatives, including the New York City Public Schools AI Policy Lab, the focus of the lab was to? foster safe and ethical use of AI in educational settings. As a Policy Lab School District, you subscribe to an “open science” approach to sharing our work so that other school districts can use our work as a starting point for their work. Thus, the ESUSD policies are posted on the EDSAFE AI Alliance Policy Labs Resource page and I invite you to learn with us.

Developing these policies around generative AI was a complex task. However, as superintendents, we have a responsibility to prepare our students for the jobs of the future. The ability to understand, navigate and responsibly use Generative AI will become a game changer for education - and for the future of work. I want to encourage superintendents to get in the game and not sit on the sidelines. We have a moral imperative to make sure ALL our students are prepared and ready for the future of work, and the future of work has AI embedded within it.?

It’s our job to make sure ALL our kids are prepared for that future today.?

Dr. Melissa Moore joined the El Segundo Unified School District as superintendent in July 2014. During her tenure, the district successfully passed a $92M Bond Measure to improve school facilities and technology; established an endowment fund with $16M of proceeds from the sale of a vacant school property, implemented the Yale RULER program for social-emotional learning and adopted the ESUSD Graduate Profile, which serves as the District’s North Star identifying competencies students will possess when entering college and career. In December 2023, Dr. Moore lead the ESUSD AI Leadership & Literacy Initiative hosting several upcoming community engagement events and formed an (AI)dvisory team of faculty to responsibly explore AI in Education. Recently, ESUSD was one of 12 school districts in the nation selected for the EdSafe AI Alliance, which will utilize an open science approach to create a comprehensive policy stack to further support secure and responsible AI integration in education. Under her leadership, ESUSD joined the League of Innovative Schools and hosted 350 educators from across the nation who visited ESUSD’s school in Fall of 2022. She has participated in Social Emotional Working Group through Digital Promise Global and the currently is a member of the Digital Promise GenAI Working group as well. Dr. Moore has received the Superintendent of the Year (Region 14) by ACSA, ACSA State Administrator of the Year for Human Resources, and Honorary Commander for the Los Angeles Space Force. She earned her doctorate degree in educational leadership from the University of Southern California, a master’s degree in education from California State University, Los Angeles, and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Redlands. She retired in July 2024.?

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