The Riverside Unified School District board voted Oct. 16 to adopt Board Policy 0441, a districtwide framework for student and staff use of artificial intelligence. The policy sets general principles—ethics, transparency, equity, safety and privacy—and directs staff to run pilot programs, professional development and family outreach.

District staff described the policy as an extension of technology-use guidance the board approved in March and said the district has been preparing for classroom pilots. Staff reported they started asynchronous training for employees in July, have provided additional in-person and virtual professional development, and enrolled thousands of employees in early training modules and tool access. Staff said they plan classroom pilots beginning in November and broader student implementation in January 2026 after teacher feedback.

The presentation included a school principal's example of classroom use. Lisa Kells, principal at Matthew Gage, described a site-level approach that emphasizes safety, ethics and phased implementation: some teachers are experimenting with Google Gemini and collaborative notebook tools; others are using AI for lesson planning and document synthesis; and the principal said students already use AI informally. Staff said Google Workspace–integrated AI tools will be available with current licenses; broader licensed tools may have added costs later.

Board members and the student representative pressed staff on safeguards and measurement: trustees asked how pilots will collect student feedback, how the district will preserve academic integrity, and whether the district will require ongoing staff training. Staff said a functional pilot group will include high-school teachers and administrators and that an AI educators’ team has drafted guidance addressing academic integrity tiers (red/yellow/green framework) and citation practices.

After discussion the board approved the policy on what staff called a first reading with implementation steps and pilot timelines. The transcript records the adoption as a motion that passed unanimously.