Pender County Schools begins drafting generative AI guidance and training for staff, students and parents
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Summary
District staff showed draft generative AI guidance and related policy changes intended to safeguard student data, academic integrity and provide training for educators, parents and students; staff plan further review with legal and regional partners before formal adoption.
District technology and instruction leaders briefed the board on draft policies and guidance addressing generative artificial intelligence in schools, describing the work as a precautionary step to manage student privacy and academic integrity.
Kevin Taylor and district technology staff said Pender County Schools has drafted a proposed Gen‑AI policy (new policy 4.1e) and revisions to existing technology and acceptable‑use policies. Staff described outreach already completed: presentations to a parent advisory committee, an online teacher town hall, and a community Rotary presentation. The stated goals are to provide guidance on safe tool selection, training for teachers and parents, and classroom rules about when AI tools are permitted or banned for specific assignments.
Staff cited concerns raised in stakeholder engagements: students report frequent AI use but inconsistent school rules; teachers worry about over‑reliance, plagiarism and accuracy (“hallucinations”) in AI outputs; parents want clarity about how AI use may affect college admissions and fairness. Staff said they will align local policy with state guidance from the Department of Public Instruction and monitor federal and executive‑level developments.
The presentation covered practical issues: differences among AI tools (some services host user prompts and outputs publicly; others may have different data‑privacy practices depending on origin), the need for rubrics and citation guidance for AI use, and grade‑span differentiation for instruction and parent education. Staff proposed training modules for K–5, 6–12 and parents and recommended that any new policy go through district legal review before the board acts.
Ending: the board thanked staff for outreach; staff asked for additional feedback and emphasized that the draft policy will evolve with technology and statewide guidance. No formal action was taken at this meeting on the AI policy draft.