Board reviews KASB-recommended policy tweaks; AI and tech approach stays in student handbook for now

Board members heard a report that the Kansas Association of School Boards (KASB) legal team reviewed district policies after the recent legislative session and recommended edits where statutes or best practices have changed. "KANSAS association of School Boards, they have a legal team that go through all policies annually in the summertime based on the legislative session that ends," an administrator told the board. The recommended edits are mostly technical or compliance-focused, the administration said, and do not change underlying policy intent. Administrators told the board that the district currently addresses emerging technologies, including generative AI, in student handbooks and through existing technology-use guidelines. "In our student handbooks we have our approach to technologies in general as well as specifically to AI," the administrator said. The district said KASB legal counsel has advised that the district obtain a legal review and opinion before drafting a standalone AI policy, and several administrators said they would continue to monitor legislative developments and KASB guidance. The board approved the KASB-suggested policy updates presented for final reading and asked staff to return with any policy proposals that require extended discussion. The board did not adopt a new district-wide AI policy at the meeting; administrators said if the legislature or KASB issues new guidance they would notify the district.