Students, parents and staff present draft AI "philosophy" to Los Altos board; trustees press for specifics
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Summary
An AI work group that included students presented a draft district AI philosophy stressing AI as a tool to support—not replace—teachers; trustees pressed on enforceability, privacy safeguards, and unintended outputs while staff described the document as a "North Star" to guide later classroom-facing guidance.
At the meeting, curriculum staff and students presented a draft Los Altos School District artificial intelligence philosophy created by a work group of students, parents and staff.
Grace Ahoy, a curriculum coordinator, described a three'week student'engaged process that used a card game to surface priorities and drafted a guiding statement. A student reader recited the philosophy'opening: "In Los Altos School District, our philosophy for artificial intelligence, AI, is guided by our commitment to helping every student thrive academically, socially, emotionally, and cognitively. We recognize that AI is not a substitute for human thought, judgment, or creativity."
The presentation prioritized core principles: data privacy and security, responsible use, transparency and a focus on learning outcomes. Presenters said the next step is classroom guidance that will specify how teachers and students should use AI and that the guidance will be developed with teacher requests and stakeholder feedback.
Trustees raised practical concerns. One trustee asked how the district would verify that AI tools comply with federal, state or local regulations and how to prevent hallucinations and unintended or biased outputs. A trustee suggested a simple enforceable rule: require teachers and students to identify when and how they use AI in classroom work. Staff replied the philosophy is intended as a "North Star" and that specific classroom guidance, safety checks and privacy protections will be developed and refined with input from teachers, students and families.
Board members asked staff for information on which AI features are already available on student devices, how the district controls or limits those tools, and what research informs recommended classroom practices. Presenters said the work group'including tech interns and high school students'helped frame the priorities and that the district will return with guidance and additional details.
No board policy or binding regulation was adopted at the meeting; the AI philosophy was presented for review and continued development.
