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District staff present draft AI guidance, recommend pilots and training; board raises privacy and integrity questions
Summary
An AI leadership team presented draft guidance recommending teacher upskilling, ethical use procedures and piloting reputable AI tools; trustees raised questions about privacy (FERPA), sample size of staff survey (65 responses) and funding for training.
Andrew Lai, lead AI learning specialist for Compass, told the Johnson County School District #1 board on May 20 that AI is already in classrooms and urged the district to "embrace and educate" rather than ban the technology. Lai said the district’s draft guidance recommends five commitments: teach responsible use, set procedures for safe and ethical deployment, upskill teachers, create a scope-and-sequence for AI learning at every level, and set clear goals for progress.
Lai cited figures during his presentation — he said roughly 70% of high-school students used AI in classrooms last year and that 67% of educators nationwide used AI for tasks such as lesson planning — then described a district staff survey of 65 responses that informed the draft guidance. "Staff, for the most part, feel uninformed but are curious and open to learning about AI," he said, adding that the top concern in that local survey was academic integrity.
Trustees asked whether the 65 staff responses provided a reliable sample, how the district would detect AI-generated student work and what legal constraints govern tool selection. Lai warned there is currently no foolproof AI detector and said that modifying text can defeat available detectors; he recommended curriculum redesign and teacher training rather than relying on detection tools.
Administration and trustees also discussed privacy and federal rules: the superintendent cautioned that AI systems must protect student privacy under FERPA and parental-rights laws. Trustees expressed interest in piloting vetted platforms (Lai suggested tools such as Magic School and Brisk) and in a "train-the-trainer" approach that places a knowledgeable staff member in each building to sustain professional development.
The board did not adopt a final policy at the meeting; administrators said the draft is intended to be flexible and revisited frequently as AI evolves. Staff recommended returning with a roadmap for pilot selection, funding options for summer training and recommended language for a district-appropriate acceptable-use update before board-level policy work.
The presentation and Q&A will inform fall policy discussions and the district’s planned professional-development rollout.
