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Superintendent outlines AI guidance, reports $90,000 of federal Title funds on hold; board approves special-education hire 5–0
Summary
Superintendent presented a draft AI-use policy for staff (to be adapted later for students), reported roughly $510,000 in federal Title funding with about $90,000 currently on hold, and the board unanimously approved a recommended special-education teacher and a procurement motion.
At the Elizabeth Forward School District committee meeting July 9, the superintendent briefed the board on district planning, proposed policy updates and several service agreements, and the board approved a personnel hire unanimously.
Superintendent Connick said trustees will see a policy to govern artificial-intelligence use that initially focuses on staff and later on student guidance. "You'll notice in this document, there's a policy on AI and how we might use that responsibly first with our adults and then pass it on to our kids," he said, noting AI is rapidly changing and the district plans to adopt guidelines and reference materials rather than attempt a final, unchanging policy.
Connick also reported federal Title funds for the district total about $510,000 (Title I, II and IV). He said roughly $90,000 of that amount was on hold at the time of the meeting and that the district expected to receive about $418,000, with updates to follow.
The board reviewed several service agreements: a memorandum of understanding with the Allegheny Intermediate Unit (AIU) for Title III/ESL consortium services; a contract with Bayada Health for nursing services to support high‑needs students; a renewal with the Watson Institute for special-education placements for 2025–26; and a school-based mental‑health services agreement with VITA (the vendor formerly known as Family Behavioral Resources / Cortovita). The superintendent noted the VITA services are often paid by families' insurance and help keep students in district schools.
The administration also proposed updates to policy 306 (employment of summer staff) and policy 822 (AED/CPR training and device availability), following recommendations from the Pennsylvania School Boards Association (PSBA).
On the agenda was one voting item: approval to hire a special‑education teacher who had already been working in district programs and whom the administration wants to onboard and train before the school year. The motion to approve the hire (agenda item 13.1) was moved, seconded and passed unanimously with a 5–0 recorded vote. Following that action, the board approved a related procurement motion, which also passed.
The superintendent closed by thanking staff and noting the district is continuing planning for the fall; trustees asked for continued updates on the Title funds and for copies of policy revisions and service agreements when posted.
