Socorro ISD unveils AI handbook to guide classroom and staff use; board briefed, no formal adoption needed

Socorro Independent School District staff presented a new artificial intelligence handbook on April 15 that outlines how AI tools may be used across the district, emphasizing teacher permission, attribution, and FERPA/COPPA compliance.

Miguel Moreno, the district’s coordinator for instructional technology, said the handbook is intended as an exhibit to existing board policy (CQD) and not as new board rulemaking. "The handbook is built around an AI literacy framework: to understand, to use, and to evaluate AI results," Moreno said, adding that the district’s approach prioritized understanding the technology before allowing classroom use.

The presentation described safeguards the handbook includes: students may use AI only with teacher permission; original student work must include proper attribution; AI cannot be the sole basis for grading or high-stakes discipline; and all uses must comply with federal student-privacy rules. Moreno said the handbook is designed as a living document to be updated as tools and best practices evolve.

Trustees asked whether the exhibit requires board approval and how it will link to the student handbook. Legal counsel and the presenter clarified that exhibits and regulations are administrative and do not require board action; staff said the student handbook was updated last year and already contains cross-references to policy CQD, and the AI exhibit will be referenced there as appropriate.

Trustees praised the district’s proactive posture and asked for continued community messaging about how AI will be used in classrooms. No vote was taken; administration recommended approving the exhibit as an informational resource, and trustees agreed it should be shared with the community.