Fairfax County Public Schools officials are open to a more robust artificial intelligence policy, but a final version is still a few months from being ready for primetime.
Staff have been working since October on a comprehensive policy governing the use of AI, an umbrella term for technology that uses computer systems to handle complex tasks. Artificial intelligence has become colloquially associated with generative tools like OpenAI’s ChatGPT, which are trained on existing text, video and images to produce “new” content.
AI is already in FCPS classrooms, where tools like Adobe Express, Google Storybook and Google’s LM have been approved for staff use. The school system is also piloting a ChatGPT for Teachers program.
“They’re using this anyway,” Franconia District Representative Marcia St. John-Cunning said when the Fairfax County School Board’s governance committee met on Tuesday (March 17) to discuss the latest draft policy. “Our job is to teach them how to use it responsibly.”
Superintendent Michelle Reid had previously presented a draft proposal to the committee in February that contained an overview, the school board’s philosophy regarding AI, definitions of terms, and several specific responsibilities regarding safety, usage and training.
However, at Tuesday’s meeting, Reid shared a revised proposal that gutted the original, eliminating a “procedures” section in its entirety in favor of a new “responsibilities” section that essentially directs the superintendent to come up with guidelines, monitor developments in AI, and conduct a two-year rolling staff review.
As an alternative to Reid’s proposal, Hunter Mill District board member Melanie Meren distributed her own draft policy that includes the same language directing the superintendent to monitor “key areas of concern” and conduct a staff review of the policy and related regulations every two years.
However, it also lists several specific guidelines around student safety, criteria for identifying and evaluating technology used for instruction, and professional development. Meren’s proposal would prohibit “FCPS-provided” access to generative AI for students aged 12 and younger.
“It’s become very apparent to me that the only way this is going to move forward with equity and quality is through professional development,” she said.
Mason District Representative Ricardy Anderson said Reid’s proposal needed more specificity to allay community concerns.
“What I didn’t see … is developmental appropriateness, is the parental component, that has to show up in some way,” she said.
The committee supported Meren’s version of the policy as a starting point for discussion over the next month. In that time, board members will review Meren’s proposal and provide feedback, while FCPS staff gather more information on potential regulations.
“I think it’s very aspirational but I also think we need the people who do the work to provide input,” said Dranesville District Representative Robyn Lady.
The committee’s next scheduled meeting is April 14, but members agreed to add extra meetings in April and May to ensure it can finalize a proposed AI policy by the end of the school year. The committee’s proposal would still require approval by the full school board.
