Modesto City Schools has introduced comprehensive artificial intelligence guidelines for classroom use, becoming the only district in Stanislaus County with a dedicated AI committee. The district will launch parent training sessions next month to help families support their children with the same AI tools being adopted in schools, marking a proactive approach to educational technology integration.
What you should know: The district formed a 20-member AI committee including students, staff, and parents to establish responsible AI policies across all schools.
- The committee developed a guidebook titled “Modesto City Schools AI Exploration: Navigating Our Digital Future” along with brochures and posters for distribution to school sites.
- Since 2023, 776 staff members — including one-third of the district’s teachers — have completed AI training programs.
- The school board unanimously approved policy revisions that include specific language governing AI use in educational settings.
AI tools being adopted: The district is implementing distinct AI platforms for staff and students with different access levels and controls.
- For staff: PowerSchool PowerBuddy AI, MagicSchool for lesson creation, Writable for student feedback, Google Gemini and NotebookLM, Microsoft Copilot, ChatGPT, and Claude for various educational tasks.
- For students: MagicSchool and PowerSchool PowerBuddy for Learning, both requiring explicit teacher or parent permission and operating under teacher-controlled formats.
- Staff must follow the “80-20 rule” — allowing AI to handle 80% of a task while using 20% professional judgment to refine outputs.
The efficiency gains: District analysis shows significant time-saving potential for educators and improved learning outcomes for students.
- AI could save teachers an average of 5.9 hours weekly from their current 37.4-hour workload — equivalent to six additional weeks over a school year.
- Lesson planning and preparation time could be reduced by seven to 10 hours per week while helping reduce teacher burnout.
- AI-powered personalized learning systems have shown potential to improve student outcomes by up to 30% compared with traditional methods.
Privacy and safety guardrails: The district emphasizes strict data protection and ethical use requirements for all AI implementations.
- Staff are prohibited from sharing personally identifiable information with AI platforms and must verify all AI outputs for accuracy, bias, and relevance.
- Students must fact-check AI outputs, properly cite sources including AI tools themselves, and cannot share personal or confidential information about classmates.
- AI cannot be used for harmful, deceptive, or inappropriate purposes under district guidelines.
What they’re saying: District leaders and union representatives emphasized different priorities for AI integration.
- “The consensus is that AI should be a tool to lighten workloads, not to replace people,” said Fawn Peterson, chapter president of the California School Employees Association.
- Board President Abel Maestas warned against complacency: “We think we’re ahead, and we’re not,” noting how rapidly AI technology continues to evolve.
- Matthew Ketchum, director of educational technology, shared a practical example where AI could help nutrition staff explain food allergies to students through personalized, grade-appropriate stories.
Legislative context: California has enacted multiple bills requiring AI integration and literacy in K-12 education.
- Senate Bill 1288 (September 2024) requires the state superintendent to convene a working group on AI in public schools, which served as the model for Modesto City Schools’ committee.
- Assembly Bill 2876 (October 2024) integrates AI literacy into California’s K-12 curriculum across English, math, science, and history subjects.
- The state expects to release AI guidance early next year, followed by model policies for districts in July and final recommendations in January 2027.
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