Orange County Grand Jury • 2023-2024 • Agency Response
Response to: Use of Artificial Intelligence in Public Schools (K-12), It’s Not Elementary

Ocean View School District's Supplemental Response to the 2023-24 Orange*

Published: October 29, 2024 4 pages
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Findings and Recommendations 3 findings

F1 Page 1
Orange County's K-12 public schools have implemented policies and/or guidelines around the use of different Al platforms in varying and inconsistent ways. Some prohibit Al's use; others allow it: and some don't have policies or guidelines governing Al at all. The District partially disagrees with the finding and cannot comment on other districts' Al policies. However, the Ocean View School District has policies guiding the appropriate use of technology by staff and students. In collaboration with Dr. Sabba Quidwai, an Al expert, we will be updating them to incorporate Al guidelines to ensure alignment with the District's vision and goals. Honorable Maria D. Hernandez Presiding Judge, Orange County Superior Court
Related Recommendations (1)
R1
Page 2
By June 30, 2025, Orange County's K-12 schools should implement policies and guidelines regarding the appropriate use of Al. These may be provided at the district level or within individual schools through the adoption of an Acceptable Use Policy, Code of Ethics, or other written directives addressing the use of Al. The District has determined that the recommendation requires further analysis for the following reasons: Our collaboration with Dr. Sabba Quidwai, an Al expert, will be pivotal in the District-wide implementation of Al tools and policies, including the Acceptable Use Policy for employees and students, the Code of Ethics, and other Honorable Maria D. Hernandez Presiding Judge, Orange County Superior Court Al-related directives aligned with the District's vision. Additionally, the District will conduct research, collaborate with educational partners, and establish an (AI)nnovators Committee to use data to review current policies, determining whether additions or revisions to existing guidelines are necessary. The District is committed to implementing these AI initiatives by the end of the 2025 school year.
F2 Page 2
Superintendents provide varying levels of support in implementing Al policies and/or guidelines in their respective school districts. The District partially disagrees with the finding, particularly regarding the superintendent's role in other districts' Al policies, as we cannot comment on the level of support in implementing AI policies elsewhere. In the Ocean View School District, the Superintendent is forming a District (AI)nnovators Committee, which will join the Orange County Department of Education's AI Forward Boot Camp and work with experts to continue gathering information on AI policies and guidelines.
Related Recommendations (1)
R2
Page 3
Superintendents should ensure that their schools have policies that cover, at a minimum: the scope, guiding principles, and training regarding the responsible use of Al tools by students and teachers; any prohibited uses of special considerations regarding Al tools; and related security, privacy, and safety considerations. The District has determined that this recommendation needs further analysis due to the rapid advancement of AI technologies and the expanding knowledge of our staff. As district and site teams continue to engage in professional learning and engagement with Al, they will collaborate to create guiding principles and training solutions for teachers' use of Al tools. The newly appointed Al Leads will coordinate efforts with the Al(Innovator)Team participating in the Orange County Department of Education's Al Bootcamp to develop this guidance and training by the end of the 2025 school year.
F3 Page 2
There are many resources to guide educators in using Al. Several are available at the local level through the Orange County Department of Education, Orange County Board of Education, CEO Leadership Alliance Orange County, and Orange Unified School District Technology Department, to name a few. However, utilization and even awareness of the availability of such resources is highly variable across school districts. The District partially disagrees with the finding, as it lacks specific information about the utilization and awareness of AI resources across other school districts. In the Ocean View School District, we have recently integrated CoPilot, an Al-powered tool, into various Microsoft programs for district leadership. During the 2024-25 school year, Ocean View will continue participating in the Orange County Department of Education's Al Forward training initiatives. Our District team will continue to evolve, with Al Leads from various departments actively engaging in these training opportunities. Additionally, the District will support ongoing professional development by attending Al-focused conferences to enhance awareness and understanding.
Related Recommendations (1)
R3
Page 3
K-12 students should be trained on the appropriate use of Al. The District has determined that this recommendation requires further analysis for the following reasons: Ocean View is actively exploring best practices for student use of Al and is working to create professional development opportunities for teachers, so they can facilitate this learning with their students. Another key goal is to engage students as stakeholders and to offer Al workshops opportunities to expand their knowledge and listen to their ideas. Additionally, Ocean View plans to integrate Al Literacy lessons through Digital Citizenship instruction using materials provided by Common Sense Media, and aiEDU. The District is committed to completing the implementation of these recommendations by the end of the 2025 school year.

* This report's PDF did not contain easily extractable text and required Optical Character Recognition (OCR) for analysis. There may be minor errors in the extracted findings and recommendations due to OCR limitations with scanned documents.