Ethics, academic honesty to guide AI use in Napa Valley Unified schools, board says – The Press Democrat

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As educational institutions grapple with the entry of artificial intelligence into learning spaces, Napa Valley Unified will allow its use under a policy that emphasizes ethics, equity and academic honesty.
The school board voted 5-1 to approve the policy with President Lisa Chu absent at its meeting Thursday, March 26. Trustee Cindy Watter cast the dissenting vote.
“I’m worried this is going to encourage students to cut corners,” Watter, a former teacher, said. “We have to do something to make children realize that anything they can come up with is probably going to be more interesting for me to read than something that was scraped off something that somebody else wrote.”
Trustee John Henry Martin, a teacher at a Vallejo school, commended the district for “getting ahead of the curve” by putting a policy in place.
“This is simply the beginning of a framework of how we’re going to use this technology in the classroom,” he said. “It’s important to not be afraid of this technology because we can leverage it to be so much more productive when we do it conscientiously.”
The board-approved policy recognizes the “transformative potential” of artificial intelligence to “increase student access to information, support teacher effectiveness and facilitate the administration of student assessments.” At the same time, it also acknowledges AI’s potential to “undermine student achievement, health and well-being.”
Therefore, the policy lays out 10 principles that will guide AI use in schools. These include ethical and transparent use, equitable access for all, and a focus on academic honesty. In addition, the policy emphasizes that AI is to be used as a tool to support staff in performing their duties rather than replacing workers, carefully considering potential biases, and prioritizing security and privacy.
Apart from an additional emphasis on academic honesty for students, the district’s new policy mirrors what has been recommended by the California School Board Association, a nonprofit that represents school boards across the state.
(Source: Napa Valley Unified School District’s Board Policy Manual)
In a bid to develop a set of guidelines for responsible use of technology, the district convened an AI council of 30 stakeholders including parents, teachers, students and staff in May 2025. The council met five times to review CSBA’s policy and make a recommendation to the board.
In addition, the council developed guidelines for AI use for all stakeholders. These will be shared in the 2026-2027 school year. Amid rapid technological developments, the district plans to update them regularly.
You can reach Staff Writer Tarini Mehta at tarini.mehta@pressdemocrat.com.
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