Earlier this year, the district formed a 20-member AI committee composed of students, staff and parents. Its purpose is to establish clear policies for using AI responsibly across schools. MCS is the only district in Stanislaus County with an AI committee, according to the district.
The group developed a guidebook titled “Modesto City Schools AI Exploration: Navigating Our Digital Future” along with brochures and posters that will be distributed to school sites. They stress the importance of protecting student information, ensuring all tools comply with data privacy requirements and setting clear rules for staff not to share personally identifiable information with AI platforms.
At Monday’s meeting, the school board unanimously approved the first reading of revisions to Board Policy and Administrative Regulations, which now include specific language on the use of AI.
Fawn Peterson, chapter president of the California School Employees Association, said the union’s main concern is that AI should not be used to replace jobs, especially in administrative work or in campus security.
“The consensus is that AI should be a tool to lighten workloads, not to replace people,” Peterson said.
Since 2023, 776 staff members — including one-third of the district’s teachers — have completed AI trainings.
Next month, the district will host AI training sessions for families, focusing on how parents can support their children in using the same tools schools will adopt. Training for students on using AI effectively in their schoolwork is also expected to launch soon.
Matthew Ketchum, the district’s director of educational technology, shared an example of how AI could help classified staff. When he asked employees in Nutrition Services about their biggest challenges, one staff member said it was difficult to explain to a student why certain foods were off-limits due to allergies. Ketchum said AI could create a simple, third-grade-level story — tailored to the child’s interests (in this case, Spider-Man) — that explains why he can’t have that food.
Many at the board meeting commended the district for getting ahead in adopting AI. Board President Abel Maestas, however, said Modesto City Schools already is behind because of how fast the technology is changing.
“We think we’re ahead, and we’re not,” he said.
WHAT AI TOOLS ARE THE DISTRICT ADOPTING?
MCS is adopting the following AI tools.
For staff
- PowerSchool PowerBuddy AI – Assists teachers and students.
- MagicSchool – Teacher-focused tool for creating lessons and assessments.
- Writable – Provides instant, personalized feedback for students.
- Google Gemini – Supports brainstorming, creative writing, research and information gathering.
- Google NotebookLM – AI-powered research assistant that can generate customized AI agents.
- Microsoft Copilot – Supports brainstorming, creative writing, research and information gathering.
- ChatGPT – Used for brainstorming, creative writing, research and information gathering.
- Claude – Summarizes writing and research.
Teachers are also encouraged to use AI to personalize learning, differentiate instruction and increase student engagement.
For students (with teacher control)
- MagicSchool – Supports structured student learning.
- PowerSchool PowerBuddy for Learning – Guides students through questioning in a teacher-controlled format.
Students must fact-check AI outputs and are prohibited from sharing personal or confidential information, including details about classmates. AI may not be used for harmful, deceptive or inappropriate purposes.
A district report found that AI has the potential to save teachers an average of 5.9 hours each week from their current 37.4-hour workload — the equivalent of six additional weeks of time over the course of a school year. AI platforms also can cut lesson planning and preparation time by seven to 10 hours per week while also helping reduce teacher burnout.
For students, AI-powered personalized learning systems have been shown to improve outcomes by up to 30 percent compared with traditional methods, according to the report.
Maestas, who is an instructional coach with Ceres Unified School District, said schools will need to rethink their approach to teaching as AI becomes more widespread.
He recalled working with students over the summer who use Photomath, an app that uses AI to solve math equations. Instead of focusing on the app’s answers, he asked a student to explain the reasoning behind each step.
“He thought about it and told me what he thought,” said Maestas. “I said, ‘See that what you just did? That’s the math. Not what the computer did. The thinking that you had to do, that was math.’”
AI LEGISLATION IN EDUCATION
In September 2024, California enacted Senate Bill 1288, which requires the state superintendent to convene a working group on artificial intelligence in public schools. MCS’s AI committee was modeled after this state structure. The state is expected to release AI guidance early next year, followed by model policies for districts in July, with final recommendations scheduled for January 2027.
In Oct. 2024, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 2876, which integrates AI literacy into California’s K-12 curriculum. AI concepts will be embedded in English language arts, math, science and history, meaning districts will need to prepare for cross-subject AI standards.
At the federal level, Presidential Executive Order 14277, was signed in April to advance AI education for the youth.
MCS’s AI committee said it plans to adjust and adapt to ongoing legislation.
© 2025 The Modesto Bee (Modesto, Calif.). Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
