THE AGENDA: Augusta County school board set for first discussion on artificial intelligence in classrooms

Akhil Ganesh and Patrick Hite, Staunton News Leader
·4 min read

VERONA — Nick Collins wants to find ways to allow members of the Augusta County School Board to share items that are important to them with the community, items that in the past might have been saved for the board’s annual retreat.

“As chairman I don’t want any board member to think that I am doing anything to suppress their interests,” Collins said. “At the same time, Mr. (Timothy) Simmons and Mr. (Mike) Lawson are new board members and there are a lot of moving parts in this school system. I’m just trying to afford them an opportunity to say, hey, I’d like to know more about this or that. I even have a thing or two I’d like to know more about.”

Simmons, first elected in 2021, represents the Pastures District while Lawson, who first won a seat on the board in 2022, represents the South River District. Simmons and, to a lesser degree, Lawson have not been afraid to rock the boat so far, pushing the board to look at some things in a different way. Collins is fine with that, saying new eyes and new voices are never a bad thing.

Last month, Simmons discussed his desire to join the School Board Member Alliance, an organization that supports school board members with resources and training opportunities. Simmons is paying for the membership out of his own pocket. Currently all of Augusta County’s school board members are members of the Virginia School Board Association.

The board unanimously approved Simmons’ desire to join the new board at his own expense.

At the meeting this Thursday, Aug. 3, the community will hear a little about what the school division has found out on the topic of artificial intelligence (AI) in the classroom, something Lawson wanted to discuss.

Collins said the issue, which he called “very complicated,” won’t be on the agenda this month but the board will get an update from Lawson who has been part of some meetings on the subject.

“One thing we’ve learned is it’s just not a singular subject,” Collins said. “It’s kind of like a spiderweb with webs into anything and everything we do. Mr. Lawson will address some of our progress in the comments by board members.”

Schools nationwide have been struggling with the impact of AI. New York City banned ChatGPT last January then reversed that decision in May. Other school districts have kept a ban on the chatbot that, in an educational setting, can be used to write essays or even answer test questions using AI.

AI goes well beyond just ChatGPT though and, along with the possible drawbacks, there are benefits, including the use of the technology in tutoring programs for students and assessment systems for teachers that can possibly help them when working with students who are struggling in the classroom.

On Thursday, the community will get a first glimpse at some of what the Augusta County School Board has been discussing concerning AI.

Also, Collins said he doesn’t expect much discussion from the board on Gov. Glenn Younkgin’s new model policies released in July. The board chair expects to hear from Superintendent Eric Bond that staff is reviewing the policies, but not much beyond that. He said the issue could find its way to the agenda in September.

Wednesday, August 2

  • Staunton Augusta Waynesboro Metropolitan Planning Organization, 10 am.

  • Augusta County Board of Supervisors special called meeting, 7 p.m. - A late addition to The Agenda, the board has scheduled a special meeting to "consider a Board resolution to request certain public records." It is currently unclear what records the board is looking to obtain.

Thursday, August 3

  • Augusta County Board of Zoning Appeals, 2:30 p.m. - Amongst the items in front of the BZA is another request for a nearly 200-foot telecommunications tower in Swoope. The last time a similar item was in front of the board, New Hope residents showed up in droves to lobby against the construction.

  • Augusta County School Board, 7 p.m. - While the board is expected to have its first conversation around artificial intelligence on Thursday, most of the meeting will be regular annual approvals of plans and items before the start of the new school year.

Monday, August 7

  • Community Policy Management Team, 1:30 p.m.

  • Staunton Lewis Creek Watershed Advisory Committee, 5 p.m.

Tuesday, August 8

  • Augusta County Planning Commission, 7 p.m. - The big ticket item on the planning commission's agenda will be a proposed solar farm in Fishersville. However, many eyes will be looking towards the commission's decision on chairperson Carolyn Bragg. Bragg was appointed to the board of supervisors earlier this year, and commission bylaws state that the chair and vice-chair of the commission cannot be on the board of supervisors.

  • Waynesboro School Board, 7 p.m.

This article originally appeared on Staunton News Leader: THE AGENDA: Augusta County school board set for first discussion on artificial intelligence in classrooms