LEWIS CENTER — The Olentangy School Board approved the district moving forward with artificial intelligence integration throughout the schools with a new policy.
Ohio law mandates all Ohio traditional public school districts, community schools and STEM schools to adopt a formal policy on AI by July 1.
The school board’s move reflects adhering to that law, but Olentangy’s curriculum and innovation instructional technology department plans to take the policy further.
Supervisors of Curriculum and Innovation Instructional Technology Brent Rohrer and David Hayward presented their ideas and work regarding those plans at the Thursday board meeting.
They shared some background research:
- 64% of teenagers are using AI chatbots, with 1/3 of them using it every day, according to Pew Research Center.
- 61% of Olentangy teachers and administrators reported using AI on their own work in 2025.
“I think the point is simple that we’re trying to make … AI isn’t coming, it’s already here,” Rohrer said.
The school must be diligent about how it implements AI, Rohrer said, specifically with an education-based platform that is not an open system.
That means the platforms “don’t train on students and staff data, and they come with controls and accountability that we require,” he said. “We also revisit tools as they evolve.”
Rohrer said NotebookLM is the top contender, a Google “research partner” that grounds AI assistance in classroom materials, not outside sources.
Policy is in place, but implementation is not
The approved policy allows for AI in the schools, but Rohrer and Hayward are still only in the planning phase, which involves building the foundation for AI usage.
“We’re doing our best to meet staff and students where they are, through foundational trainings targeted professional development, an AI cohort of educators testing these tools in real classrooms and sharing what they learned from them,” Rohrer said.
He said parents have also provided input, saying protecting critical thinking, ensuring programs are developmentally appropriate and prioritizing human feedback should be priorities with AI implementation.
Phase two will involve infrastructure development and procurement, meaning to enter into any agreements or subscriptions for an AI service.
Phase three involves implementing the policy in classrooms.
And phase four is sustained adoption and evaluation. Rohrer said because AI is ever-evolving, the policy should be, too.
“We want to make sure we have a balanced approach as we implement and adopt our AI tools and resources,” he said.
Other business
- The board recognized over two dozen students who received academic and extracurricular achievements, along with over two dozen teachers and faculty members who are retiring or won awards.
- Jerry Zgrabik, Area Coordinator, Region 6, of the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce presented the five star award to the board members. Districts receive the aware by earning five stars on each of the six components included in the school district report card. Only 47 of Ohio’s 607 school districts earned a top five-star rating.
