Frederick County School Board Adopts Sweeping AI Restrictions for Pre-K Through 12th Grade Students

FREDERICK, Md. - The Frederick County Board of Education has adopted sweeping new restrictions on student use of artificial intelligence, voting 6-1 to prohibit students from using AI across every grade level from prekindergarten through 12th grade.

The board approved Policy 124, Artificial Intelligence, during its meeting Wednesday, Oct. 7.

The decision received new regional television attention Thursday evening as FOX 5 DC reported on the policy and its potential impact on students, teachers and families across Frederick County.

The policy represents one of the most restrictive approaches to student AI use adopted by a school system in the Washington metropolitan region.

It establishes a default rule that students may not use artificial intelligence tools unless the use falls within a specifically authorized exception.

Frederick County Public Schools said permitted student use will be limited to specific curricular needs, explicit AI literacy instruction or circumstances in which AI is required by a student's Individualized Education Program or Section 504 Plan.

A more detailed district regulation is still being developed to determine how the policy will be implemented in classrooms.

The 6-1 vote

FOX 5 reported that the Board of Education approved the policy by a 6-1 vote Wednesday evening.

Board members had previously considered approaches that would place stronger restrictions on younger students while allowing greater AI access at the middle and high school levels.

The final policy instead extends the prohibition across the entire PreK-12 system.

The lone dissenting board member raised concerns that restricting AI too broadly for older students could leave them less prepared for college and a workforce in which artificial intelligence is becoming increasingly common.

The majority backed the broader restriction amid concerns about academic integrity, over-reliance on automated tools and the possibility that students could use AI to complete work without developing the underlying skills themselves.

The policy does not eliminate AI from classrooms entirely

Although the policy broadly prohibits independent student AI use, it is not an absolute ban on students ever interacting with artificial intelligence.

FCPS says AI may still be used when a specific curriculum requires it.

Students may also use the technology during explicit instruction designed to teach AI literacy.

That distinction means teachers could still introduce students to artificial intelligence in a controlled instructional setting while general student use remains prohibited.

The district also preserved exceptions for students whose disability accommodations require access to technology that incorporates artificial intelligence.

Those exceptions apply when AI use is required under an Individualized Education Program or a Section 504 Plan.

FCPS is now developing regulations that will determine how those exceptions are approved, supervised and applied in individual classrooms.

Sharp change from earlier district direction

The vote marks a significant change from the district's approach at the beginning of the 2026-27 school year.

FCPS had been developing student AI literacy resources and introducing an AI-use framework intended to help students understand when artificial intelligence could and could not be used.

The district had also begun piloting Google's Gemini artificial intelligence platform for middle and high school students within its secured digital environment.

Earlier FCPS guidance emphasized concepts including responsible use, academic integrity, data privacy, critical thinking and disclosure of AI assistance.

The newly adopted policy replaces that broader student-use framework with a much more restrictive default.

FCPS said previous guidance developed by its AI workgroup is being decommissioned and will be replaced by regulations implementing Policy 124.

Years of preparation preceded the vote

Frederick County Public Schools began formally examining artificial intelligence policy well before Wednesday's vote.

FCPS convened a cross-functional AI workgroup during the 2024-25 school year at the request of the Board Policy Committee.

The group examined policies elsewhere in Maryland and across the country, developed initial guidance for teachers and created student-use guidelines for different grade levels.

Artificial intelligence later became the subject of a formal Board of Education policy process.

Policy 124 received its first reading on Sept. 9.

The board discussed the policy again during a second reading on Sept. 23 and scheduled it to return for further consideration.

The final policy was adopted Oct. 7.

Maryland law requires schools to address AI

Frederick County's policy comes as Maryland school systems face new statewide requirements for artificial intelligence planning and education.

The Maryland General Assembly approved the Artificial Intelligence Ready Schools Act earlier this year.

Gov. Wes Moore signed the measure as Chapter 634, and the law took effect June 1.

The law requires the Maryland State Department of Education to provide guidance on artificial intelligence to local school systems, educators, parents and students.

It also requires the state to develop guidelines, best practices and evaluation tools that districts can use when considering artificial intelligence products for schools.

The state legislation established the Maryland AI Education Collaborative on Artificial Intelligence in K-12 Education as part of a broader effort to prepare school systems for the technology.

FCPS says Policy 124 was developed in alignment with the new state law and guidance from the Maryland State Department of Education.

AI literacy remains part of the curriculum

The broad student restrictions create an unusual balance for FCPS.

Students generally will not be permitted to use artificial intelligence independently, but the district is still expected to teach them how the technology works and how it affects education, employment and society.

FCPS explicitly preserved AI literacy instruction as an exception to the prohibition.

That means a teacher could potentially use an approved artificial intelligence tool as part of a lesson specifically designed to teach students how AI works, how generated information should be evaluated or how the technology should be used responsibly.

The distinction is intended to separate learning about artificial intelligence from using artificial intelligence to perform ordinary schoolwork.

Concerns about academic integrity

Concerns about students using generative AI to write essays, answer questions or complete other assignments were a major part of the local discussion surrounding the policy.

Frederick County Education Association President Justin Heid told FOX 5 that the union had not received large numbers of complaints from educators about artificial intelligence.

He said, however, that some teachers have returned to traditional paper-and-pencil assignments because of concerns that students could use AI to complete digital coursework.

Generative AI platforms can produce essays, summaries, computer code, answers to questions and other material within seconds.

That capability has forced school systems nationwide to reconsider how assignments are designed and how educators determine whether submitted work reflects a student's own understanding.

Supporters of stricter controls argue that unrestricted access can become a shortcut that prevents students from developing writing, reasoning, research and problem-solving skills.

Others argue students will need experience with artificial intelligence before entering higher education and the workforce.

Local parents express differing views

FOX 5 reported mixed reaction among Frederick County parents following the vote.

Some supported the restrictions because they believe artificial intelligence can become a substitute for independent thinking and schoolwork.

Others questioned whether a broad prohibition could prevent students from learning how to use technology that is rapidly becoming common in colleges and workplaces.

The debate reflects a broader challenge facing school systems across the country: how to protect academic integrity while preparing students for a technological environment in which artificial intelligence is increasingly difficult to avoid.

Implementation questions remain

The board's vote establishes the policy, but several practical questions have not yet been resolved publicly.

FCPS says a more detailed AI regulation is currently in development.

That regulation is expected to explain how the district will enforce the prohibition and how teachers will determine when student AI use qualifies for an approved curricular exception.

The district will also need to address how AI features embedded inside commonly used software are treated under the policy.

Many search engines, productivity applications, educational platforms and consumer devices now include artificial intelligence features by default.

FCPS has not yet published the complete implementation regulation explaining how every such circumstance will be handled.

Disability accommodations protected

The final policy specifically protects access when artificial intelligence is required by a student's IEP or Section 504 Plan.

That provision follows advocacy from Frederick County's Special Education Citizens Advisory Committee.

The committee had urged the Board of Education to ensure the policy addressed accessibility, assistive technology and the rights of students with disabilities.

On Sept. 28, the committee unanimously approved recommendations concerning disability access and submitted them to the Board of Education and the Board Policy Committee.

The exception included in the adopted framework makes clear that the districtwide prohibition cannot override individualized disability accommodations requiring appropriate technology.

What happens next

FCPS will now move from policymaking to implementation.

District administrators are developing the regulation that will govern how Policy 124 operates across elementary, middle and high schools.

Teachers, students and families will need additional guidance defining approved curricular uses, AI literacy activities and enforcement procedures.

The district will also have to determine the future of student-facing artificial intelligence tools that had been introduced or piloted before the board adopted the new restrictions.

The policy could evolve as artificial intelligence technology changes and as Maryland develops additional statewide guidance.

For now, however, Frederick County has established a clear default: students from prekindergarten through 12th grade may not use artificial intelligence for ordinary schoolwork unless the use falls within a specifically approved educational or disability-related exception.

The 6-1 decision places Frederick County among the school systems taking the strongest local approach yet to limiting student use of rapidly expanding generative AI technology.