Ask an Expert: Dr. Shannon M. Cox on AI in Schools

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is reshaping education. State and local leaders across the country are creating policies and frameworks to integrate AI into the classroom. To learn more about how state and local leaders are confronting the challenges posed by AI and seizing on the opportunities it provides, RFA sat down with Dr. Shannon M. Cox, Superintendent of the Montgomery County, OH Educational Service Center. Shannon supported the implementation of Ohio’s AI in Education Strategy and toolkit for K-12 education and led the implementation of AI tools in the 16 public school districts in Montgomery County. 

In this Q&A, Shannon shares insights from her experience crafting professional development around Ohio’s AI K-12 Toolkit, highlights effective approaches to engage educators and families, and discusses how to implement AI tools in the classroom.

How did you approach developing AI guidance for the State of Ohio, and what are some lessons for other districts or states building their own frameworks? 

When we first set out to develop our AI guidance for schools, we made a conscious decision: we weren’t going to reinvent the wheel. We saw that some of our districts already had strong practices in place, and states like Oklahoma and Alabama had done excellent policy work at the state level. By adapting language from those established frameworks and policies, we were able to build on a proven foundation while focusing our energy where it was needed most.

The core of our initial approach was a collaboration with aiEDU, a nonprofit partner brought in by the then Lieutenant Governor’s office to build a comprehensive state toolkit. We structured our guidance into six sections grounded in research, specifically designed to help policymakers, administrators, and educators navigate student safety and ethical best practices. At the local and state levels, we wanted policies broad enough for longevity but specific enough for classroom use, focusing on how AI platforms are used rather than on the platforms themselves.

One lesson that emerged as we developed this guidance around the state’s toolkit was to include roles we hadn’t initially prioritized, like physical therapists, school psychologists, and other specialists. They were looking for guidance on how AI could help with time-consuming administrative tasks like evaluations for accommodations or IEP (Individualized Education Program) report writing, while maintaining student privacy.

We also realized at the state level that we needed to make these high-level resources consumable for the end user. I went back to our executive committee and suggested that to reach the students, we had to reach the staff first. We spent the next year building out supplemental tools, hosting webinars, and conducting in-person summits to deepen understanding of our AI framework and AI literacy more broadly. We wanted administrators and educators to feel confident in using the toolkit to implement AI practices in their district. Now that Ohio requires each school district to adopt an AI policy by July 31st, 2026, we are supporting districts in creating an AI Playbook custom for their district.
 

How can districts develop a shared understanding of AI among their staff? 

The first step is to identify internal champions who are excited about AI and can lead among their peers. In Montgomery County, I put together that group of internal champions, and we created an AI 101 session. I made AI 101 a requirement for all 625 staff in our organization. In those learning sessions, we gave space for people to voice their concerns and questions. That process took a year and helped build a baseline of knowledge and shared understanding for our staff. 

The best advice I can share is to cultivate leaders among peers and invest in their AI literacy. We have at least one peer leader or AI champion in every Educational Service Center across Ohio. These "leaders of leaders" can bring together superintendents, curriculum developers, or support staff to lead the implementation of a district AI policy, which is now required in the state of Ohio.

We also learned that people approach AI with very different lenses and different experiences. With that in mind, I recommend differentiating people by skill level and the types of applications they might use. This helped us build role-specific resources: teacher-centric, leadership-centric, and platform-centric presentations (ChatGPT, Gemini, etc.).

It’s valuable to meet with staff and discuss AI in schools and our AI policy. Plan AI town halls or workshops across your jurisdiction. We did two in-person summits in southeast Ohio, which is pretty rural, and nine overall across the state of Ohio when rolling out our AI literacy professional development aligned to the state’s toolkit. The summits helped educators and leaders in those communities know that the state cared about their perspectives on this issue and helped them learn more about how AI could benefit their students, which, at the end of the day, is what everyone wants.

And now, we are bringing teams from districts together to build their respective AI Playbooks. These teams comprise parents, students, curriculum specialists, IT staff, teachers, administrators, and therapists. Having a holistic approach to the use and implementation of AI is critical.

Do you have any advice for engaging AI skeptics among school staff?

The pitfall is assuming that everyone will be excited about it. That's not true. There are folks who are fearful, and for good reason. It’s important not to steamroll those people and give them space and a place to voice their concerns. Sometimes their input can help shape the AI framework.

For both students and teachers, academic integrity far and away is the main concern. But we reminded them that kids were already cheating! Passing notes, sharing answers in the bathroom, copying things off the internet. The cheating isn't new, it's just different. AI is unique because now everyone can get the correct answer, so teachers can focus more on the reasoning behind it rather than just the answer itself. That’s how we want AI used across subjects – focusing on reinforcing key concepts.

Framing is also important for staff. Capitalize on the fact that there is an appetite for doing school differently in light of COVID, and emphasize that AI is a part of that. For example, AI tutors can be a huge accelerator, especially in rural areas who struggle with staffing. Another way for staff to look at AI is as a tool that helps them reclaim time and resources. However, that leads to the question: Once you reclaim that time and capacity, what are you reinvesting in? Make it clear that AI can help staff spend more time on the parts of their job they enjoy, namely working with students or staff. 

How can school leaders ensure that AI complements, rather than competes with, existing tools and resources?

When I speak with students, they emphasize that they want teachers to use AI effectively and consistently. They want to know the boundaries and how to maximize their own learning using AI. They do not want to guess; they want to be taught. That means coaching teachers on when and how to use AI in the classroom. This includes how AI can be incorporated into existing class activities or routines. Students should get used to using AI in a warm-up; for example, that might help them spend less time solving a problem and more time discussing how to solve it.

What are some effective strategies for engaging families when creating an AI policy for schools?

Going back to the idea of creating more digestible resources for staff, teachers are the people who engage with families most, so it’s crucial that they have a strong understanding of the AI policy and can communicate it confidently to parents.

Leaders can also use an AI in schools framework as an opportunity to inform parents about AI and how they can ensure their kids use it safely. One part of the state’s toolkit addresses parents directly as partners in this because AI doesn’t just live in the classroom; kids are bringing it home with them. It includes resources for parents as well as clear definitions because making sure families are receiving consistent information is critical. Our AI Playbooks take that to a very customized level in each district we support.

How are you measuring whether AI is moving the needle for student outcomes and teacher efficiency?

We are finally at a point where we’re seeing how districts use AI within their policy guardrails, and our goal over the next few years is to measure that impact. We aren’t just looking for efficiency, we’re checking whether AI is accelerating learning or, more importantly, freeing up teachers to provide the tailored feedback and human instruction only they can. Success metrics might include whether all students have access to accelerated learning, and whether we've seen an increase in behaviors that could lead to academic integrity issues.