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The Fairfax County School Board approved a series of technology restrictions and reviews July 16, including a prohibition on generative artificial intelligence for elementary students and a ban on FCPS-issued laptops and tablets for pre-K and kindergarten students, with limited exceptions.
Elementary students may not use generative AI until the board adopts a formal policy. The restriction is expected to remain in effect while the Educational Technology Review Committee considers the issue. An earlier proposal would have prohibited generative AI use by secondary students, but the final measure instead established guardrails for older students.
Superintendent Michelle Reid must provide an inventory by Jan. 14, 2027, of generative AI tools and solutions on FCPS-issued laptops and tablets, using the definition of artificial intelligence developed by FCPS staff.
The board unanimously prohibited pre-K and kindergarten students from using FCPS-issued tablets or laptops pending recommendations from the Educational Technology Review Committee. The restriction does not apply when device use is required by an Individualized Education Program, a Section 504 plan, translation services or multilingual education support.
The board also directed FCPS to develop a plan for storing issued devices when they are not in use. That motion passed unanimously except for an abstention by at-large member Ilryong Moon.
Other approved measures addressed students’ personal technology. The board prohibited the use of personal laptops, tablets, smartwatches and smartphones for school-related activities during instructional periods, while exempting students whose IEP or Section 504 plan requires or permits a device as an accommodation. Principals may grant limited exceptions for specialized classes that require technology or software unavailable on standard FCPS-issued devices.
The duration of the personal-device restriction was described in different ways in the supplied account, including “instructional time” and the broader “instructional day.” The adopted motion or policy text will be needed to resolve that distinction.
Board members cited different concerns and practical questions. Mount Vernon District representative Mateo Dunne said, “Our students should not be an ungoverned test case while we try to figure out what is already in their hands.”
Chair Robyn Lady questioned how schools would distinguish prohibited AI assistance from ordinary software features. “But I don’t know what that means, because if a kid is writing a paper in Word, how do you turn off spell check? How do you turn off grammar check?” she said.
The board unanimously directed the Educational Technology Review Committee to evaluate whether FCPS should block students’ direct access to YouTube through network-level filters while continuing to allow teacher-embedded videos within approved educational platforms.
FCPS will also pilot whitelist-style internet filtering at six schools: two elementary schools, two middle schools and two high schools. The system would limit access to pre-approved apps, extensions and websites, while allowing staff to add necessary resources manually. Reid is expected to present the pilot plan to the board in December.
By a 6-3 vote, the board directed Reid to report by Dec. 10, 2026, on the feasibility of allowing students with documented medical or developmental needs to opt out of FCPS-issued laptops and tablets.
The Educational Technology Review Committee was created in spring 2026 in response to parental concerns about FCPS’s reliance on technology. The debate also followed FCPS’s fall 2025 announcement of a partnership with OpenAI for a ChatGPT for Teachers pilot.