District narrows AI tools for classroom pilots; cybersecurity and model transparency weighed

The Haverford Township School District’s AI working group reported initial results of a vendor evaluation at the April 9 work session and said staff will return with recommendations after further review.

Director of Technology Mr. Anderson said the group solicited demos, asked teachers and instructional technology mentors to complete rubrics, and used CoSN cybersecurity surveys to evaluate vendor practices. The review considered ethical‑use and transparency criteria, including vendor‑provided model cards describing data handling and bias mitigation. Anderson said some vendors keep district data isolated and do not use it to train public models; others rely on third‑party models rather than proprietary model training.

Trustees asked for the evaluation rubric and vendor responses (model cards and cybersecurity survey results) to be included with the forthcoming recommendation. Staff noted one product (Brisk) already has broad internal uptake at the high school and that the group will return to the board with a more thorough comparative presentation and a recommended path for staff training and controlled pilot deployment.

Next steps: administration will provide the rubrics, cybersecurity summaries and vendor model cards at the next meeting and outline proposed pilot phases and staff training timelines.