BETHALTO - During their regular meeting on Aug. 28, 2025, the Bethalto Community Unit School District #8 Board of Education voted to table two items regarding the use of AI and the implementation of Constitution Day.
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Both items were spearheaded by Board member Dallas Zimmerman, who explained that he wants to see “responsible AI use” by the school district, starting with Board operations. He proposed using AI to record, transcribe and summarize Board meetings.
“It’s just about good governance,” Zimmerman said. “Board members are charged with ensuring the efficiency and the accountability and the transparency of our district operations, and adopting AI for Board use is a step forward in that.”
Director of Teaching and Learning Dr. Alyssa Smith added that the district put out a survey to the district community to create a committee to build an AI policy. This committee includes Board members, union leaders, and other teachers and administrators. Smith said the committee plans to come to the Board in January or February with a recommendation for the Board to approve an AI policy.
A few community members at the meeting asked for clarification. Parents and teachers asked if the Board was voting on plans to implement AI technology for Board operations or district-wide operations.
Zimmerman responded that the technology would initially be used for Board operations, and the committee will go on to come up with a policy for AI use in district-wide operations.
“We do need policy. We have to start with policy. I think that’s where the direction of the committee is going initially,” explained Superintendent Dr. Jill Griffin. “We can only implement at the Board level right now and then collaboratively discuss any future implementation with classrooms, with teachers, with secretaries and different groups, and that’s a collaborative conversation that is with everyone having a seat at the table. I can’t speak for Dallas’s vision of it, but I can tell you that’s my vision.”
The district’s two unions — Bethalto Education Association (BEA) and the Bethalto Educational Support Personnel Association (BESPA) — were both represented at the meeting. Union members raised concerns about privacy and protecting personnel information if using AI recording technology.
Other community members asked what specific technology the Board would be using. Zimmerman said he is most familiar with Microsoft Copilot, but the intention is to explore the options.
Griffin read the formal Board proposal, which addressed the creation of an AI policy committee and the possibilities of using AI to “improve learning tools for students and reduce staff workload.” A few community members raised concerns that this resolution addressed items that were not clear on the Board agenda.
“The BEA does not support that resolution,” said Rachel Catanzaro, BEA president. “Bottom line, what is said on here is AI for assistance with Board operations. That’s completely different.”
Michelle Osborne, representing BESPA, added that they feel the same.
The Board ultimately unanimously voted to table the resolution to approve artificial intelligence for assistance with Board operations.
Discussion about the Constitution Day resolution followed. Zimmerman explained that federal law requires federally-funded schools to observe Constitution Day on or around Sept. 17 every year. He advocated for age-appropriate instruction regarding the U.S. Constitution.
“The reason for the Constitution Day resolution is because I believe it speaks both to our legal duty and our community’s values,” Zimmerman said. “This day is not only for commemoration of our nation’s founding principles, but also an opportunity for schools and communities to reflect on the rights and responsibilities of liberty and citizenship.”
Civic Memorial High School Principal Justin Newell asked what instruction the Board wants to implement. He noted that the high school social studies curriculum covers the Constitution in depth.
“The Constitution is not what we feel is a one-time lesson,” he added. “We try to intertwine it in our curriculum as much as we can…Before moving forward with it, I think I just want to understand the direction of the Board. What outcomes do we want to see that may be different from what we’re doing? Where do we want to see it go so that we can execute that properly?”
Zimmerman said he could see an assembly with a 40-minute presentation about the Constitution held on Sept. 17 at the high school level, for example. But he emphasized that the specific instruction would be up to educators and administrators.
He said the Constitution Day resolution would be a “complement” to what the schools already cover on the Constitution. He wants to “affirm and support” what teachers are already doing.
Board member Sharon Rothe voiced concerns that teachers and administrators “need to have the latitude to do what they want to do on Constitution Day” without Board instruction.
Smith said the district is currently meeting the Illinois mandate to receive federal funding. Griffin clarified that it is not likely the district would lose its federal funding.
“My suggestion and conversations that I’ve had with the Board is that we don’t need a resolution for this,” Smith said. “We already are bound by a state mandate. But again, that’s the Board’s decision.”
As more community members voiced concerns, the Board voted unanimously to table the Constitution Day resolution.
