Results from a recent survey of 200 National School Public Relations Association (NSPRA) members from K-12 districts nationwide found that artificial intelligence (AI) tools are rapidly transforming how school districts connect with their communities, and details how these tools are being used and what policies, if any, are in place to guide them.
The survey found that while 91 percent of respondents say they are already using AI tools in their communications work, 69 percent report that their districts do not have a formal policy addressing employee AI use, and 61 percent do not disclose their use of AI in official communications — an action considered a best practice when establishing trust among stakeholders.
Almost all participants reported using AI tools in their work — just 1 percent reporting not using any AI. Generative AI tools (those that create text, images or video from prompts) are the most popular, followed by assistive AI (tools that help reword sentences or improve accessibility), conversational AI (tools that power chat-bots or voice assistants) and automation/workflow AI tools (tools that automate scheduling, email responses or reminders).
Other less common tools that respondents reported using include the use of predictive AI (tools that forecast enrollment or engagement based on data trends) and computer vision (tools that analyze images or video, like facial recognition)
Most participants, 70 percent, use AI daily, while 27 percent reported weekly use. Those serving in the role of director of communications, public information or community relations show the strongest AI tool usage in their work — almost 59 percent use all six types of AI tools and 72 percent use AI tools daily.
Despite these findings, 69 percent of participants said their districts have no formal AI policies; 64 percent reported receiving no training on the ethical use of AI from their districts; and 61 percent said their districts do not disclose their use of AI in school communications.
“As AI becomes more embedded in district workflows, the need for clear, districtwide policies to guide responsible use has become increasingly urgent,” researchers stated. “While many school districts have taken steps to guide the use of AI in the classroom, most have not extended that same level of oversight to central office operations. This has left school communications professionals navigating AI adoption without consistent guidance on when, how, or why to use these tools in their work.”
Gaps in policy, training and more
The thoughtful development and implementation of formal policies is crucial to establishing better practices. Participants from districts with a formal board policy on AI, informal guidance or even guidance as part of another policy “were significantly more likely to indicate that their districts provided ethics training, involved stakeholders in discussions around AI use, and disclosed their use of AI,” according to the report.
NSPRA members who responded to the survey outlined both pros and cons to AI use. Official policies play an important role in helping to mitigate the impacts of some of the cons, which included the risk of losing authenticity/trustworthiness among the school community, sharing inaccurate information, developing an overreliance on AI and ethical implications related to plagiarism, data security and privacy.
“While school communications professionals are rapidly adopting the use of AI tools, there’s a significant gap in district-level policies and training. This leaves many navigating AI use in uncharted waters, often bearing the responsibility for data privacy and ethical considerations themselves,” the report concludes. “Ultimately, empowering school communicators with comprehensive AI policies and training isn’t just about managing risk; it’s about unlocking AI’s transformative potential to build stronger, more engaged school communities. By addressing these critical areas, districts can ensure that school PR strategies are innovative, ethical, secure, and truly effective for everyone.”
