Traverse City Area Public Schools (TCAPS) is one of just 10 school districts nationwide chosen as part of a first-of-its-kind grant program intended to support safe, responsible policies around the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the classroom.

The grant comes from the EDSAFE AI Alliance, a global initiative launched in 2020 by InnovateEDU and aimed at “developing a safer, more secure, and more trusted AI education ecosystem through a focus on research, policy, and practice.”

“While many educational institutions may have AI policy drafts, most lack the internal capacity to operationalize them,” a press release about the grants notes. EDSAFE has established an “AI Spark Fund” to help districts bridge the gap “between high-level policy and everyday practice.” Per the release, the Spark Fund “goes beyond traditional cash grants by matching awardees directly with the EDSAFE AI Alliance’s network of vetted Technical Assistance partners,” who will provide districts like TCAPS with “direct, hands-on support to help leaders address specific ‘problems of practice’” around AI and AI policies in schools.

“Writing an AI policy is only the starting line. The real challenge is turning those high-level frameworks into daily classroom practice,” Erin Mote, CEO of InnovateEDU, said of the Spark Fund grants. “We aren’t just giving education leaders guidance and wishing them luck. We are placing expert teams alongside them to ensure that AI governance is human-centered, rigorous, and actionable, and above all anchored in protecting the safety and well-being of young people.”

This week’s announcement marks the first-ever cohort of Spark Fund grantees, spanning “a diverse cross-section of educational leadership across the nation, ranging from urban charter networks and virtual schools to large county systems and suburban districts.” TCAPS is one of those districts.

As grantees work “to tackle critical AI implementation challenges” – including challenges around student data privacy, staff AI literacy, and academic integrity – EDSAFE will both lend a helping hand and document “lessons learned and model practices” to share across its national network. Those findings will then “help inform policy and practice for school systems nationwide,” the release states.