In late July, 98 high school students from all 50 states gathered in a replica U.S. Senate chamber in Boston and passed a model bill to govern artificial intelligence in K-12 schools. Their Students First Act, approved 82-16, proposes concrete rules for student and teacher AI use, filling a policy vacuum that has left states and districts scrambling to craft their own regulations.
"We missed the mark with social media and phones," said Hunter Wurzel, a high school senior from Ohio. "That's been a huge talking point already [this weekend], is how we failed to implement those things into education and teach the youth how to use them."
What the Students First Act requires
The student senators, handpicked by school leaders and hosted by the Edward M. Kennedy Institute, AASA, and the Day of AI nonprofit, spent the weekend debating dozens of proposals before landing on a bill with clear guardrails. Its key provisions include:
- States must provide AI literacy instruction as soon as students get access to classroom devices.
- AI use is banned on all graded tests.
- Teachers can require an oral defense of any project from a student suspected of using AI inappropriately.
- Students may use AI for editing, brainstorming, and studying after eighth grade, but not for writing assignments.
- Every teacher must post a written AI usage policy each semester explaining when AI is allowed.
- When a school chatbot detects a student seeking emotional support, it must alert school officials rather than fulfill the request.
The debate: When should AI be introduced?
One of the most contentious issues was deciding when students should first encounter AI in the classroom. Lucia Herrera, a Missouri high schooler, objected to an early draft that did not require proficiency before use. "It's basically saying they can use it whenever. Which I think is a misuse of it," she said.
The subcommittee's solution required schools to teach AI literacy - covering misinformation, plagiarism, bias, privacy, and environmental impact - as soon as devices are introduced. But Om Lala of California pushed back, arguing that "teachers already are pretty under-resourced." The students ultimately agreed to include a requirement for federal funding to support the mandate.
Rules for educators and parents
The bill also sets expectations for adults. Teachers may use AI for lesson planning, feedback, and creating practice materials. If an AI detector flags a student paper, "teachers must personally investigate the issue before reporting the student to admin."
The parent section sparked debate over how much control families should have. An early version gave parents a full veto over their child's AI access, but many senators argued that would limit students whose parents don't understand the technology. "Giving [parents] the complete say … is gonna limit [students] because a lot of [adults] don't even know what AI is themselves," said Tatiyana Reaves of North Carolina. The final language encourages parents to promote balanced tech habits and ethical academic behavior at home.
On the emotional support chatbot provision, Dylan Dornack of Iowa made a decisive case for alerting adults when a student is in crisis. "This could be lifesaving," he said. "Whether or not that student is fearful that they might get outed. This is just one of those things that has to be taken to trusted adults."
The vote and next steps
After last-minute negotiations smoothed out inconsistencies, the bill passed overwhelmingly. "This is for our future - not just for education but for the workforce we will join, the economy that we will build and the communities we will lead," said Kendall Terao-Toma of Hawaii.
The Students First Act is not law, but AASA plans to send the text to its 10,000 school leader members, many of whom are now crafting their own AI rules without federal guidance. "The adults themselves haven't been able to come to consensus on this," said Jeffrey Riley, executive director of Day of AI and former Massachusetts education commissioner. "Let them lead the way."
Why this matters for education and government
The weekend's exercise showed that students want clear, enforceable AI policies - and that they can reach agreement faster than the adults who currently hold the pen. For school superintendents, state education officials, and policymakers, the bill offers a ready-made starting point for local AI rules. It also underscores the urgency of building AI literacy among educators themselves, a need that targeted professional development can address. The work of 98 teenagers in a replica Senate chamber may end up influencing real classrooms sooner than any congressional action.
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