Utah students to have a say in AI school policies around the state

14 Sep 2026, 15:47 by Kennedy Camarena ksl · KSL.com

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Utah students in grades 10-12 could influence AI school policies through an essay contest.
Winners receive cash prizes and represent their state Senate districts at the Utah Student AI Policy Congress.
AI policy recommendations will be debated at the Utah Capitol in November.

SALT LAKE CITY — Utah students in grades 10 through 12 have been given the chance to share their voices and help determine how artificial intelligence is used within their schools.

"Shaping Utah's AI Future" is an essay contest open to students in public schools, private schools, microschools and even home schools throughout the state. The contest asks each student to write a 1,000 to 1,500 word essay proposing AI policy recommendations for junior high and high schools, without the help of AI.

With AI now easily accessible to many students, Sutherland Institute President and CEO Todd Weiler said AI likely has a place in the classroom, but it's difficult to know where to start.

"AI has kind of popped up on all of us, and we're all trying to figure out how we use it and what guardrails we should have around it," Weiler said.

That's where students come in to help.

Students who win a place in the contest will receive $1,000 for first place, $500 for second and $250 for third place. In addition, 29 student delegates will be selected to represent each state Senate district at a "Utah Student AI Policy Congress," which is set to be held at the Utah Capitol on Nov. 20 and 21.

"They have the opportunity to come to the Capitol and actually debate these ideas and maybe adopt a resolution from this student. ... Congress, if you will, as suggestions to the Legislature and the school boards."

After chosen students debate on the proposed AI policy recommendations, a final resolution will be presented to state lawmakers.

"The strongest essays will answer question at the heart of the debate over AI: Who decides?" a Sutherland Institute newsletter states. "These essays will also address whether decisions about AI policy should be made at the state, Senate district, school or classroom level, as well as how much discretion individual teachers should retain."

Other areas to address in the submitted essay included:

Instructional use and teacher discretion: Who should decide when and how AI is used for teaching and learning?
Student use and academic integrity: When should student AI use be permitted, expected, disclosed, or prohibited?
Privacy and safety: What safeguards should apply to student data and AI-generated content?
Decisions about students: When should AI influence decisions affecting individual students, and what human oversight should be required?
Equity and preparation: How should schools balance equitable access to AI with preparing students for life after graduation?
Tools and governance: Who should approve AI systems, under what standards, and at what level of government?

Students who wish to apply to the contest have until Oct. 1 to submit their essays. Cash-prize winners and the 29 Senate district delegates will be announced on Oct. 15.

"We're just really excited to see what the students come up with," Weiler said.

The Key Takeaways for this article were generated with the assistance of large language models and reviewed by our editorial team. The article, itself, is solely human-written.

Utah students to have a say in AI school policies around the state

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