Hinsdale D86 Pauses Possible Nvidia Partnership Amid Criticism

DARIEN, IL – Hinsdale High School District 86 is hitting pause on a possible relationship with a top tech company to use AI in the classroom.

At Tuesday's school board meeting, a resident questioned why the board president appeared to take charge of the initiative, rather than the administration.

Meanwhile, a top administration official defended the effort.

Last month, the board heard from two Nvidia executives about a partnership. Afterward, the board set up a working group with Nvidia.

But at Tuesday's meeting, board President Catherine Greenspon said the board was postponing the group's meetings until incoming Superintendent Chip Pettit and other officials start in July.

A memo from the Nvidia working group also cited the administration's heavy workload in the coming months as the reason for the delay.

However, resident Roberta Packer said the explanation was disingenuous.

"Maybe you should think first about your administrators, your teachers, the students and even the community, instead of thinking how to save face when things get uncomfortable due to your own missteps," Packer said.

She said Greenspon brought forth Nvidia after speaking with its executives a couple of times without involving the administration. She said the new superintendent should be allowed to analyze the district's needs without the board making other plans for him.

"Forget for a moment that this is AI. Can a single board member bring forth a landscaping company, get it on the agenda and move to create a working group to figure out how we would use their services?" Packer said during public comments. "It doesn't sound right to me."

However, Keith Bockwoldt, the district's chief information officer, argued that the district was right to explore an arrangement with Nvidia.

"There are not many times when you have a company that is a leader in AI or anything that comes to us and asks, 'Do you want to be part of this pilot program?'" Bockwold said. "We have an opportunity for workforce development for our kids."

Board member Jeff Waters said he wanted to clarify that the district was tabling the working group because Nvidia had not crafted its platform yet. Bockwoldt told him he was right.

Meanwhile, member Liz Mitha acknowledged she was wary of AI.

"Slow and steady wins the race on this one," she said. "I'd rather do it right than look back and say, 'Oh my gosh, we did this in such a hustle, we did it incorrectly.'"

Greenspon said the district had not received a proposal from Nvidia.

One of the Nvidia executives is Michael Isadore, a Hinsdale resident.

Last month, Greenspon said the Nvidia opportunity was brought forward by Hinsdale's village president, Greg Hart.