A college engineering instructor who lives in Hinsdale is urging District 86 to slow down its planned AI tutoring partnership with NVIDIA and StudyFetch, citing research showing the technology can actually make students perform worse on tests they take without AI assistance.
Anthony Parolari published a letter in The Hinsdalean on Wednesday, July 29, laying out data points that may give Hinsdale Central or Hinsdale South parents pause. Failure rates in entry-level computer science at UC Berkeley jumped from 10 percent to 35 percent, partly attributed to AI use. At Brown University, students averaged 96 percent on a take-home midterm but just 48 percent on the in-person final. And in a 2025 study, high schoolers using AI tutoring scored better on practice problems but worse on unassisted tests than classmates who never had AI access at all.
"D86's challenge isn't whether to adopt AI, but how: teaching students to use it as a tool without letting it erode human agency, student-teacher and peer connection, discernment and creativity," Parolari wrote.
The warning lands as the pilot remains stalled.
District 86 formed a committee to explore an NVIDIA partnership in February, and the AI Taskforce appeared as a discussion item at the June 25 board meeting. But the holdup is a data privacy agreement, and the district has said the pilot could return to the board in late summer or early fall once data security, cost, and evaluation questions are resolved, according to district budget documents presented at that meeting.
The platform in question is called Honen, built by Beverly Hills-based StudyFetch and launched in March 2026. It uses AI to generate courses from uploaded materials, pairs each student with an AI tutor that adapts to their pace, and supports voice-based interactions. No money is changing hands in the proposed deal, Board President Catherine Greenspon said at the June 25 meeting, according to Patch. She called it "a huge opportunity" that would make District 86 the first to offer NVIDIA tools at the high school level.
Board member Baron Leacock called the pilot "a home run" at the same meeting. Board member Jeff Waters said the district needs to communicate "aggressively" to counter what he described as misinformation on social media about a bidding process.
Not everyone shares that enthusiasm. Former board member Kay Gallo filed a complaint with the Illinois Attorney General's office in April, alleging the board violated the Open Meetings Act when it created the NVIDIA committee in February without adequate public notice. The attorney general's office confirmed it is investigating. No resolution has been reported.
Parolari's letter does not call for killing the pilot. He argues students should learn new technologies to remain competitive but says the district should seek community input and be cautious about adopting the tech industry's vision for classroom AI. He wrote that higher education is already pivoting to skills AI cannot replicate: creativity, moral discernment, and ownership of one's work.
The timing adds urgency. District 86's school year begins Wednesday, August 12, and new Superintendent Dr. Chip Pettit, who started July 1, will be navigating the decision alongside new Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum Dr. Josh McMahon and new Chief Information Officer Michael Swanson. The next regular board meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, August 25.
Hinsdale education week ahead
- Wednesday, Aug. 12 — First day of school, District 86 (Hinsdale Central and Hinsdale South)
- Tuesday, Aug. 25 — District 86 Board of Education regular meeting. Public comment is typically on the agenda; check the district website for sign-up details.
