Buery says a blanket AI ban "without exceptions" is "not the right call"
Richard BueryCEO, Robin Hood Foundation; former NYC Deputy Mayor
Richard Buery, CEO of the Robin Hood Foundation and a former NYC deputy mayor, said a "blanket one-year AI ban, without exceptions, on all uses through middle school" is "not the right call," arguing it may block uses that help students.
“a blanket one-year AI ban, without exceptions, on all uses through middle school... not the right call”
Reporting
Where this statement fits
Should schools pause student-facing AI despite Microsoft’s new privacy safeguards?
Microsoft and the National Academy for AI Instruction signed school-AI privacy and safety standards announced with the AFT and UFT on September 9. Fairplay’s Josh Golin welcomes the privacy improvements but calls for a five-year pause on generative AI in schools. New York City’s September 2 policy illustrates a different approach: pause most direct use through eighth grade while allowing restricted high-school pilots. Kristen Gonzalez and Carmen De La Rosa support the younger-grade ban but urge postponement of the pilots until the tools can be properly assessed.
Source and context
Reporting
About this source
Chalkbeat report including Richard Buery's pushback against NYC's blanket one-year AI ban.
Before the quotation
Commenting on the pause as CEO of the Robin Hood Foundation and a former NYC deputy mayor.
After the quotation
No further public follow-up had been reported as of this writing.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
Buery challenges the premise that a blanket, exception-free ban is the right response, arguing it may block beneficial uses -- disputing the pause's design rather than defending or condemning AI use in schools outright.
- Recorded on
- Published here
- People and groups discussed
- New York City Public Schools
More from this case
Read the full caseCherkin proposes teaching about AI while barring student use
“we will teach our students about AI without using AI.”Read statement
McGrath and Bailey accept younger-child pauses but support controlled pilots
“The impulse to pause is understandable, and appropriate for the youngest students.”Read statement
Tutt and Merrill argue for limits on AI that replaces student practice
“Asking AI to create the summary removes the real work of reorganizing the material from memory.”Read statement
Share or embed this statement
The embed keeps its attribution link to The Dispute Index. Credit the image to The Dispute Index and link to the statement page.
Cite this record
- Publisher
- The Dispute Index
- Title
- Buery says a blanket AI ban "without exceptions" is "not the right call"
- First published
- Last updated
- Permalink
- https://disputeindex.com/events/894-richard-buery-ceo-of-the-robin-hood-foundation
Last updated marks the most recent saved version of this published statement.
The Dispute Index. "Buery says a blanket AI ban "without exceptions" is "not the right call"". First published: 2026-09-17. Last updated: 2026-09-17. https://disputeindex.com/events/894-richard-buery-ceo-of-the-robin-hood-foundation