A Hingham high schooler was punished for using AI. His family is suing

The parents of a Hingham High senior are suing school officials, alleging their son's civil rights were violated after he was unfairly punished for using artificial intelligence to research and outline a social studies project.

The case raises questions about how schools and students should navigate murky rules around classroom work produced in the age of rapidly changing AI technology.

"AI is prevalent, it's ubiquitous and we need to get with the times," said Peter Farrell, the student's lawyer. "Here, instead of doing that, the student was severely punished and it's impacting his ability to move on with his life."

In a lawsuit filed last month, Farrell wrote Hingham school officials damaged the teen's academic record and chances of admission to an elite college after his teacher accused him of cheating on a team project set to compete in a worldwide youth history contest.

The student used AI to "research" and write an "initial outline" for the project, which focused on the civil rights legacy of basketball player Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the suit states. He and his classmates included citations in their work.

Farrell argued his client violated no official school policy, but was subjected to"pervasive" and "severe" consequences, including a low grade that tarnished his GPA and rejection from the school's National Honors Society.

AI was not prohibited at the time — in neither the student handbook nor the contest rules, the suit says. The student’s teacher, Susan Petrie, also did not bar students from using AI for research purposes.

"The use of AI was not defined as cheating," the lawsuit said. "None of the written materials for the assignment say or mention anything about AI or that the use of AI was prohibited."

A spokesperson for Hingham Public Schools declined to comment, citing the ongoing litigation and concerns for student privacy.

At least seven other students with “academic integrity infractions” were permitted to join the National Honor Society, the suit said. After its filing, Farrell said the student, a varsity athlete with a GPA above 4.0, was ultimately inducted into the group.

History Department Head Andrew Hoey ordered the students to each complete a new and separate project, the suit said.

"This is not meant to be punitive," Hoey said, according to the suit. "It's a teachable moment."

The student at the center of the lawsuit ultimately received a "D" grade on his second attempt at the project.

Farrell said the suit aims to force school officials to "correct" the student's academic record by changing his grade and removing any mention of academic integrity infractions.

With reporting from WBUR's Josie Guarino