New York City principals are heading into the September 10 first day of school unable to renew subscriptions for electronic gradebooks, family communication platforms, and other routine software after a purchasing freeze ordered by Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels in July has stretched into late August with no end date. The freeze, tied to the Education Department’s unfinished artificial intelligence policy, is now colliding with back-to-school preparations across the nation’s largest public school system.
Key Takeaways
- Chancellor Kamar Samuels ordered a moratorium on all new educational software purchases in early July while the Education Department develops AI and screen-time guidelines.
- At least four administrators confirmed they cannot renew annual subscriptions for electronic gradebooks, digital hall passes, and family communication tools ahead of the September 10 start date.
- The freeze also blocked at least one school from ordering i-Ready, a reading and math intervention platform used to support students who need additional academic help.
- The policy delay traces back to a draft AI framework released in March 2026 that drew nearly 6,500 public comments and fueled months of protests from parents, educators, and elected officials.
- The Education Department has not released final guidance, has not responded to press inquiries about a timeline, and has not lifted the freeze.
- The system serves approximately 900,000 students across roughly 1,600 schools in all five boroughs.
Principals Say Routine Renewals Are Stuck in Limbo
The freeze is not targeting experimental AI products or untested software. School leaders say it has caught routine tools in its net, including programs that have been in use for years and have no AI component. Electronic gradebooks, which teachers rely on to track and report student performance, require annual purchase orders that principals typically process over the summer. Those orders are now stalled.
One Brooklyn high school principal, speaking anonymously to avoid reprisal from the Education Department, told Chalkbeat New York that the uncertainty has created operational problems with no clear resolution. The principal noted that two weeks before the start of school, administrators still did not know what software they would be allowed to have when students arrived.
A second high school principal echoed those concerns, saying the freeze raised questions about the basic operation of the school. Beyond gradebooks, administrators reported being unable to renew subscriptions for digital hall pass systems and platforms that teachers use to communicate directly with families about attendance, assignments, and student progress.
At least one school was also blocked from purchasing i-Ready, a widely used educational technology platform designed to provide individualized reading and math instruction for students who need additional support. The Education Department separately provides schools with access to i-Ready for required student assessments, but individual school licenses for the intervention tools fall under the freeze.
The Freeze Stems From a Six-Month AI Policy Standoff
The purchasing moratorium did not emerge in isolation. It is the latest development in a policy standoff that began in March 2026, when the Education Department released a preliminary set of AI guidelines for public schools. The draft framework was intended to establish rules for how AI tools could be used in classrooms, but it instead ignited a backlash from parents who argued the guidelines did not go far enough to limit the technology, particularly for younger students.
The Education Department received nearly 6,500 public comments on the draft. In May, more than 100 speakers testified during a nearly seven-hour meeting of the Panel for Educational Policy, the governing body that oversees contracts and policy for the school system. Parents, students, and educators argued that the department was approving AI-related contracts and rolling out tools without adequate vetting, transparency, or understanding of the technology’s effects on learning and student privacy.
The backlash extended beyond the policy itself. A proposal for a new AI-focused selective high school in lower Manhattan, called Next Generation Technology High School, became a flashpoint. The school was planned as a replacement for the Urban Assembly School of Business for Young Women near Bowling Green. Opponents labeled it “the AI school” and organized against it on grounds that the city lacked a clear framework for the technology it was proposing to build a curriculum around. The Education Department withdrew the proposal in late April after Panel for Educational Policy Chair Gregory Faulkner raised concerns about its selective admissions process.
Chancellor Samuels acknowledged in late May that the initial policy had missed the mark and signaled that the final guidance would include stronger guardrails. At a June City Council hearing focused on AI in schools, First Deputy Chancellor Danielle Giunta said the final policy would be released over the summer. That deadline has also passed without a public release.
The Broader Policy Vacuum Predates the Mamdani Administration
The Education Department’s inconsistent approach to AI in schools extends back before Mayor Zohran Mamdani took office in January 2026. When ChatGPT gained widespread public attention in early 2023, the department blocked access to the tool in schools almost immediately. Three months later, under former Chancellor David Banks, the department reversed the ban. Banks grew increasingly supportive of AI, publicly stating the technology could be used for college advising, student work assessment, and operational functions. However, Banks never released a comprehensive AI policy, leaving that task for the new administration.
Meanwhile, a December 2024 data breach at PowerSchool, a major education technology vendor, exposed student and educator information across multiple school districts nationally. A state comptroller audit also identified gaps in student data privacy protections within New York City’s school system. Those events added fuel to the concerns parents and advocacy groups were already raising about the department’s ability to manage educational technology safely.
The Panel for Educational Policy responded by forming a technology and artificial intelligence task force, co-led by panel member Naveed Hassan. Hassan had previously voted against greenlighting ed-tech contracts on the grounds that approving them before a policy existed was premature. The Coalition for an AI Moratorium, a parent-led advocacy group, has continued to press for a full halt on AI adoption until the city can demonstrate adequate safeguards.
Education Technology Experts Warn the Timing Creates Classroom Risk
Tom Liam Lynch, an education technology expert who previously worked on digital learning strategy for the Education Department, told Chalkbeat the city was behind schedule in developing a clear digital learning framework. Lynch noted that principals typically plan their technology needs well in advance of September, and that releasing guidance this close to the first day of school could force schools into last-minute decisions that undermine instructional quality.
Lynch’s concern centers on the gap between policy caution and operational reality. Schools that relied on software for daily functions, from tracking attendance to providing intervention support in literacy and math, are now being asked to operate without those tools while the department works out its position on a technology category that may not apply to the tools in question.
Chancellor Samuels initially indicated that software required for mandated services or essential school opening needs would be exempt from the freeze. However, multiple principals told Chalkbeat they submitted exemption requests and had not received responses. The Education Department spokesperson did not respond to questions about the timeline for releasing final AI guidance or for lifting the purchasing freeze.
September 10 Approaches With No Resolution in Sight
The September 10 start date for the 2026-2027 school year is later than usual. Parents have already voiced frustration about the delayed opening and the childcare gaps it creates in early September. The software freeze adds a layer of uncertainty for school staff who are using the final weeks of August to prepare classrooms, finalize curricula, and set up the digital infrastructure that supports daily school operations.
For a system that serves approximately 900,000 students across roughly 1,600 schools, employs more than 130,000 staff members, and operates on a budget exceeding $38 billion, the inability to process routine software renewals represents a logistical challenge that scales quickly. Every school that loses access to a gradebook or a communication platform on September 10 will need a workaround, and the department has not indicated what those workarounds should look like.
FAQs
Why Did the NYC Education Department Freeze Software Purchases?
Chancellor Kamar Samuels ordered the freeze in early July 2026 to give the department time to finalize AI and screen-time guidelines for schools. The freeze applies broadly to educational software purchases, not only to AI-specific tools.
When Does the 2026-2027 NYC School Year Begin?
The first day of school for New York City public school students is September 10, 2026, a later start date than in previous years.
What Software Are Schools Unable to Access?
Principals have reported being blocked from renewing electronic gradebooks, digital hall pass systems, family communication platforms, and intervention tools like i-Ready that support students in reading and math.
Has the Education Department Said When the Freeze Will End?
The department has not provided a public timeline for lifting the freeze or releasing the final AI policy. A spokesperson did not respond to press inquiries about either date.
