Georgia Appleseed Launches Seedmore, a First-of-Its-Kind Chatbot Delivering 24/7 Legal Support to Parents
Tuesday, September 23rd, 2025
Georgia Appleseed, a nonprofit law and policy center advancing justice and equality for children, is proud to announce the launch of its free on-demand resource, Seedmore. This groundbreaking tool is designed to provide 24/7 reliable legal information and procedural support for parents navigating school disciplinary processes, as well as questions related to enrollment and children with disabilities. Seedmore delivers access to critical knowledge and tools, empowering parents to advocate effectively for their children.
The chatbot is powered by 2,000+ hours of research conducted by Georgia Appleseed and partner organizations such as Atlanta Legal Aid, reflecting a collective expertise of the state’s top education and legal advocates. The project also benefited from the insights of Georgia Appleseed’s attorney network, including Rachel Reid, head of Eversheds Sutherland’s U.S. artificial intelligence practice, and prominent firms such as Alston & Bird, King & Spalding, Kilpatrick, Jones Day, and others.
In Georgia, nearly 130,000 students are suspended from school each year, often for minor, nonviolent offenses that could be addressed through less punitive measures or more supportive interventions. These disciplinary actions frequently fail to address the root causes of the behavior. As a result, there are steep declines in academic success, with research showing each suspension decreases a child’s chance of graduation by 12%, according to some estimates.
“Seedmore fills an important gap. Parents and caregivers often can’t access legal help for their children–especially when they need that help immediately. This leaves them feeling confused and in a panic,” says Michael Waller, Georgia Appleseed’s executive director. “Traditional legal support is typically available only during business hours, making it difficult for parents–especially those who work during the day or have a limited understanding of their rights–to navigate these complex processes. Seedmore provides information they need and can trust, when they need it, any time, day or night.”
Seedmore is the only widely available chatbot for trauma-informed, document-trained guidance on school disciplinary issues. Currently trained to handle specific conversation flows, Seedmore delivers clear, actionable next steps through various scenarios and offers initial consultation-level support.
Key Features of Seedmore:
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Simple, Accessible Guidance: Designed to communicate at a 6th-grade reading level, Seedmore enables users, regardless of literacy skills, to easily understand potentially complex legal information and educational processes. It pulls exclusively from Georgia Appleseed’s resources, ensuring accuracy, reliability, and localized guidance.
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Privacy Protection: Stores no personal data and does not track identities, referring to children only as "child" or "kid" to maintain privacy.
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Emotionally Intelligent: Seedmore is designed to handle difficult conversations, responding to sensitive, even traumatic, situations with empathetic responses such as, “I’m sorry your child was expelled. That can be very hard on families.”
“This chatbot is a lifeline for parents looking for answers in the moment they need them most,” explains Waller. “It’s designed to help parents understand their rights and the next steps in advocating for their children, without the need for a formal meeting or office hours.”
Seedmore was born out of the undergraduate Emory University course “Building AI Solutions,” taught by David A. Schweidel, Goizueta Chair in Business Technology and Professor of Marketing. The chatbot was developed as part of a semester-long project by Emory University students.
"Working on Seedmore has been one of the most impactful projects of my academic career,” says Penelope Gallardo, a 2025 Emory graduate in computer science and business administration. She first led the Seedmore team during the class project and, after the course ended, continued her leadership with Georgia Appleseed, guiding the chatbot’s development through its launch.
“We were able to create something that directly addresses the challenges parents face, particularly those from marginalized communities, in navigating the school disciplinary process. Knowing our work can empower families makes it all the more rewarding,” says Gallardo.
For more information about Seedmore and to access the chatbot, please visit: www.gaappleseed.org/seedmore.
