Limestone County Board of Education members voted unanimously Monday to adopt a wireless communication device policy, including provisions for searching students' wireless devices.
The FOCUS Act, which stands for Freeing our Classrooms of Unnecessary Screens for Safety, bans students beginning this coming school year from using, operating or possessing a wireless communication device in public K-12 schools during the instructional day. The law is subject to certain exceptions, such as students who need them in conjunction with a medical device. School districts across the state are setting up policies this summer to comply with the FOCUS Act.
Prior to the Focus Act, many schools allowed students to have phones on their person as long as they were not using them during the instructional day.
The new Limestone policy outlines what the instructional day is, then it specifies that wireless communication devices include cellphones, tablet computers, laptop computers, pagers, gaming devices, smartwatches, earphones and headphones.
"We will do policy first and then work on procedures," Limestone Superintendent Randy Shearouse said after the meeting. He said the penalties for violating the policy have not been determined and will come up at the next meeting.
The new rules say students are allowed to bring wireless communication devices into school buildings and onto school grounds, subject to limitations. They say that during the instructional day, students who possess a wireless communication device on any campus or school must turn the wireless communication device off and store it off their person in a locker, car or other location as authorized by the superintendent.
The new rules say students cannot use, operate or possess a wireless communication device during the instructional day except under the following limited circumstances:
- If it is included in their individualized education plan, 504 plan or individual health plan.
- If it is for education or learning purposes under the supervision of school personnel.
- If it is during an emergency threatening the life or safety of the student or another person.
Shearouse said the previous cellphone rules in his district were less restrictive than the state ban. Under the previous Limestone policy, which had been in place for two years, students could have cellphones in their possession, but they could not use them except after school hours.
"They could not have them out in class or out in the building or halls or anything like that unless a teacher allowed them to in class for some instructional exercise," he said. "That's kind of what we've been living by. Our students have been very appreciative of that and have stated that more conversations were happening at lunch because everyone is not on their cellphones looking at them."
Shearouse has heard some concerns about the state ban from parents.
"A lot of parents feel good about (students) having them on them in case an emergency happens," Shearouse said.
Shearouse said clarification from the Governor's Office has opened the possibility that just using a backpack to store the devices is adequate.
"We still have to come up with some student handbook rules on how we are going to enforce this," Shearouse said. "There has been a lot of discussion at several different levels about this."
Board member Warren Herring said during the meeting he understood the state law to mean students cannot have electronic devices in the building.
Shearouse clarified that to say the phones could still be used for instruction and that students can have devices but they have to be turned off and be held off of their person.
"So, devices can still be there but they are limited as to how they can use those devices," Shearouse told the board. "We are not doing away with every piece of technology that is in place. It is mostly targeting cellphones and smartwatches."
Board member Anthony Hilliard said before the meeting that restricting cellphones only works if smartwatches are also restricted. The smartwatches available today are like cellphones in that they have access to internet, text messages and can make calls. Therefore it is necessary to control those as well, he said.
Under the new policy, students must also consent to possible searches of their devices. The rules say school officials may read, examine or inspect the contents of any wireless communication device "upon reasonable suspicion that the device contains evidence of a violation of law, Board policy, the Code of Conduct, or other school rules, provided that the nature and extent of such reading, examination, or inspection shall be reasonably related and limited to the suspected violation."
Shearouse said some schools in the state may opt for a device called a Yondr pouch for phone storage, which is a lockable, magnetic pouch designed to create phone-free spaces. Students could keep the pouch with them, but their phones are locked inside, preventing usage until the end of the designated period.
Shearouse didn't think Limestone schools needed to resort to this to meet the state law. Yondr pouches cost about $30 each.
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