Phones away all day: board adopts student device rules

What happened

On December 10, 2025 the board voted 4-0 to adopt Policy 5031, which stops students using phones, tablets and smartwatches for the whole school day while they are on school grounds. The policy counts homeroom, lunch, recess, study halls and time between classes as part of the school day, so there is no point in the day when a phone can come out on its own. Elementary students keep phones in cubbies or backpacks and middle schoolers in lockers or backpacks. At Horace Greeley High School phones go in a classroom pouch or a district-issued pouch, and the earlier wording that let students keep a phone in a backpack, coat or pocket was taken out. High school students may still bring a laptop or tablet for schoolwork, and may use a phone only when a teacher gives explicit permission. The rules took effect on or before January 15, 2026.

Why it matters to families

This changes every school day for every student in the district, and it changes how parents reach their child during the day: instead of texting, families are told to phone or email the principal, assistant principal, counsellor, psychologist, social worker, nurse or administrative assistant. The policy keeps the exceptions written into New York Education Law section 2803 - managing a health condition, an emergency, translation, a case-by-case approval such as a student caring for a family member, and anything required by law - and a device required by a student's IEP or 504 plan is not restricted. A student cannot be suspended just for breaking this rule.

The evidence

The approved December 10, 2025 minutes record item 3.3, the second reading and adoption of Policy 5031, moved by Matt Auerbach, seconded by Allison Steinbauer, carried 4-0. The policy text on the district's policy page states it was adopted June 17, 2025, revised December 10, 2025 and effective on or before January 15, 2026, and sets out the storage rules, the Horace Greeley High School procedures and the statutory exceptions. The November 12, 2025 meeting recording captures the administration explaining that it chose unlockable district-issued pouches rather than locking pouches and would gather feedback from high school parents, staff and students first; that part is from auto-generated captions, not from minutes.

The source