New rule limits phones during the school day, strictest for middle schoolers

What happened

Responding to a 2025 state law, the board wrote its first district-wide cell-phone policy (BP 5138) and agreed on the specific rules at its October 7, 2025 meeting: high schoolers keep phones in a visible spot in the classroom and may use them between classes and at lunch; middle schoolers must keep phones locked away all day, including lunch; K-5 students hand phones to their homeroom teacher for the day. The board moved the policy to a final vote at its November 4, 2025 meeting; collected records do not include that meeting's own minutes, so the final vote itself is not directly confirmed, though nothing later revisits or changes the policy.

Why it matters to families

This changes how every student in the district can use a phone during the school day, and sets a noticeably stricter rule for middle schoolers than for high schoolers.

The evidence

The October 7, 2025 minutes (attached to the November 4, 2025 packet) record the board's discussion and the specific option chosen for each grade band, and the attached BP 5138 policy text spells out the same rules in full.

The source