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Healthier Schools Initiative
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Phone-Free Schools
Community Partners
Phone-Free Schools Initiative
To the NCPS Community,
When researchers, parents, educators, legislators, media, and the community all agree on something, we take notice. That’s just where we find ourselves regarding issues around cell phones in schools.
We’ve been reviewing and revising our policies and procedures district-wide for the past several years. As we continued to learn more, it was essential to gather feedback from parents and faculty, which prompted us to launch the ThoughtExchange in May. We learned quite a bit thanks to over 2,400 respondents providing over 2,100 responses and over 42,000 ratings, and we’re grateful for everyone’s participation and thoughtful feedback. Overall, we confirmed our belief that the vast majority of parents and faculty want a proactive approach to managing cell phones in our schools. As a result, and after careful consideration and significant planning, we are implementing the following for the upcoming school year:
Current School Year 2024-25:
Elementary Schools – will remain phone and device-free according to the student handbooks at each school.
Saxe Intermediate and Middle Schools (grades 5-8)—For the upcoming school year, we’re implementing a “Phone Free Schools” program at Saxe. This initiative will remove access to all personal devices (cell phones, smart watches, etc.) during the school day through a locking pouch system building-wide (grades 5-8), and what we learn from the pilot will inform our next steps district-wide.
New Canaan High School – Students are required to place their cell phones, smartwatches, and listening devices in designated cell phone holders within each classroom. These items must remain in the holder throughout the instructional period. Additionally, students will not be permitted to access these devices if they use the bathroom, visit the nurse, or are called to any of our offices during class.
This is the right idea at the right time for our district, and another example of how we prioritize the value of an idea on behalf of our children above everything else. The ubiquity of cell phones impacts all us in both positive and negative ways. Similarly, teaching our students to be purposeful and responsible users of technology goes beyond the school day, and as part of these efforts we are developing programs for parents and faculty this fall. Along with our many community partners (NC Cares, NC Community Foundation, NC Unplugged, etc.), we are committed to providing the tools that empower everyone to have a healthy relationship with technology. We look forward this journey and to the positive momentum it will take us together.
Message From Superintendent Luizzi
