“I know our young people succeed when they’re learning and growing, not clicking and scrolling — and that’s why New York continues to lead the nation on protecting our kids in the digital age.”
– Governor Hochul
For the upcoming 2025-2026 school year, New York State will join 25 other states (Arizona, Alabama, Arkansas, California, Ohio, Oregon, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Nebraska, Nevada, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, Texas, Utah, Vermont, and West Virginia) in its ban of cellphones in classrooms.
What are the policies being implemented?
According to Governor Hochul, cell phones or any personal devices that can connect to the internet (such as Macbooks) are no longer permitted in schools following a “bell-to-bell” schedule. This would mean that students must store away all devices either in lockers, locked bins, and pouches as per the school’s guidelines. While it is a statewide requirement to lock away students’ devices, it is ultimately up to the school districts’ administrators as to how they would like to go about creating a plan for smartphone storage.
What is the purpose / objective of this initiative?
This policy was largely put in place due to growing distractions and concerns associated with cell phone usage in class which has seemingly harmed students’ learning curve and prevented them from achieving their fullest potential. Not only that, but this cell phone ban is supposed to support the mental health of both students and teachers. In this controlled environment, schools can better foster students’ ability to fully engage with clubs, sports, and other extracurricular activities.
Districts that have already established these policies report a far higher student engagement, promoting more social interactions, and less anxiety. More often than not, students nowadays are on their phones with their airpods roaming the halls, rarely making any eye contact with those around them. By banning all devices in schools, this can promote a healthy environment where everyone is essentially compelled to speak with others, thus creating opportunities for new connections and/or friendships.
How will students contact their families?
While students will no longer have access to their phones, they can still remain in contact with those outside the school as districts will be required to give parents a way to keep in touch with their students whether that is through the school phones or whatnot.
So, what should we expect moving forward?
It is safe to say that it will take some time to adjust as both students and teachers adapt to this new policy. However, this initiative may possibly shift the culture of schools as we know it today. As more data is collected from schools as we approach the new school year in the fall, we will likely see some tweaks or modifications to this policy based on how it will play out in practice. Ultimately, regardless of the differing opinions surrounding this matter, this policy has been implemented in the hopes that it will create a more connected and healthy learning environment for all.
Here is NYSUT’s in depth guidelines and what to expect for the school year:
https://www.news10.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/64/2025/07/NYSUT-Bell-to-Bell-Local-President-Toolkit.pdf
Read more about Governor Hochul’s plan here:
https://www.governor.ny.gov/news/distraction-free-schools-governor-hochul-announces-new-york-become-largest-state-nation
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