At the Eagle Point School District 9 work session, board members and staff reviewed the district’s cell‑phone practices and discussed pending state legislation that would impose a bell‑to‑bell ban on student phone use. Middle‑school staff reported they implemented a bell‑to‑bell approach this year—students place phones in lockers and retrieve them at the end of the day—and that middle‑school teachers support keeping that practice. High‑school staff reported more mixed views and said high‑school implementation produced mixed feedback.

Administrators and board members described several operational questions: how a state law would apply to open‑campus lunch for upperclassmen, carve‑outs for IEPs and medical needs, enforcement logistics and whether the state language would remove local control. One board member noted the bill’s sponsors want broad change, but amendments are being debated that could restore local control; staff said the bill must still clear a Senate work session and could be amended.

District staff said they favor maintaining local control and moving toward consistent practice across the district rather than a statewide mandate. The board discussed operational options such as lockers or pouches, use of apps that lock phones during school hours, and facility‑level enforcement strategies. Staff flagged concerns about forcing third‑party apps onto student devices and noted cost and liability questions for app or pouch programs.

Staff said they will monitor the legislature for action expected in mid‑May and will implement district policy as needed: if the state law passes, the district would comply; if it does not, the district will continue to tighten and align local practices. No formal policy change was adopted at the work session.