Canyon ISD reviews phone ban and library-advisory changes under new state rules; trustees request wording tweaks

Canyon ISD trustees on Aug. 25 reviewed a first reading of local policy changes to implement House Bill 1481 — which requires districts to prohibit personal communication device use during the school day — and a new School Library Advisory Council (SLAC) policy that aligns with Senate Bill 13.

Device policy: staff presented FNCE Local, the draft personal-communication-device policy. The draft echoes the statutory language: students may not use personal communication devices on school property during the school day and must store devices according to administrative regulation. Staff described a “teach mode” during the first weeks of school, with progressively stricter consequences after Labor Day. Administrators also described narrow exceptions already accommodated by campuses: students with 504 plans or documented health needs (for example, a student whose glucose monitor syncs with a phone), and a small number of individualized accommodations for students with disabilities.

Library advisory and reconsideration: a separate draft would establish a parent-led School Library Advisory Council to perform the reconsideration function and make purchasing recommendations. Trustees sought clarifications in the draft language: whether a parent can request that a book be restricted on campus as well as for checkout, how the committee’s membership and voting structure would work, and whether donors and book-fair vendors would be treated under the same rules. Staff said administrative regulations (which carry the same operational weight as policy) can be used for detailed procedures and that staff will research placement of specific provisions in policy versus administrative regulation.

Board feedback and next steps: trustees suggested concrete wording edits — for example, clarifying that a parent’s request can restrict access on campus as well as restrict checking out items — and asked staff to circulate alternative language before the next board meeting. The board directed staff to convene the advisory council before final adoption if possible, and staff said they will return with revised policy text and proposed administrative regulations.