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Pearland ISD trustees approve new student personal‑device policy after hour‑long discussion
Summary
The Pearland Independent School District board adopted a revised FNCE local policy to implement House Bill 1481 limits on student use of personal communication devices during the school day, adding clarifications on exemptions, retrieval and a definition that will explicitly include laptops; the motion passed 7-0.
The Pearland Independent School District Board of Trustees on July 22 approved a revised policy (FNCE local) that restricts student access to personal communication devices during the school day in order to comply with state law, passing the motion 7-0.
Superintendent Dr. Berger said the board was being asked to adopt language that implements House Bill 1481 and to leave day‑to‑day logistics to campus procedures and the student handbook. "Once the policy is approved, we will begin pushing out detailed communication," Berger said, describing FAQs, staff trainings and parent videos the district will use to explain what will change.
The board and staff debated two main approaches the law allows: an outright ban on devices on campus during the school day, or a requirement that devices be powered off and stored (in backpacks, purses or designated campus locations) so students do not have access during class. Trustees pressed for clearer definitions and practical details: which times the rule applies, how students with individualized plans will be handled, and how parents would retrieve confiscated devices.
Board members and staff clarified key points they plan to publish in an FAQ: school day will be defined "bell to bell," starting with the campus's first bell that signals the start of class and ending with the final bell; exceptions required by law for medical reasons, Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) or Section 504 plans will remain in place and the district will vet requests through health services and special programs staff; and district‑provided devices will be available for instructional needs. Dr. Berger noted that campus procedures (not board policy) will set retrieval logistics and the district will communicate processes to parents and guardians.
Trustees asked the administration to add laptops explicitly to the policy definition of "personal communication device." Trustee Scheffler made the motion to approve FNCE local as amended; Trustee Johnson seconded. The board amended the policy text to add laptops to the definition and to clarify how a student's individual schedule affects the policy. The motion carried 7-0.
Staff described a tiered consequence structure in the FAQ for repeat violations. For chronic violators, the district may require students to "check in" devices daily at the campus office; retrieved devices are to be released to a parent or guardian (Monday–Friday, 30 minutes before or after the school day), and staff will have processes to allow students to use office phones when necessary. Dr. Berger and principals said campus discipline for insubordination (refusal to turn over a device) would be applied in addition to the violation of the device rule.
Trustees and staff said they will continue refining the policy language, the FAQs and the student code of conduct; staff told the board they expect to bring related handbook revisions to trustees before the start of the school year. "This is a law," a board member said in discussion, underscoring the district’s obligation to enforce compliance consistently across all campuses.
The board approved FNCE local as amended, and directed staff to finalize and publish aligned procedures and communications to campuses, parents and students.
