San Angelo ISD adopts updated student code of conduct; district to ban student use of personal communication devices during school day

The San Angelo ISD Board of Trustees adopted the district’s 2025–26 student code of conduct on Aug. 4, incorporating recent changes in Texas law that address assaults against staff, parental agreements to reduce school discipline in some cases and a comprehensive restriction on student use of personal communication devices during the school day. District staff said the updated code reflects legislative direction to strengthen protections for staff, to expand options for threat assessment and to keep classrooms focused on instruction. The code moves a number of behaviors from discretionary to mandatory disciplinary categories, particularly acts of physical aggression against employees; administrators stressed that protections for students with disabilities (IEP/504 processes) remain in place. On technology, trustees and administrators said the district will enforce the statutory prohibition on use of cell phones, smart watches and other communication devices during the school day, defined in district policy as bell to bell when a student is on campus. Students may continue to possess devices for before‑ and after‑school use and in true emergencies, and exemptions or individualized plans (such as devices needed for medical monitoring) will be handled through 504 or IEP accommodations. The board directed staff to publish detailed, campus‑level enforcement guidance and a graduated set of consequences before the school year begins. Administrators said the law allows confiscation of devices but bars charging parents a fee to return them; the district will provide consistent, district‑wide procedures on first, second and subsequent offenses. Staff also noted TEA and TASB guidance is forthcoming; the district will release its enforcement protocol after receiving additional legal guidance and completing communication to parents and staff.