West Seneca outlines enforcement plan for New York's distraction-free learning law

The West Seneca Central School District plans to require students to keep personal electronic devices off and stored during the instructional day under a district policy being drafted to comply with New York's distraction-free learning law, Superintendent Dr. Lisa Krueger told the board at the reorganizational meeting.

Dr. Krueger said the law requires districts to have a policy in place by Aug. 1 and the district has published revisions to its code of conduct for a 30-day public comment period before the board may adopt the changes. "This is otherwise known as the cell phone ban," she said, describing the timeline and stakeholder process that produced the recommendations.

The superintendent said a stakeholder group that included teachers, administrators, union leadership, student leaders at both high schools and families produced a consistent set of recommendations by school level. At the elementary level, the district will encourage families of…