CMCSS board reviews broad updates to student code of conduct, weighs stricter cellphone limits

The Clarksville-Montgomery County School System (CMCSS) Board of Education on a study-session night received a first reading of proposed updates to the student code of conduct for the 2025–26 school year, including a new districtwide limit on student cellphone and personal electronic device use and additions for unapproved artificial‑intelligence use in academic integrity cases.

The proposed revisions, presented by Matt Sleight, a CMCSS staff member, would prohibit student use of personal communication devices during the instructional day, move such violations from a Category 1 offense to Category 2 (with escalating consequences for repeat offenses), and clarify that teachers — not only administrators — may confiscate devices. The changes also add “unapproved AI use” to cheating/plagiarism/forgery language, specify remand ranges of 30 or 90 days for Category 4 offenses, and clarify bus‑fighting consequences including a 5–15 day bus suspension and potential out‑of‑school suspension at the principal’s discretion.

Why it matters: school leaders said the changes aim to protect instructional time and align consequences with new state requirements. Vice Chairman Lanier, who led the cellphone recommendation, described multiple ways devices disrupt instruction and student safety, including "filming and sharing videos of other students…