District staff outline plan as Ohio budget bill may force ban on student cellphone use during instructional day

Superintendent Michael Sawyers told the New Albany‑Plain Local Board of Education April 28 that state legislation could require school districts to ban student personal communication devices during the instructional day, and staff outlined how the district would respond.

The board was briefed on House Bill 250 (enacted previously) and pending language in the state biennial budget, House Bill 96, that district staff said may require districts to adopt policies prohibiting student phone use during instructional hours. Staff emphasized that any required ban would still allow individual exceptions written into students’ IEPs or Section 504 plans for medical or instructional needs.

Nut graf: New Albany‑Plain Local already uses a scaffolded approach — phones must be secured and silent at elementary schools, restricted at middle school except lunch, and placed in pockets or calculator pouches at the high school. Staff said the district’s current practice reduces the operational disruption other districts have reported, but a statewide requirement to ban phones during lunch or the entire instructional day would force additional enforcement work for teachers and administrators.

What staff said Laurie (policy staff) told the board the Ohio Department of Education released a model policy last year and the district adopted a tiered approach: elementary students keep phones in backpacks; middle school phones are limited except at lunch; high school phones are to remain in pockets or approved storage during class. She said HB96 could force a change by adding explicit language to the budget bill to prohibit student phone use during the instructional day and may also specifically include lunch.

Superintendent Sawyers and board members discussed practical and equity implications: enforcement logistics, potential parent concerns, and the risk that parents might seek 504 accommodations to allow phone use. Staff noted the district is a 1:1 technology district and that many teachers already incorporate pocket checks or calculator pouches to manage phones during attendance and instruction.

Timing and next steps Staff stressed the language is not yet law. If included in the budget, districts were told the state may require a compliant policy by July 1; the district has postponed policy subcommittee work to await final budget language and plans to present policy readings in June to meet statutory timing if required. Staff said they will continue to monitor HB96 and bring recommended policy language and enforcement guidance to the board when legislative action is final.

Ending: Board members asked for updates on enforcement implications and cost, and staff said they will return with draft policy language and implementation details if the session’s budget language requires a change.