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Students and community groups urge Salem‑Keizer board to end district’s phone‑pouch program
Summary
Students, parents and youth organizers told the Salem‑Keizer School District board that the district’s “Yonder Pouches” phone‑locking program harms immigrant students, interrupts learning and risks student safety; speakers asked the board to halt the program and reinvest funds in wellness and translation supports.
Several students, parents and youth organizers used the board’s public‑comment period to demand that Salem‑Keizer School District end its “Yonder Pouches” phone‑locking program and redirect funds to student supports.
At the meeting, sixth‑grader Nicole Fernandez said the pouches cause anxiety and interrupt learning when students fear not being able to hear a last call from parents. “This has been causing me anxiety and stress, and this makes me not think about school anymore,” Fernandez said, adding, “I think that it's wasteful to spend a million dollars for something that doesn't work.”
Representatives of a youth‑led Latino organization told the board they launched a petition calling for the district to stop the program; the speaker said the petition collected “over 350…
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