Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the School Discipline Wireless Devices topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Cannon County board tables handbook disciplinary language, rejects lunch-phone allowance
Summary
The Cannon County Board of Education voted Aug. 14 to remove disciplinary language from the student handbook relating to wireless devices and to delay approval of a parent liability waiver, while rejecting a proposal to allow phone use during lunch.
The Cannon County Board of Education on Aug. 14 approved removing disciplinary language about student wireless devices from the district handbook and delayed action on a separate liability waiver, but voted down a proposal to allow students to use their phones during lunch.
Board member Rebecca Trammell made the motions and Ray McMackins seconded them. Trammell’s three-part proposal asked the board to: (a) allow students to use devices during lunch, (b) strike disciplinary language from the handbook and table replacement language until the Sept. meeting to align with TCA 49-6-4002, and (c) remove the handbook’s agreement-of-rules section until the board and its attorney could approve a separate liability waiver.
Why it matters: The actions change how the district will handle confiscated devices in the near term and require the board and attorney to produce new, legally aligned language before restoring the handbook’s prior disciplinary framework.
Most important facts: The board voted separately on each part. Motion a — permitting device use during lunch — failed on a 2-1 vote (McMackins: aye; Mullins: no; Trammell: aye) and “did not pass.” Motion b — striking the handbook’s disciplinary language and tabling replacement language to the next meeting to comply with TCA 49-6-4002 — passed (recorded roll call: McMackins: aye; Mullins: aye; Veil: aye). Motion c — temporarily removing the handbook’s agreement-of-rules section pending a board-attorney–approved liability waiver — also passed (recorded roll call includes Atkins: aye; Mullins: aye; Veil: aye). The board directed principals to apply the district code of conduct for disciplinary matters while handbook language is revised.
Discussion and context: Trammell said she consulted Ben Torres with the Tennessee School Boards Association (TSBA), who advised that disciplinary specifics tied to wireless-device handling must be set in board policy and that the handbook and any liability waiver require careful legal review. Board members debated student responsibility, staff workload and the short observational period since the policy’s return this school year. Several members asked for a student and parent survey before making permanent changes; the board clerk advised that active parental consent would be required for any student survey.
Implementation and next steps: The board scheduled revisiting the matter at the September meeting. In the interim, principals will confiscate devices per existing policy language and apply the code of conduct for subsequent disciplinary steps. The board also directed staff to work with the board attorney to draft a separate parent liability waiver for consideration.
Ending: The board’s actions leave the district without handbook-specified progressive offenses for wireless-device misuse until replacement policy language is approved. The board requested additional information, including legal input and broader stakeholder feedback, before finalizing new handbook language.
