Norfolk Public Schools begins sprint to adopt cell-phone policy after passage of LB 140

The Norfolk Public Schools Board of Education on the stated timeline began work to adopt a district policy governing electronic communication devices after state lawmakers passed LB 140.

Superintendent Doctor Jamie Jo Thompson told the board the district must develop a policy with stakeholder input and have it in place by the start of the 2026–27 school year to comply with LB 140. Thompson said staff had prepared draft surveys for students, parents and staff and planned to distribute them immediately; the surveys are due back to Angie Baumann on May 29. She said she expected a draft policy from Perry Law Firm "on June 2 or shortly thereafter," administrative review on June 6, policy-committee consideration and a schedule that would place a first reading on June 9, a second reading on June 23 and the policy incorporated into student handbooks by the July 14 meeting so online registration could open on July 15 with the new policy in effect.

The timeline and procedural steps matter because LB 140 requires stakeholder input before a district policy is adopted. Thompson said the governor had not yet signed the bill but that she expected it to be enacted, and that the district was moving quickly to meet the statutory deadline.

Board members raised concerns about the compressed timetable and about implementation and enforcement. Doctor Patty Gubels said stakeholder engagement should be more than a short survey and recommended community education and broader input; another board member said junior high staff "would like to go a little more restrictive" than current handbooks allow. Multiple board members said enforcement was a key question: one person noted that a policy is only useful if it is enforced consistently across buildings and teachers.

Thompson said the surveys and draft policy would be shared with the board and that other engagement opportunities would be available at board meetings. When asked about the Perry Law Firm timeline, Thompson said she had been told the firm planned to put something out the week of June 2 and that she was "pretty confident" the district would receive a draft before the June 9 meeting.

No formal board action to adopt a policy took place at the meeting; the board accepted the superintendent's proposed timeline and staff directives to distribute surveys and prepare draft policy language.

The board meeting record notes the district already maintains administrative procedures for cellphone use in elementary, middle and high school handbooks; Thompson said those procedures could be used as a starting point for board policy but must be converted into a board policy that reflects stakeholder input as required by LB 140.