Connetquot board debates state cellphone mandate after high‑school evacuation; policy due Aug. 1

The Connetquot Central School District Board of Education spent a lengthy portion of its meeting discussing how to implement a new state requirement restricting students’ use of smartphones and other Internet‑enabled devices during the school day, and whether the district’s crisis communication systems worked during a recent high‑school evacuation.

Superintendent Joseph Senemore said the requirement comes from the state budget and cited the specific statutory timing: “The law mandates that school districts, will develop and adopt the policy by 08/01/2025.” He described that the district’s curriculum committee has gathered stakeholder input and that the district will finalize a policy and communicate it to families in the coming weeks.

Board members and parents debated details that will determine how the policy operates in practice. Some speakers warned that requiring students to lock phones in lockers or other on‑site storage could create safety problems if students try to retrieve phones, keys or car access during an emergency. Others said lockers or school‑run storage are familiar, low‑cost options and would limit classroom distraction. Several board members and staff emphasized that the policy has not yet been finalized and that the discussion will continue in committee and in public updates.

District counsel Anthony Fasano read statutory language offered to the board and noted how the law frames possible storage options: “It requires that [districts] include one or more methods for on‑site storage … which may include student lockers.” He and district staff also told the board the New York State School Boards Association (NYSSBA) and similar guidance had indicated that backpacks alone likely would not meet the law’s storage expectations.

The board discussed operational questions the law raises: who enforces violations, whether backpacks qualify as compliant storage, how medical or individualized education program (IEP) exemptions will be handled, and how to ensure parents can contact children during the school day. Board members asked the superintendent and staff to clarify enforcement steps (warnings, detention, administrative discipline), how exemptions would be processed, and how the district’s communications systems would be used in emergencies.

Those communications systems were a second focus. The discussion followed a rooftop‑unit electrical malfunction at the high school that produced smoke, triggered alarms and led to an evacuation and a temporary sheltering of students by bus. Senemore described the timeline, saying school officials evacuated the building and arranged buses after rain began; he said students and staff were safe and that the district conducted a post‑event debrief to identify improvements.

Parents and board members said official communications following the incident were too slow or inconsistent. The board discussed designating a clear communications lead during incidents and improving rapid messages to families. District staff…