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Wenatchee School District says phone‑free pilot with Yonder pouches is showing early gains
Summary
District leaders told the board that Wenatchee High School's phone‑free policy, enforced with Yonder pouches, has reduced visible phone use, produced positive teacher feedback and shown early signs of improved attendance and student engagement; administrators said they will monitor discipline, mental‑health screeners and academic outcomes before wider rollout.
WENATCHEE, Wash. — District leaders told the school board on Oct. 14 that a pilot of a phone‑free policy using Yonder locking pouches is producing early, measurable changes at Wenatchee High School.
Superintendent Kelleher introduced the presentation and high‑school administrators described what they called immediate benefits: fewer visible phones during class, more apparent student engagement and, administrators reported, no incidents of cyberbullying inside buildings since implementation. "Cell phone free at Wenatchee High School is surprisingly going better than expected," one high‑school administrator said. School leaders reported a 2% uptick in attendance so far this school year and said they were seeing more students connecting with peers and staff during passing periods and lunch.
Jennifer Devereaux, principal at Westside High School, said a school‑level survey of roughly 165 day‑program students found about 84% said they always or mostly lock their phones in the pouches. Devereaux described case‑by‑case responses for students who struggle to comply and said some students are on individual plans to turn phones in to the office until they demonstrate consistent compliance.
Pete Gelsing of the Wenatchee Valley Tech Center, which operates longer class sessions, told the board his instructors have stepped up to use class time differently and that preparation and family outreach were critical to the program's acceptance.
District presenters cautioned the board that these are early results and outlined a measurement plan: discipline data, a ninth‑grade mental‑health screener, and semester academic comparisons against last year's baseline. Leaders also said they will gather additional student feedback via a district survey later in the semester. "We're going to measure in a couple different ways," a presenter said, noting plans to compare academic and social‑emotional indicators to last year.
Parents and staff were described as largely supportive, presenters said, though administrators acknowledged implementation challenges such as students attempting to conceal phones; the Yonder pouches were credited for creating a clear, enforceable expectation at entry. Schools reported local adaptations (classroom sets versus student‑owned pouches) to fit program logistics.
Next steps: district leaders said they will continue collecting the specified metrics and return updates to the board; the presentation framed the effort as an ongoing pilot rather than a final districtwide policy decision.
