Superintendent says cellphone-ban policy must be in place by Jan. 2026; district will not buy phone-storage hardware

Superintendent Mr. Eykston told the Cobb County School District Board on June 12 that Georgia’s recently passed House Bill 34, the Distraction-Free Education Act, requires districts to have a policy in place by January 2026 and to implement the phone ban in July 2026.

"The law allows us to determine what that storage place is gonna be," Mr. Eykston said, and added, "We are not going to invest any money into storage solutions for cell phones." He said the district expects student phones to be kept in backpacks, purses or pockets and that updates would be made to the student code of conduct to explain consequences.

Mr. Eykston said the district will continue its 1-to-1 initiative so students will still have access to district-provided devices in classrooms; middle- and high-school students will retain the ability to take district devices home where applicable. He emphasized the district’s intent to follow the law while focusing on classroom instruction during implementation.

The superintendent's remarks framed the district’s compliance plan (policy by Jan. 2026, implementation July 2026) and clarified that the district will not allocate funds specifically for phone-storage hardware. Further details — including disciplinary specifics in the student code of conduct — were not provided during the public session and will be developed and communicated to parents and students ahead of implementation.