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Wetzel County board reviews countywide student cell-phone policy changes after state action
Summary
District staff briefed the board on state-driven changes that require policies to specify phone storage and communications; the district plans countywide consistent consequences for grades 6+, standardized storage (Yonder bags/lockable devices), and further principal-level work before formal adoption.
At Monday’s Wetzel County Schools board meeting, staff presented proposed revisions to the district’s student cell‑phone policy to comply with recent state legislative changes and to make consequences consistent across all schools.
Staff member (presenting) said the legislature now requires policy language about how phones are stored, and recommended countywide uniformity for grades six and up. "We need to add ... address how they're being stored," the staff member said, noting the district already uses lockable storage systems and so the policy will codify that practice.
The proposal would keep most day‑to‑day enforcement at the school level but standardize violations and consequences countywide so students at Magnolia, Paden City, Valley and other schools face the same penalties for comparable infractions. The presentation said storage procedures—commonly called "Yonder bags" in several schools—will be spelled out in the policy, including who keeps keys and how bags are accessed.
Board members and staff discussed smartwatches separately: middle schools would be more restrictive and disallow smartwatches, while high schools may permit them with monitoring, because middle‑school students generally do not take the same exemptions or exams as high‑school students. Staff noted principals are still developing consistent implementation details across sites.
The district also reiterated staff conduct expectations: employees should not use personal devices during student supervision times. Medical exemptions (for example, a diabetic student who needs real‑time monitoring) remain in policy and will be preserved in the revised language.
No vote was taken on the policy at the meeting; the presentation was informational and staff said final language will return to the board after principals finish operational details. The board asked staff to provide a clear draft and enforcement plan before any adoption vote.
Next steps: staff will draft precise storage and access language, reconcile school‑level procedures with the countywide consequences, and bring the policy back to the board for action at a later meeting.
