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Mitchell Community Schools board discusses state "bell-to-bell" cellphone policy, awaits state guidance
Summary
Board staff told trustees that state legislation requires a 'bell-to-bell' cell phone policy and that the district will wait for formal guidance before finalizing and rolling out local rules to parents.
Trustees of the Mitchell Community Schools Board of Trustees discussed an impending state requirement for a bell-to-bell cell phone policy and said the district is waiting for state guidance before adopting a local version.
A staff member told the board that "a cell, bell to bell cell phone policy" has been legislated by the state and that the district expects to receive guidance from the state agency referenced in the meeting as "the IPOE." The staff member said the district currently restricts phones at the high school to lunch only and that it will need to expand that rule to cover the entire school day once guidance arrives.
Board members asked about logistics and communication to families. The chair asked whether there was a plan for rolling the policy out to parents and making them "well aware of it in advance." The staff member said the district would present a more concrete policy once it receives state guidance, potentially in April or May, and emphasized the need to align local policy with state expectations before formalizing procedures.
No formal policy vote was taken; staff indicated the item is pending receipt of state-issued guidance and will be brought to trustees for consideration once the district has the recommended language and implementation details.
