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Student board member urges districtwide, consistently enforced cell-phone rules
Summary
Student board member Lily Booker presented staff survey results and research to the Granite City CUSD 9 Board on May 12, urging a districtwide policy to reduce classroom distractions, citing staff consensus and studies linking phone use to lower test performance and increased distraction.
Lily Booker, a student board member for Granite City CUSD 9, told the school board on May 12 that staff survey responses and outside research support a consistent, districtwide approach to student cell-phone use.
Booker said she surveyed roughly 60 staff members and summarized their responses: 96.7% of responding staff said student participation increased when phones were not allowed in class, and 55% said the district's current guidelines are not enforced consistently. "I care about making sure that our school board and that our constituents are informed about what they're deciding on and what they're supporting," Booker said during the presentation.
The student presented research she said showed a negative correlation between frequent phone use and assessment scores and cited a study she described as showing that limiting phones reduced students' ability to be distracted and improved retention. Booker also reported an observed 15% decline in cyberbullying in districts that restricted phones. She framed the presentation as informational rather than a formal policy request, and outlined possible district options, including an "instruction-only" policy (phones permitted only for explicit instructional use), locked-storage or Yondr-style pouches and keeping district-issued Chromebooks for classroom activities.
Booker acknowledged potential drawbacks, including emergency-access concerns in situations like past security incidents, and noted that full pouch systems would carry a substantial cost for a district of about 1,600 students and could require dedicated staffing for distribution. She suggested lower-cost alternatives (for example, locking phones in drawers at the start of the day) as interim options.
Board members and staff responded with interest. One board member said they were "curious to hear what Granite City students think about it," and Amy Pinnell, who spoke for the theater program earlier in the meeting, thanked Booker for the presentation. The board did not take formal action on a new policy that night; the item remained informational and may return for further consideration or follow-up as the district monitors state-level legislative activity.
The board moved on to other agenda items and later convened an executive session to consider personnel matters as noticed.
