Holmdel schools plan bell-to-bell phone ban and add digital-citizenship elective

Holmdel school leaders and community organizers told a Balance Project panel that the district is planning a bell-to-bell cell phone ban next school year and has added an elective on digital citizenship.

"The minute they walk in when the bell rings, cell phones away. When the bell rings at the end of the day, they can have them back," said Shan Shantel Seminelli, principal of William R. Satz Middle School, describing the intended approach and examples of enforcement such as magnetized phone pouches or requiring phones to be stored in lockers.

Seminelli said the district is coordinating with Dr. Cascone and principals on how to roll the policy out and that a variety of methods are being considered. She and other panelists said they expect implementation will be difficult but hope it will improve student attention, self-regulation and classroom engagement.

Seminelli also described a curricular response: a new elective for incoming seventh graders called "digital citizenship and technology in society" designed to teach responsible use, awareness and critical thinking about online content. "We found that it's so important that we really need to start addressing it with our seventh graders," she said.

Student panelists acknowledged social trade-offs. One student said not having an app commonly used by peers (for example, Snapchat) can lead to missed informal invitations; others said students sometimes welcome an external structure because they struggle to self-regulate device use.

Panelists urged clear communication with families and practical accommodations for necessary phone contact (examples: phones available in main offices or exemptions for urgent needs). The panelists did not present a finalized policy text or a formal district vote during the event; administrators reported planning and coordination were underway.