Policy committee delegates student cell‑phone policy to superintendent after debate on board role

The Providence Policy Committee voted to send its newly drafted student cell‑phone policy to the superintendent for implementation, concluding a lengthy discussion about whether a law-mandated policy should be owned by the board or executed as an operational protocol.

At the meeting, a staff presenter said the draft had been run through advisory groups, principal and teacher cabinets, parent advisory groups and an internal cabinet process. Committee members questioned whether the statutory language obligating schools to have a policy required the board to adopt a distinct governance policy or whether the superintendent could implement rules and protocols at the school level. President Stevens urged the committee to define “when the district should bring legislative requirements to the board for a formal decision,” saying such a process would smooth implementation.

The committee then voted on a motion to delegate the draft cell‑phone policy to the superintendent for further development and implementation. The motion passed by voice vote; individual tallies were not specified in the transcript. The committee also requested that, at a future meeting, the superintendent’s team present the district’s internal process and the SOPs they will use to operationalize the policy.

The committee closed the item noting possible next steps: revisit the equity screening tool before final action, refine templates and governance language, and request a superintendent update on protocols tied to the cell‑phone policy. The committee did not adopt a final school-day rule at the meeting; it delegated development to district administration and asked for a follow-up report.