Hermosa Beach board weighs phone-free rules after students and parents urge tougher enforcement

Trustees at the Hermosa Beach City School District meeting on Sept. 11 heard sustained public pressure to tighten enforcement of the district’s cellphone policy and debated four implementation models staff outlined.

Parent Beth Albrecht told the board spot checks aren’t enough and urged stronger measures: “Any rule is only real when it's enforced,” she said, and suggested lockable pouches used in nearby districts. Student Cordelia Ferriola Davis told trustees phones were a problem before school and in bathrooms and stated plainly, “Phones should not be allowed in school.”

Superintendent Dr. Wildes framed the discussion around pending state action, saying the topic is now rooted in “Assembly Bill 3,216, which is otherwise known as the Phone Free School Act,” and that districts must develop policies limiting smartphone use by July 1, 2026. Wildes described four models for local implementation: a campus-wide ban; a “silenced and away” approach (devices powered down and stored during school hours); classroom ‘phone hotels’; and locked pouches (vendors such as Yonder).

Board members raised enforcement, equity and cost concerns. Staff noted locked pouches can carry a 20–30% damage/replenishment rate and require extra staffing and charging infrastructure; a 1:1 pouch program was estimated at a roughly $20–$30 per-student all-in cost in initial modeling. Trustees asked staff to run stakeholder surveys, include students, parents and staff, and pilot lower-cost options (the superintendent suggested starting with a silenced-and-away enforcement model while surveys run).

The board directed staff to draft a stakeholder survey and return recommendations; no formal policy was adopted at the meeting.