'Phone Ban' Extends to High School Students

This past Thursday Upper Division Principal Jeremy Golubcow-Teglasi announced that for the foreseeable future, the middle school “phone-free policy” would extend to high school students as well.  

This change will take effect on August 20th, when high school students arrive for their first day, making the whole DJDS upper division cell phone-free. As of now middle school students must turn their phones in at the beginning of the day and can retrieve them at the end of the day, that has not changed. However, in high school, each student will receive a designated phone locker, in which they will receive their own key to access it along with a lanyard. 

Josh Lake, upper division director of technology, who has opposed a cell phone ban in the past believes that cell phones, specifically social media, are “a silent killer”. “We’ve created an environment where we’re supposed to be a community…[instead] we just became a community of siloed social media consumers,” Lake said. Despite that Lake believes in a softer, more supportive approach, “We’re all in this together,” Lake said. “The number one goal is to build a community and make it stronger”

It should be noted that this isn’t such a substantial change in the policy, but rather how it is applied. As per the 2023-2024 DJDS UD Family Handbook, “Students may not have cell phones during class at any time.” However, according to Dr. G.T., the policy itself has been “strikingly ineffective.” 

In response to this, G.T. agreed that “practically speaking…the only way to create a phone-free environment is to physically separate students from their cell phones.” In formulating a response to the issue, Dr. G.T. has noted an overwhelming amount of teachers and parents who support this idea, along with many students who aren't opposed to it. 

This change comes as school-wide cell phone bans surge across the country. States such as Florida and Indiana have already passed legislation containing full cell phone bans in schools. Accompanying them are many other states attempting to follow suit, such as Vermont, Kansas, and Washington.

Yet, this new policy does come with a fair amount of backlash from students. “[the new high school phone policy] is the most annoying thing that has ever happened to this school,” said Alan Gelman, a DJDS junior. 

According to a letter shared with students, parents, and faculty by Dr. G.T., “over 80 percent of our high-school faculty reported that they’d observed students violating the phone policy in their class and in the hallways at least a few times a week.” 

High school students, along with second-semester 8th graders, may use their phones if they travel off campus for lunch, but must return them upon their arrival back on campus- students may not use them during the rest of the lunch period. 

“We are really trying to avoid a situation where people are just sitting around on their phones throughout the lunch period -- scrolling instead of socializing, meeting with teachers, getting work done, [and] exercising,” Dr. G.T. said. 

Dr. G.T. hopes that moving forward, DJDS will offer optional lunchtime programming, such as student-teacher volleyball games. He believes this initiative could become a “big part of our school culture going forward.”

Hannah Hendrix, a behavioral health provider at Lowry Pediatrics, emphasized the mental health benefits of a phone-free environment. “It may reduce stress and anxiety,” Hendrix said, “They [students] will not feel the sense of urgency to constantly check their phone and be more present with peers building better interpersonal skills.”

The phone lockers will be mounted in the hallway adjacent to the lobby and heading out to the soccer field. Each student will be individually responsible for making sure that their phones end up in the locker. Students who fail to do so, more than once, may lose privileges altogether or face additional consequences. 

“I think there is a real opportunity to have a counter-culture be created that is going to be much more rich and much more lasting,” Lake said. 

READ THE FULL UPDATED POLICY HERE