As winter break approaches, school divisions across Virginia are finalizing plans to implement new policies restricting students’ use of cellphones and other electronic devices during the school day.
In a July executive order, Gov. Glenn Youngkin directed the Virginia Department of Education to release model policies for cellphone-free education and called on districts to implement their own plans by Jan. 1.
Youngkin’s order cited American Psychological Association research findings that prolonged use of social media sharply increases mental health risks for adolescents and studies that found cellphone use during class harmed students’ grades and test scores.
“Creating a cell phone-free education environment in public schools is not only a prudent measure but an essential one to promote a healthier and more focused educational environment where every student is free to learn,” Youngkin wrote.
Below is a breakdown of how Central Virginia school districts are addressing student devices.
Albemarle County Public Schools
Albemarle’s updated policy directs students to store their devices in “lockers, backpacks, or designated areas” during the school day.
High school students are allowed to use their devices at lunch or during class changes, though the district said it would work to phase out those allowed usage periods out over time; middle schoolers are required to store devices from the first bell of the day to the last one.
Augusta County Public Schools
Middle and high schoolers are required to turn off and store their devices from bell to bell, though middle school administrators have the discretion to extend the prohibited period to span from a student’s arrival for the day to their exit.
Elementary school students are not allowed to use personal devices on school grounds.
According to a message sent to families at Fort Defiance High School, the policy, which was approved Dec. 5, takes effect Jan. 6.
Charlottesville City Schools
Charlottesville began an “off and away the entire day” policy in fall 2023. The district said it explored buying Yondr pouches, which magnetically lock to prevent students from accessing their devices, but Charlottesville Tomorrow reported in September that the plan never came to fruition.
Earlier this month, Charlottesville High Principal Justin Malone announced that parents or guardians would have to come to school to retrieve confiscated devices.
Chesterfield County Public Schools
“Students will not be able to use a cellphone or have a cellphone in sight at any time during the instructional day,” Chesterfield County Public Schools said in a Dec. 11 message to school staff and families. “This includes lunch, times between classes, when students are in hallways, etc.”
These policies go into effect Jan. 1, but give schools “discretion to establish expectations and associated consequences” until March 2.
Hanover County Public Schools
Hanover requires mobile devices to be “powered off and out of sight beginning when a student enters the building and continuing throughout the school day.”
A parent or guardian must come to school to retrieve the device after all violations, regardless of grade level. And for high school students, consequences range from a detention for a first offense to potential in-school suspensions for repeated violations.
Harrisonburg City Public Schools
Harrisonburg updated its policy in August, requiring that all devices — except for smartwatches that are not connected to cellular networks — be turned off and stored “from the time students enter the building in the morning until after the dismissal bell at the close of the school day.”
Chief Academic Officer Joy Blosser told The Citizen that the district’s policy hadn’t been revamped since 2012.
Henrico County Public Schools
Henrico is keeping “past policies” in place that require phones to be “stored and silenced during instructional periods.” The district added one new provision for the 2024–25 school year, placing pouches or containers in classrooms where devices can be securely stored if students are not keeping them in their backpacks.
Parents or guardians are required to come to school to retrieve confiscated devices, according to the HCPS Code of Student Conduct.
Richmond Public Schools
Under new guidelines approved in November, cellphones and certain personal electronic devices, including smartwatches and other Bluetooth-connected devices, are required to be powered off and stored away from a student’s person “bell-to-bell,” including during lunch and breaks between class periods.
Exceptions will be made for students who need devices for instructional or medical purposes, but they must be approved by school staff.
Richmond schools return from winter break Jan. 6.
Rockingham County Public Schools
Rockingham’s “Away for the Day” policy allows students to retrieve their own devices at the end of the day after a first violation. Subsequent offenses require a parent to come to school to reclaim the device. Students would then incur additional punishments — up to 10 days in an alternative classroom and 30 days of “Poor School Standing,” which limits a student’s ability to participate in extracurricular activities.
If you have questions about cellphone policies in local school divisions, please email us at [email protected].
