Some Michigan students are starting school this year without the same access to their smartphones that they had last year.
In Northville Public Schools, a new rule requires students in kindergarten through 8th grade to keep cell phones and smart watches powered off and out of sight for most of the day.
Northville Superintendent RJ Webber has been promoting the new policy. "Just over the past year, our elementary principals have seen more of the smartwatches in the K-5 bandwidth becoming a little bit of an issue," he said. "That's why our board chose and pivoted to this year doing K-8. And at the high school, there are policies in place to prevent kids from leaving the classroom with their phones."
The goal is to ensure that students remain focused during class. However, some parents are concerned, wanting the ability to reach their children at any time. Webber assured them that they can still do so through the phones available in every classroom by contacting the school office.
In times of emergency, some parents worry that they won't be able to reach their children quickly. Webber suggested that this concern may be overstated. "Our schools are so laser-focused on protocols to keep our kids safe," he says, adding that phones can actually complicate efforts to maintain safety during emergencies. "The kids that did have phones were texting with their parents, the communication and information flow is very, very erratic and often incorrect. And that, I would argue, actually complicated our efforts to keep kids safe."
For now, the district's policy is being tested with grades K-8 before it is implemented for high school students.
As students adapt to new cell phone rules in some schools, the state's free breakfast and lunch program at public schools is continuing.
Michigan's 1.4 million public school students will be able to get free breakfast and lunch, regardless of their family's financial situation, through the Michigan School Meals program. This initiative ensures that all public school students, from Pre-K to 12th grade, eat for free. The state has said this can translate to an estimated savings of $850 per child, per year.
Launched in the 2023-2024 school year, the program has now served over 76.3 million breakfasts and 135.6 million lunches, according to the state department of education.
