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How NYC Schools Are Handling the Phone Ban

What exactly will the phone ban look like at your school? The short answer is, it depends. That’s because state lawmakers are allowing individual schools to determine how to enact the ban. The state required school administrators to come up with a plan by Friday, August 1, including details on where and how to store students’ devices—and how parents can contact their children in case of an emergency.

Some NYC principals have already communicated their plans to parents, while others are waiting until closer to the first day of school. Cell phone policies from more than 1,000 schools across New York state are listed on this searchable website created by the governor’s office.

Lockable pouches seem to be the most popular method for keeping phones out of sight, especially for older students. That’s how Bronx Prep High School went phone-free two years ago. “It's stressful at first,” one 16-year-old Bronx Prep student told NY1, “but then when you really do it…it really is for you, for your good, so that you can focus.”

Bronx Prep purchased Yondr pouches for its students after finding a backpack phone storage policy didn’t quite cut it—teens admitted to quietly scrolling through TikTok and other apps under their desks.

Yondr pouches are locked at the start of the school day and can be collected by teachers or kept with students. After the last bell, students unlock their pouches by tapping an unlocking base.

Long Island City High School in Queens, along with the High School of Sports Management and MS 136, both in Brooklyn, are among the myriad NYC schools employing Yondr pouches.

For now, many elementary schools are skipping the pouches and simply requiring students to keep phones turned off and inside backpacks. That’s the case at PS 10 in Park Slope, Brooklyn. The school sent a message to parents in July outlining the new cell phone policy. “We understand that families may choose to send their children to school with cell phones or smartwatches for safety and communication purposes,” the message said. “Students may use their cell phones or smartwatches to call or text parents immediately upon arrival or at dismissal only. At all other times, including early arrival, lunch, and recess, devices must remain turned off and stored in backpacks.”

PS 10 specified that cell phones and personal devices cannot be used in bathrooms or during field trips, fire drills, or lockdown drills. It also said devices will be collected during New York state testing days.

Students who need to contact their families will have to do it the old-fashioned way, via a landline phone in the main office (like many of their parents and grandparents before them).

PS 10 also outlined its disciplinary policy, which starts with a warning and, in the case of repeat offenses, could require parents to come to school to retrieve their student’s device. In other words, this might be a good time to talk over the new rules with your kids.

What Happens if There's an Emergency?

The new law requires each school to provide at least one way for parents to reach their children in an emergency. Local parents have mixed feelings about the ability to reach their kids if needed.

“In theory, I understand that it’s easier to ban phones than to ensure that every kid has their phone put away,” one Brooklyn mom shared on Facebook. “But on a practical level, in this messed-up world, it makes me anxious as a parent.”

At PS 770, an elementary school in East Flatbush, Brooklyn, parents have a few options for contacting school leadership in an emergency. An update posted to the school’s website in early August listed email addresses, landline phone numbers, and the Remind app. For peace of mind, parents may want to track down and store their school's contact info now.

Benefits of Going Cell Phone-Free

Most parents support the reasoning behind the phone ban, which is aimed at eliminating distractions and allowing kids to focus on learning.

Teachers, parents, and health experts have been sounding the alarm about kids and smartphones for years. A 2023 Atlantic article by psychologist Jonathan Haidt titled “Get Phones Out of Schools Now” argued that smartphones and tablets “impede learning, stunt relationships, and lessen belonging.”

A mounting pile of evidence blames mental health problems like depression and anxiety on children’s use of smartphones, which Haidt explains in his bestseller The Anxious Generation.

More parents are taking action to protect their children and teens from smartphones and social media. Movements like Wait Until 8th—founded by a mom—are catching on as parents explore smartphone alternatives and creative ways to cut down on screen time.

Hundreds of public and private schools across the country have already banned cell phones, with teachers and students reporting all kinds of positive outcomes from higher test scores to the return of cafeteria chatter. The phone ban will be an adjustment for many NYC families, but it looks like young New Yorkers have a lot to gain by losing the phones.

READ NEXT: 2025-26 NYC Public School Calendar

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