Manchester has moved forward with a new punitive policy intended to create "phone-free schools" over concerns with distractions and mental health effects associated with their use.
Superintendent Matthew Geary said Monday night that the school district is still awaiting the arrival of its new Yondr pouches, which shipped Sept. 3. District spokesperson Jim Farrell said Wednesday morning that the Yondr pouches had not yet arrived, but the district continues to track them.
The magnetically locking neoprene sleeves were purchased by the district with a $52,000 state grant, as part of its new cellphone restrictions previously piloted in Illing Middle School last school year.
In the meantime, Geary said students are directed to keep their phones away and turned off or in silent mode.
State officials, including Gov. Ned Lamont, were impressed by the pilot in a March tour of the school, with Lamont calling it a model for schools across the state. Shortly before the start of the 2024-25 school year, the state Board of Education adopted policy guidance to recommend districts restrict cellphone use in a similar fashion.
As for enforcement, Geary said students will have three strikes. A first offense will trigger a detention and a call to parents, as well as confiscation of the phone that triggered the offense. A second violation will lead to similar consequences, with an additional requirement that the offending student place their cellphone in a Yondr pouch in front of staff members each morning for two weeks after the incident. Third offenses will lead to in-school suspension for five days, a referral to counseling, a month of daily pouching, and other behavior-related remedies, Geary said.
Geary said in MHS's first week with the new restrictions, staff made about 50 calls to parents per day for phone-usage violations. On Monday, that figure was down to 35 calls.
"They're doing a nice job there," Geary said.
District officials could not provide any comparison to last year, as there were no cellphone restrictions of this nature in place. As for school population, the latest numbers indicate that Manchester High School currently has 1,708 students.
Board of Education member Tracy Patterson said Tuesday that she feels those numbers will continue to drop as the school year progresses, both from students getting used to not having a phone in school and with the imminent arrival of the Yondr pouches.
"I think it's going as well as can be expected," Patterson said. "From my vantage point, and based on the comments from Superintendent Geary last evening, I'm not overly concerned about where we are today."
Board of Education member Michael Orsene said Tuesday that he is fully in support of continuing to restrict phones in classrooms across the district, and he sees the Yondr pouches as a positive means to an end for reducing distractions and improving learning.
"It may not go as smooth as we all want it to at the beginning, it's going to be a major adjustment for our student body," Orsene said. "I think it was expected that there were going to be some phone calls."
Patterson said she expects there will be repeat offenders or more covert students flying under the radar, but any reduction in phone usage in classrooms will be a benefit.
"If we minimize where we were from last year (with) the amount of phone usage ... it'll be that much more focus on the classroom versus a phone," Patterson said.
Orsene said the ultimate goal for him is keeping students focused, and Manchester's schools have supports and safeguards in place in the event of an emergency.
"I know there's going to be some pushback with parents nervous about how they can't get a hold of their child as soon as they may want to," Orsene said.
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