Beaufort County Schools starting cell phone ban in August

BEAUFORT, S.C. (WSAV) – Public school students in South Carolina will be a little less connected this coming school year, that’s after the state barred cell phone use in schools throughout the Palmetto State.

The clause was one of a number of funding stipulations that a committee approved during days of negotiations on the state’s $13.8 billion budget.

If they want to receive state funds, public school districts have to adopt the statewide policy, which will be written by the State Board of Education.

“The goal is to improve students’ mental health and reduce bullying both in-person and online,” says Beaufort County Schools Superintendent Dr. Frank Rodriguez. “It does have an impact on students. Students seem to be, for lack of a better word, addicted or overly connected to their devices. And it impacts instructional time for teachers. And and that’s critical.”

Beaufort County School Superintendent Dr. Frank Rodriguez says his county has been working on a cell phone ban even before the State law was agreed to.

Teachers have been asking for years, and even some students have chimed in on the idea.

“I had student advisory committees where I go to the high schools and meet with groups of students at the high schools,” explains Rodriguez. “And one of the things that I learned from them, although they might not be thrilled or happy about having it limited during the day, they understood and would welcome it in a way be a little bit of a relief.”

Rodriguez and Beaufort County aren’t waiting until January to put the policy in place. The school system will begin a full cell phone ban on the first day of school in August.

There will be differences depending on the ages of the students.

“In elementary and middle school it’s going to be a ban,” explains Rodriguez. “It needs to be put away and not visible at all during the day. In high school, it’s the same thing. It’ll be a ban, but they will have access to it during the lunch break in the locations that are determined by principals like the cafeteria”

While some have questioned students’ safety by banning cell phones, Rodriguez reminds those parents that kids can still have their phones. They just need to be kept out of their hands and in bookbags during class time.

Both the State and Beaufort County are still working on exactly what penalties might be for students who don’t follow the rules.

If the state statute is not in place by August, Rodriguez says Beaufort County will come up with its own plan for penalties.