Hanover school board overwhelmingly votes to ban cellphones in county schools

HANOVER COUNTY, Va. — The Hanover County School Board voted 6-1 to ban cellphones in schools following Tuesday afternoon’s board meeting.

The vote came hours after Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin issued an executive order mandating “cell phone-free education” in schools across the state.

The following rules apply to the use of mobile phones at the Hanover school:

• All mobile devices/headphones must be turned off and out of sight during classroom activities on the school day. This begins when a student enters the building and does not end until the bell rings to end the class.
• Students must keep their mobile devices/headphones (including earphones) in their backpacks during classroom instruction.
• If a student does not have a backpack or locking device to store their mobile device/headphones (including earbuds), a backpack will be provided.
• If a student is not meeting expectations, the teacher will notify the administration via a Google form and tell the student, “I want to make sure you are aware that you are not meeting expectations regarding the use of mobile devices.” Absences and failure to follow assigned disciplinary measures will result in further disciplinary action. Discipline will carry over to the next school year unless the student is transferring schools, in which case the decision will be made by the new principal.

Some Hanover residents praised the decision.
“Cell phone use needs to be nipped in the bud,” said resident Kristin Holte.

But others, like sixth-grader Isiah Dabney, have doubts.

“You seem more concerned with policing cell phones and kicking kids out of class when they’re on their phones than you are with actually implementing actions that would help end bullying,” Dabney said, adding that the board has “failed to act” when it comes to addressing racial bullying in schools.

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According to a CBS 6 report last month, the board was considering the potential challenges the move would bring, especially for students who may need devices that provide certain accommodations.

The policy adopted Tuesday evening did not contain any provisions for exceptions.

“I’m all for limiting cell phone use during school hours,” said Kristin Stevens. “When you look at cell phone use, I wonder how many people are relying on their phones for medical purposes and will need to have access to them? What about the student who finds walking around in loud, crowded places both unsettling and sensory overloading, but doing it with headphones helps regulate that response.”

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Board Chairman Robert May cited Governor Youngkin’s recently passed executive order ahead of Tuesday night’s vote.

“We believe our policy is consistent with what the Governor intends to announce, however our plan is that if the Governor issues guidance from VDOE, we will modify that as needed throughout the year,” May said.

You can view our full mobile policy here.

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