Park City schools implement no phones in classrooms policy

PARK CITY — Starting Monday, another northern Utah school district will ban phones in schools during class in an effort to reduce in-class distractions.

The Park City School District is the latest to adopt a no-cell phone policy for schools. But implementing that rule is a whole other process, said Caleb Fine, the principal at Treasure Mountain Junior High.

“We see students say and do really, really mean things on cell phones, and it’s a really complex issue, and so hopefully, for 7.5 hours, we’re free from that,” Fine said.

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Students at his school will receive Yondr cell phone pouches on Monday. Fine said staff have talked to students about the change during the first week of school.

“They’ll be putting their phones in magnetically lockable pouches,” Fine said. “Teachers will have the magnets and it’s simply touching and pressing a button and it’s opened.”

Fine said that each Yondr pouch costs about $30. The Park City Education Foundation is funding the pilot program.

“If it works, I think that it’s one of the cheapest options we have to increase engagement in public schools,” Fine said.

He said families can call the main office to speak with their child about something urgent. In emergencies, teachers in any classroom can quickly open the pouches.

“We chose to go with the model where every teacher would have, in a secure location, a specialized magnet so they could unlock student cell phones at the end of the day, making it a very convenient process, but it’s also there in case of a significant emergency, which we do not anticipate, but we’re prepared for,” Fine said. “If a magnet is not available in a significant emergency, we don’t care about the cost of a pouch, cut it open. Pry it open.”

The pouches, like a computer or textbook, stay with students all day.

“The students are responsible for their pouches, so if they lose it, they’re subject to replacement costs,” he said.

Fine said he’s optimistic about the program.

“We also know that eighth and ninth-grade minds are at the most malleable, most impacted stage by this. And it’s one of the reasons we’re excited to pilot it and get engaged better engagement in the classroom,” Fine said. “Do I expect everything to be perfect? Absolutely not. That would be foolish of me. But so far, so good.”

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