Potential ban will be discussed during July 8 meeting, vote to follow
By Jen Clancey STAFF WRITER
On Tuesday June 10, the Big Sky School District board introduced a cell-phone-free policy for Big Sky’s K-12 public schools. In the meeting, the board approved a first reading of Policy 3630, which if adopted would appear in the 2025-26 Big Sky School District student handbook. A second reading of the policy at the board’s July 8 meeting will decide if cell phones will be prohibited in district schools next school year.
Superintendent Dr. Dustin Shipman first brought up the topic in a September meeting following Gov. Greg Gianforte’s Aug. 22 letter calling for cell phone free schools. Since then, the board has revisited the topic, discussing research and distributing surveys for community members and students to evaluate the impact of cell phone use in academic environments.
Policy 3630 would prohibit the use of wearable and handheld devices including cell phones, smartphones, tablets, smart-watches, wireless earbuds, headsets and gaming devices during the school day.
The school district board sent out two surveys to parents and students, and also received a petition from several teachers asking for a bell-to-bell ban. Recently elected school board member Barbara Rowley shared results of the survey: 175 parent participants completed the survey in full, and just over 75% of participants fully supported a cell phone ban in schools, though 73 respondents shared some questions and concerns.
A majority of concerns suggested ways to teach responsibility with technology, as an alternative to or alongside banning cell phone use. Other parents shared worries about parent-child communication and potential emergency situations at schools.
A survey sent to students assessed how many ninth to 11th graders use phones in the classroom, among other questions. About 55% of students who received the survey by email responded about the use of cell phones in the school day.
“Sixty-five percent of them said they never use it. And then some of them … very small sliver, said they do use it and then the other rest said they use it depending on the teacher and the class,” Rowley said.
As for enforcement of the rules, board member Danielle McClain reminded the group that the policy needs to avoid extra pressure on teachers enforcing the rule.
“The only thing that I … think we need to do next is really think through all the other times and all the situations so that teachers don’t have to deal with enforcing this policy,” McClain said.
Board member Matt Dodd also noted concerns he’s heard from students, who recommend more activities or opportunities to be outside if phones are banned bell-to-bell.
“I was talking to some kids and they were saying, if they’re not gonna have phones, that’s fine. They can deal with that,” Dodd said. He described recess times as moments where kids expressed a want for more activities or options. “But they need something to do rather than just sit there with their thumbs, you know … in the hallways.”
Shipman agreed and said that more options are being discussed for kids in their recess and free time during the day. The board will work on creating specific guidelines for enforcement and exceptions to the cell phone free policy over the summer.
In a final comment, Ashley Jenks, BSSD librarian and media educator, shared her gratitude for taking the cell phone discussion seriously.
“There’s just… too much research behind it as far as the student learning environment. For me as a teacher, I see this as a tremendous opportunity,” Jenks said.
In Gov. Gianforte’s 2024 letter, he cited a Common Sense Media report, showing that 97% of the U.S. 11-to-17-year-olds participants admitted to using their cell phone during school. Jenks believes that a cell phone ban could result in positive change in academics and social life.
“I think these kids are gonna enjoy coming to school more,” Jenks said. “ They might not feel that way in the beginning, but I think we’re gonna come out, you know, three to six months on the other side, and we’re gonna see a huge social and cultural change.”
