Fayetteville School Board updates student handbook, limits phone use

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA) — The Fayetteville School Board has approved the new student handbook for the upcoming school year and in it is a change to student cell phone use.

Under the “Cell Phone-Smart Device Restrictions” section of the handbook, it says during the fall semester, students in seventh through 12th grade will only have access to their cell phones during passing periods and lunch.

The district’s goal for the spring semester is to restrict cell phone and smart device usage for the entire school day.

“We did make some changes to the phrasing in there, from what people had seen previously online,” Fayetteville School Board President Nika Waitsman said. “So if you update that, it should be corrected now, and it has clarified that the rule change is a goal for January. It will be the exact same language that went this afternoon.”

In partnership with the Arkansas Department of Education, the school is investing in locking storage units for grades five through 12.

They’ll be implemented once they arrive, which may be the start of the fall semester.

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