Stitt asks schools to consider cell phone policy

(The Center Square) - Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt is asking students, teachers and superintendents to consider policies for managing cell phone use by students in schools.

"Cell phones are useful tools, but far too often, they cause distractions in the classroom," Stitt said Wednesday. "I know we can’t solve a problem like this with a top-down, heavy-handed government mandate. I know our students and teachers have the creative and innovative minds to solve this problem in their classroom, so I want to empower them to do just that."

Ideas will be accepted until Nov. 29 in what Stitt dubbed the Oklahoma Phone-Free School Challenge in an executive order. The submissions will be reviewed by Secretary of Education Nellie Sanders and Chief Advisor of Health and Mental Health Ellen Buettner, Stitt said.

“Student attention is being challenged in ways we’ve never faced before,” Sanders said. “Students are enduring a mental health epidemic that can’t be ignored, and we have an opportunity to eliminate one of the driving culprits: cell phones. As we explore the idea of cell phone-free schools, we’ll put student mental health first, approach it with empathy, and take our classrooms back.”

A best practices report will be presented to legislators and other state officials on Jan. 3.

Other states are also considering cell phone use in schools. Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne said in August he hopes a bill vetoed by Gov. Katie Hobbs that would have banned cell phone usage during the school day would be revised by the legislature.

Washington Superintendent of Public Instruction Chris Reykdal issued new guidelines that would limit cell phone use during class time, starting in the 2025-26 school year, according to previous reports .