Marin County school district considers plan that would restrict cellphone usage on campus

By CBS Bay Area

On April 14, the Tamalpais Union High School District will be discussing and potentially voting on a plan that would restrict cellphone usage on campus. 

School leaders are considering options, including locked pouches to store their phones or having teachers collect phones at the beginning of class. 

“I am a little dismayed that the kids are at school at lunch and passing periods and checking social things, playing games, being distracted and generally being less connected to their peers,” David McMorran, a parent, told CBS News Bay Area. 

His older daughter attends a high school in the Tamalpais Union High School District, while his younger daughter attends a middle school in a different district. 

“I’m kind of the parent that’s always like, ‘You don’t need your phone right now. No phones in your bedroom, please put it on the charger’ because this is a pretty limited window in their life where I get to guide them on kind of the social responsibility and emotional fortitude they get to have as they grow up,” he said.

He and hundreds of other parents are urging the Tamalpais Union High School District to pass a bell-to-bell policy restricting cellphone usage on school grounds.

His daughter, Edie McMorran, has already gotten used to the no-phone policy at her middle school.

“Talking with peers that we don’t like sit next to and are friends with. And I feel like that really helped connect with everyone,” she told CBS News Bay Area. 

She shared that she doesn’t have a cellphone, but has an Apple Watch. 

“I’ve actually had my watch like before it was actually put into place. And I found out that I would be getting random text messages in class, and I would be like, ‘What is that?’ And I feel like I kind of didn’t hear what the teacher said, and I would be behind all the schoolwork and stuff,” she said.

She said that she puts her watch away by 8 p.m. every night. 

Lauren Goodman, another parent, wrote a letter alongside nonprofit Screen Sence, to the board of trustees, urging for cellphone limitations. She shared that the letter has amassed more than 900 signatures from parents, constituents, pediatricians and therapists in the school district. 

Jennifer Holden, a board trustee with the Tamalpais Union High School District, said they are taking in consideration all options for phone restrictions. 

They are looking into possibly purchasing phone pouches, that estimate $140,000 for the more than 4,500 students. 

“On average, students lose about 56 school days because of cell phone use. And that has to do with the way we learn, and process information. So, if you’re not using your cellphone in class, you’re learning a new concept, but you immediately go and pick up that cellphone, you’ve now lost what you’ve learned,” Holden told CBS News Bay Area. 

She is looking forward to a policy that will prioritize student safety. 

“We will see healthier children, healthier teens, teens that are getting more out of their school experience,” she said. 

Holden also reassured parents who had concerns about communication. 

“One more thing that I’ve heard is just how will parents reach their students throughout the school day. And again, there will be a central number, there is already, but we’ll make sure that there is a way for parents to reach their students in case of an emergency,” she said. 

The school board trustee added that the goal is to have this policy in effect beginning the next academic year. 

Danny Weiss, based in San Francisco, is the chief advocacy officer with Common Sense Media. He has been working with New York educators, who already have a no-cellphone and internet-connected device policy. 

“You want to minimize the role that the teacher has to play in enforcing the policy, so you put more of the burden on the students themselves and possibly other administrators,” Weiss told CBS News Bay Area. 

“In California, we support strengthening California’s law on cell phone ban. Starting July 1, 2026, all schools have to have a policy in place to limit students’ access to cellphones,” he said. 

While he said it’s too soon for high-quality data, Weiss has reported some significant changes since the state of New York implemented the cellphone ban. 

“There’s a reduction in cyberbullying, which is still a problem in schools. There’s a reduction in visitations to a school counselor for psychological issues. There have been reports of students spending a lot more time, hanging out, talking with each other. A data point would be the lunchroom is louder,” he said. 

Weiss added that Common Sense Media is pushing for the state of California to prohibit the use of cellphones and internet-connected devices entirely by July 2027.

“That’s the really big difference between the current policy and what ought to be in place,” he said. 

McMorran said it all comes down to safety online. 

“Don’t bring phones that have access to everything in the world. And more importantly, everything in the world has access to our kids, when they’re supposed to be focused on the teachers,” he said.