Superintendent Karl Mueller informed the governing board that the Coronado Unified School District is currently in compliance with California’s Phone-Free School Act, a mandate that becomes effective in July 2026.
The law, signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in September, requires school districts and charter schools statewide to adopt policies limiting or prohibiting the use of smartphones. Despite the title, it does not outright ban cell phones on campuses.
The district’s current policy, 5131.8, says students may use smartphones or other mobile communication devices on campus during noninstructional time as long as the devices are utilized in accordance with law and applicable school rules.
According to the district policy, mobile communication devices must be turned off during classes and placed in cell phone pockets as of May. Mueller said this applies to the middle and high school campuses.
Concerns about smartphone usage on CUSD campuses got amplified recently as a result of several incidents, including the alleged bullying of a student via social media. The 13-year-old boy committed suicide, leading to a lawsuit filed by his parents against the district for alleged negligence.
When the district addressed a recent stabbing incident at the middle school, Mueller said revisions may be in order for the current phone policy.
Across the board, trustees expressed support for reviewing the policy.
“The harm versus the benefit to having cell phones in schools seems to be rather unbalanced and we need to explore ways in which we might be able to come up with a better policy,” said trustee Fitzhugh Lee. “I know it’s a sensitive subject, but the data seems relatively clear.”
“The act in it of itself doesn’t really prohibit, it just says limit or prohibit,” said trustee Scot Youngblood referring to the act’s use of ‘phone-free.’ “We are in compliance but I fully support looking at other options.”
“I’ve been pushing for this since the day I got here three years ago and I’m glad that it’s getting some traction,” said trustee Malachy Sandie. “I know there’s going to be a lot of pushback, but I think we should fight through it. I think it’d be worth it.”
“I agree, I think it’s time to review this. There will be, I’m sure, some pushback especially from students,” said board president Alexia Palacios-Peters. “This will be a process to get everybody’s voices. It’s not going to be something that’s going to happen tomorrow. To make sure that we come up with the best policy.”
“It’s not that the policy is not enforced; the policy is enforced by all the teachers that I know of,” Haissam Kouli, the board’s student representative, said. “But students find a way to get around it. They try to sneak their phones in whatever way they can and I think it’s good to be looking at that.”
The board expects to learn about options for best practices in a staff review integrating community input.
The next regular board meeting is set for 4 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 11 at the district office.
