Complete ban on phones in school floated in Kansas: What local districts do now
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- Kansas Senate filed bipartisan SB302 to require statewide school cell phone bans.
- Bill bans phones, tablets, watches and earbuds from opening bell to dismissal.
- Districts would have to adopt new policies by Sept. 1; IEP and medical exceptions.
All Kansas students from kindergarten through 12th grade may soon be prohibited from using cell phones at school.
Republican and Democratic leaders in the Kansas Senate have pre-filed a bipartisan bill that would require all public and private accredited school districts to adopt policies banning cell phones and other personal communication devices during school hours.
“Phone-free schools give students space to think, build authentic human relationships, and protect student mental health from constant digital pressure,” said Senate Majority Leader Chase Blasi, an Andale Republican, in a press release. “The longer phones stay in classrooms, the harder it becomes to undo the damage.”
The release describes the bill, which has 28 co-sponsors, as a high priority for lawmakers returning to Topeka next week to begin the 2026 legislative session.
Most Sedgwick County public districts already have policies restricting phone use during the school day. Existing policies that allow for limited screen time during lunch and passing periods would have to be updated if the bill became law.
But some school systems and representatives say the decision should lie with individual districts and their policymakers.
“I think we have the ability as us seven members and with the support of our staff to work out the logistics,” Wichita Public Schools board member Stan Reeser said. “I know our staff has already been thinking about some of the logistics of if this needs to happen. I think we’re running into kind of a dangerous ground if we come out officially in support of this. …. But to have a state law that requires it is opening a door that this school board and other school boards throughout the state would not be able to close on other issues.”
Cell phone ban specifics
Senate Bill 302 would prohibit students from using cell phones and any other personal electronic communication devices not issued by the district while on school premises from the opening bell until classes are dismissed.
Other pieces of technology that would be banned under the bill’s language include tablets, computers, smartwatches, wireless headphones and earbuds, and personal digital assistants.
The bill would require that all devices be turned off and securely stored in an inaccessible location during instructional time. Districts would be required to establish enforcement procedures and disciplinary actions for students who violate the policy.
There would be exceptions for students who need devices for the implementation of their individualized education program, or IEP, as well as for students who present notes from licensed physicians deeming certain devices to be medically necessary to support their health or well-being.
Current school device policies
Most public school districts in the Wichita metro area have adopted their own cell phone policies in recent years, many of which are available online.
The Wichita, Derby, Clearwater, Maize and Haysville districts have policies that allow high school students to access their cell phones and other personal devices during lunch and/or passing periods. While middle and elementary students in these districts are expected to power off and store their devices during school hours, some of those rules can be bent with permission from a teacher.
Some districts have policies that differ depending on the student’s grad or school.
Several districts also have penalties against students using faux-phones, or items intended to look like or simulate cellphones, to feign real phones meant to be stored in classroom cubbies.
Here’s a look at the policies of area school districts.
USD 259, Wichita
The largest district in the state, with more than 45,000 students, Wichita Public Schools applies one phone use policy across its 88 schools.
Since 2023, school policy dictates personal electronic devices, including but not limited to cell phones, tablets, student-owned computers, headphones, earbuds and speakers, must be powered off and stored at Wichita elementary and middle schools. Phones at district middle schools can be used during class time for instructional purposes, but with the approval of a teacher and administrator.
At the district’s nine high schools, phones can be used before and after school, during passing periods, at lunch and otherwise during the day with permission from school faculty.
Chief Financial Officer Addi Lowell and Senior Finance Manager Susan Willis said in a recent school board meeting that the district is “conditionally supportive” of the bills’ proposals, but did express a desire to modify language surrounding phone use and the high school’s open lunch.
“I think the open lunch consideration is really important. The bills have language which is ‘on school premises,’” board member Amy Warren said. Warren has been an active advocate for stricter phone and screen time policies in schools. “And that is meant to imply that if students leave for lunch or if they’re going to a future ready center or if they’re going to a doctor’s appointment, that they would be able to retrieve their phone.
“That seems like a very realistic thing to allow that if the student is not under our direct care, that we are not under care of their phone.”
But not all board members were as keen about the implications of the bills’ proposed policies.
“The problem with this is this is a bill that is taking out of hand control of a local school board to address that problem,” Reeser said. “ ... I think we’re treading some dangerous ground if we support this as a school district because once the Legislature gets us to agree to a ban on cell phones, the next bill that comes up and it’s a ban on something we want to keep, then they’re going to say ‘Well, you agreed to a cell phone ban and you didn’t complain about local control then.’”
USD 260, Derby
With more than 7,000 students enrolled across 12 schools, the Derby Public Schools district opted to adopt different policies for its elementary, middle and high schools in order to maintain “a focused and distraction-free learning environment that supports student achievement,” a district statement on cell phone policies read.
At the district’s nine elementary schools, students are not allowed to use cell phones during school hours. Middle school students also must power off and store their cell phones from the school day’s start to end.
Although students at Derby High School are discouraged from bringing personal property to school, they may use their own tech, including cell phones, earbuds and personal laptops, before and after school, as well as during passing periods.
USD 261, Haysville
The Haysville Unified School District implemented a more restrictive cell phone policy for high school students in the 2024-2025 school year, Communications Director Adia Ludwig said. That policy aligns with much of what’s included in Senate Bill 302.
Similar to Wichita and Derby schools, Haysville high school students can use their phones before school, during passing periods, classroom breaks, lunch and after school. Otherwise, devices must be stored as part of the district’s “bell to bell” approach.
“We prioritize a focused learning environment to maximize student success. Personal electronic devices (cell phones, earbuds, etc.) can be a distraction, and we encourage students to leave them at home,” the Campus High School handbook read.
Devices can be used in the classroom if permission is given by a teacher for instructional purposes.
At the elementary and middle school levels, the rules are more restrictive. “Cell phones are not necessary for educational purposes,” a 2025 Haysville middle school policy read. “Cell phones should not be heard or seen while at school.”
In several policies, the district stressed that these devices should be left at home whenever possible. Additionally, the district warned that in the event of an emergency, students should never use their phones in order to prevent “the spread of panic in our community and the possible triggering of electrically detonated explosive devices.”
USD 262, Valley Center
Some districts, like Valley Center Public Schools, don’t operate under a single, districtwide cell phone policy but instead set expectations at the building level in accordance with student’s age and instructional needs.
At Valley Center Middle School, phones and other electronic devices must remain turned off and put away at all times unless a staff member grants permission for use, Valley Center’s Director of Communication Amy Pavlacka said.
“At the high school level, expectations allow for more flexibility, with staff discretion guiding appropriate use during the school day,” Pavlacka said.
While teachers at Valley Center High School do not use lock boxes for devices, teachers are permitted to use classroom cubbies for storing phones.
USD 263, Mulvane
Mulvane’s handbook acknowledges that phones can be a distraction and highly encourages students of all grade levels to leave them at home. Otherwise, phones must be powered off and stored in a student’s backpack or locker.
“Students are not to text or call from their cell phones or smart watches during school hours,” the district’s policy read. “They are disruptive to the learning environment.“
Smartwatches, however, are permitted as long as they don’t create a distraction, and students are welcome to use their school’s office phone to make calls during school hours.
USD 264, Clearwater
Cell phones at Clearwater Elementary West are expected to stay at home or in a student’s backpack while seventh and eighth grade students can use their mobile devices during morning gym and after school.
“This policy ensures that students remain focused on instruction and engaged in their learning,” the district’s middle school handbook read. “ ... Students are asked to keep their personal property at home. They are encouraged to bring to school only notebooks, pencils, pens, and other school articles that are necessary for class.”
Students who attend Clearwater High School are allowed to use cell phones and personal electronic devices during passing periods and lunch.
USD 265, Goddard
Goddard Unified School District also issues its own policies for each school that differentiate between teachers, but students are not allowed to use phones in a way that disrupts teaching. There are provisions in most Goddard school policies that express an intolerance for phones used to cheat, violate the confidentiality or privacy rights of another individual, or threaten anyone.
USD 266, Maize
Rules between Maize elementary, middle and high schools vary, but the district’s consensus is that cell phones are a distraction and limit a student’s potential for success.
Students from kindergarten to sixth grade have to keep their cell phones in their backpacks for the duration of the school day unless given permission otherwise by a teacher. The same applies to Maize middle schoolers, who are expected to store their phones in their lockers.
High schoolers, meanwhile, can reunite with their phones only during passing periods and lunch time. Their use is explicitly prohibited in class, and students can be found in violation of the district’s phone policy if their stored device disrupts a class.
USD 267, Renwick
Renwick Unified School District’s 2024-2025 handbook online makes no mention of personal cell phone use policies.
The district has two high schools, four elementary schools and one virtual school. One of these schools, St. Marks Elementary, prohibits the use of cell phones in its school policy.
“SMS realizes that cell phones are valuable communication tools for students and parents,” the policy read. “However, cell phones are disruptive to the school day.”
As in most other districts with phone policies, Renwick teachers can confiscate devices being used in violation with their rules.
USD 268, Cheney
Cheney Unified School District is unique in that unlike most other Sedgwick County schools, it already operates under a bell-to-bell cell phone ban.
At Cheney Elementary School, no non-school issued electronic devices can be used on school property from 7:40 a.m. to 3:10 p.m. Cheney Middle School has a similar rule in effect, with phone use prohibited from 8 a.m. to 3:20 p.m. Devices must be left at home or in a locker, and cells that are heard or seen are confiscated.
The use of non-school issued electronic devices at Cheney High School is only allowed with a teacher or supervising adult’s permission.
USD 375, Circle Public Schools
Circle Public Schools’ high school handbook does not make mention of a cell phone or digital device policy. However, the district’s middle and elementary school handbooks outline that cell phones must be shut off and out of sight at the beginning of the school day.
Exceptions include that, in the event of injury or illness, students can use personal cell phones to call their parents with the permission of office staff. At Circle Middle School, phones can be used with prior authorization from a staffer or administrator.
USD 385, Andover
Currently, each Andover secondary school has its own cell phone and digital device policy. Terry Rombeck, the district’s director of communication, said they are working now to consolidate those into one district policy.
“I’m not sure if or how the bill’s filing might affect our process,” Rombeck said.
Now, devices must be stored in students’ backpacks at elementary schools and in student lockers at district middle schools. Meanwhile, phone use is up to the discretion of individual teachers at the high school level, and devices can be used during lunch and passing periods.
The subject has been a hot topic for Andover Public Schools’ “Screen Time Task Force,” a group of 41 teachers, administrators, parents and students who research screen time and cell phone use in schools.
On Jan. 13, the group made recommendations to the school board for the high school to implement restrictions similar to the elementary and middle school policies.
“The feedback shows that the current bell-to-bell policy in place in elementary and middle schools is effective and results in minimal learning distractions caused by PEDs (personal electronic devices),” a district statement read.
The board will vote on the proposed change at its Feb. 9 meeting.
What’s next for SB 302?
If Senate Bill 302 becomes law, districts will have to adopt new device policies conforming to its heightened restrictions no later than Sept. 1. While most districts have already been proactive in their phone use policies, with teachers given the freedom to regulate cell phone use in their classrooms as they see fit, Valley Center and other district schools are prepared to modify their policies as needed to adhere to state law.
“While we believe local schools are best positioned to determine what works for their students, we would fully comply with any mandated changes,” Pavlacka said.
The Senate press release says leaders expect the bill to pass in January. To become law, it would also have to be approved by the House and signed by Gov. Laura Kelly or approved over her veto by two-thirds of lawmakers in both chambers.
This story was originally published January 9, 2026 at 11:32 AM with the headline "Complete ban on phones in school floated in Kansas: What local districts do now."
