{"id":7849,"date":"2025-06-24T08:18:43","date_gmt":"2025-06-24T08:18:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/princetonillinois.com\/?p=7849"},"modified":"2025-06-24T08:18:43","modified_gmt":"2025-06-24T08:18:43","slug":"superintendents-in-illinois-valley-prefer-to-maintain-local-control-when-it-comes-to-cellphones-shaw-local","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/princetonillinois.com\/?p=7849","title":{"rendered":"Superintendents in Illinois Valley prefer to maintain local control when it comes to cellphones – Shaw Local"},"content":{"rendered":"


Gov. JB Pritzker wants to keep cell phones out of classrooms. He\u2019s told educators he\u2019ll sign legislation requiring districts to have policies in place for the upcoming school year. <\/span>(Daily Journal\/Tiffany Blanchette)
Gov. JB Pritzker wants to keep cellphones out of classrooms. He\u2019s told educators he\u2019ll sign legislation requiring districts to have policies in place for the upcoming school year.
Superintendents in the Illinois Valley said they\u2019re already there \u2013 in fact, many districts have policies governing electronic devices, not merely cellphones.
Oglesby<\/a> Elementary Superintendent Michael Pillion said he\u2019s looked through the advancing legislation and it looks consistent with current Oglesby policies and procedures.
\u201cI don\u2019t see much change in how we conduct the school day now,\u201d Pillion said. \u201cStudents generally are compliant with a few instances happening towards the beginning of the year, but then tapering off. I have not received any complaints from parents myself.\u201d
Pillion may as well have been speaking for his colleagues across La Salle<\/a> and Bureau<\/a> counties. Local school districts typically have policies in place already and most of the administrators interviewed said their rules should comport neatly with whatever the Legislature passes.
Pritzker had announced during his State of the State address <\/u><\/a>an initiative to improve student performance by limiting the use of cellphones in Illinois classrooms.
Pritzker said he plans to put forward legislation \u201crequiring all school districts in Illinois to adopt a cellphone policy that bans the use of phones during classroom instruction,\u201d although the plans would reportedly need to make exceptions for emergency situations and for individuals with medical necessities or language barriers that may require the use of special apps available on phones.
Hall High School Superintendent Jesse Brandt, for one, anticipates no problem with compliance. Brandt said students are required, during instructional time, to keep electronic devices out-of-sight unless the student has permission to keep it handy, the device is permitted under the student\u2019s individualized education program or it is needed in an emergency.
\u201cStudents generally comply,\u201d Brandt said. \u201cThere are some cases where phones are turned into the office and a parent must pick them up.\u201d
Ottawa<\/a> High School also is ahead of the curve. Superintendent Michael Cushing said electronic devices must be kept powered-off and out-of-sight during instructional time (that is, when the bell rings), though OTHS carves out a few exceptions. These include personal emergencies, when prior permission is granted, or when the device is provided in a student\u2019s individualized education program.
Similarly, La Salle<\/a> Elementary has a policy on electronic devices in place, though Superintendent Brian DeBernardi acknowledged there are a few differences in the rules governing the elementary schoolchildren and the junior high students.
\u201cFor many of the grade levels, students do not have access to cellphones during school hours to a device,\u201d he said. \u201cThis is purely based on age, so for the early childhood and early elementary grade levels a change in legislation has little impact on the district. As far as regular access to cellphones, I would say the middle school is the line of demarcation where students regularly have access to cellphones.\u201d
\u201cI would not directly say that cellphone usage in middle school is an epidemic. There might be instances where staff need to intervene, or there may be a student specific issue that needs to be addressed.\u201d
As with any disciplinary rule, there are going to be violations. Jim Hermes, superintendent of Spring Valley<\/a> Elementary Schools, where phones are to be switched off and stored during the day, said he is pleased with compliance at his schools.
\u201cA majority follow the rules,\u201d Hermes said. \u201cOur teachers do a great job of monitoring their classrooms and our hallways. We have caught a few over the years breaking the rules, but the thought of possibly having the phone confiscated deters most.\u201d
Jamie Craven, superintendent of Peru<\/a> Elementary, said his district also requires students to stash their cellphones and smart watches (unless the device is used for medical reasons) and keep them off until the school day has ended — unless permission has been granted by a supervising teacher.
\u201cIn general we do not have issues with this policy and this is not a major problem for us,\u201d Craven said. \u201cFrom a parent perspective I completely understand the desire for students to be able to have their devices with them for use before and after school, especially those who are involved in afterschool activities, traveling on buses, walking home from school, etc.\u201d
Students aren\u2019t the only ones with strong feelings about cellphone usage. Parents typically want to get hold of their children digitally. Denise Aughenbaugh, superintendent of Mendota High School, said parents generally are on board with the district\u2019s policy.
\u201cWe support any parental decision to keep cellphones or other electronic devices at home and off of school property,\u201d she said. \u201cIn our experience, parents prefer to communicate with their children through personal cellphone messages instead of contacting the district offices to relay a message to their students.\u201d
DeBernardi said he\u2019ll be watching for what comes out of Springfield but on the whole cellphone use has been discussed ad nauseam and the policy has evolved accordingly.
While it is unlikely Springfield will bring about major changes, DeBernardi said he\u2019s monitoring the progress of two bills and has zeroed in on the words \u201cwireless devices and\/or screens.\u201d He wonders about the scope and breadth of the legislation to come.
Craven said he thinks Springfield should simply leave the matter up to the school districts.
\u201cWe have become so dependent on devices it is almost a safety and security device,\u201d he said. \u201cThere are multiple arguments on both sides of this issue but in my opinion this should be left up to each local school board, not a state mandate.\u201d
Mendota High School student Travis Mumm demonstrates how to use the cellphone holder in a classroom Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2024. Students place their phones in these holders during class time. <\/span>(Photo provided by Mendota High School)
Pritzker had announced during his State of the State address an initiative to improve student performance by limiting the use of cellphones in Illinois classrooms. <\/span>(Photo provided by Mendota High School)
Copyright \u00a9 2023 Shaw Local News Network
Copyright \u00a9 2023 Shaw Local News Network<\/p>\n

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Gov. JB Pritzker wants to keep cell phones out of classrooms. He\u2019s told educators he\u2019ll sign legislation requiring districts to have policies in place for the upcoming school year. (Daily Journal\/Tiffany Blanchette)Gov. JB Pritzker wants to keep cellphones out of classrooms. He\u2019s told educators he\u2019ll sign legislation requiring districts to have policies in place for the upcoming school year.Superintendents in<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7849","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t