Richardson

Richardson ISD To Finalize New Superintendent Contract, Discuss Cell Phone Policy This Week

A proposal to 'lock up' students phones has been met with parent feedback

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After a months-long search, a new superintendent is about to take the helm in Richardson ISD.

A meeting will be held on Tuesday night to approve the employment contract for Tabitha Branum.

Branum has served as the interim superintendent since the search began in December. She's worked for RISD for 8 years as assistant superintendent of secondary schools and most recently as deputy superintendent. Click here to see Branum’s bio.

She will become RISD’s 10th superintendent since J.J. Pearce was named in 1946.

“I am honored and humbled to continue my service to RISD as superintendent,” Branum said in a statement. “I’m grateful for the trust that our Board has placed in me, and I accept this responsibility with great excitement for the future of Richardson ISD, our students, our staff, and our community. As an RISD parent, resident, and taxpayer, I’m fully invested in the success of our schools and am committed to providing the very best educational opportunities for all students.”

The search for a new RISD superintendent began at the end of last year, when previous superintendent, Jeanne Stone, resigned from her post following backlash over mask policies during the pandemic.

Branum already has a big proposal in the works that will be discussed at the school board meeting on Thursday.

It involves updating the student cellphone policy for junior high and high schools by purchasing special pouches and requiring students to lock up their phones during the school day.

“Cellphone use among RISD secondary students during the school day has become a major issue, especially in recent years,” Branum said in a statement posted on the district website. "We’ve also experienced a wide variety of disciplinary issues that are the product of student smartphone use during the school day, including student altercations, cyberbullying, prohibited activity, photos and videos in violation of other student’s privacy rights, and social media posts or texts that result in safety concerns on campuses.”

The district says school principals studied ideas over the summer and came up with a plan to purchase magnet-locked cellphone bags from a company called Yondr. The company also works with concert and comedy venues to create cell-phone free environments. The pouches have been used in schools since 2014.

RICHARDSON ISD PROPOSED CELL PHONE POLICY

The Richardson Independent School District is considering restricting cell phones in class during the new school year and the policy is already being met with strong feedback and concerns about safety.

Every RISD secondary student with a cellphone will be issued a Yondr Pouch.

If a student has a phone, every day when entering school, students turn it off and place it in the Yondr Pouch, which prevents it from being used.

At dismissal each day, students can unlock the Yondr Pouch at numerous unlocking stations throughout the school and begin using the phone.

RISD posted data on the success rates and other details on their website.

“Our teachers, principals, and school staff have been asking for the district to take action, as classroom distraction from phone use is a daily occurrence. Student cellphone use was the number one problem RISD secondary teachers cited in our end-of-year teacher survey, and was also cited as problematic both in the RISD parent survey and in the community feedback provided during the recent superintendent search process,” said Branum in a statement.

This is something some districts around the country and have actually been doing for years but it has sparked some debate over safety concerns.

"We know one reason many parents provide cell phones to their children is to be able to connect with them in the event of an emergency. I want that with my high schooler as well. As part of the implementation of this updated policy, parents should know that in the event of a school lockdown, our staff will have the ability to unlock the Yondr pouch as soon as it is safe so students can contact their parents to let them know that they are OK," Branum said in a video posted to the district YouTube page.

The district said if parents need to reach their child, they can use district-issued Chromebooks to communicate through email.

Days after sharing the proposed policy, a district spokesperson said they'd received a lot of feedback from parents and there was a possibility the proposal could change before Thursday's vote.

Parents are encouraged to leave feedback and comments on the proposal on the RISD website.

If approved, middle schools and high schools would implement Yondr over the first weeks of this school year.

RISD's first day of school will be on Tuesday, August 16.

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