Richardson ISD Launches Pilot Program for Cellphone Lock Pouches

Richardson ISD goes back to class on Tuesday.

You may have heard about the district's controversial plan to ban some students from using cellphones by locking it in a pouch.

At a school board meeting last week, the decision was made to scale back on that plan – but not entirely.

RISD will be using Forest Meadow Junior High as a testing ground this school year for the Yondr pouch.

The pouch company has been selected by the school district as an potential solution to help cut back on distractions in classrooms, disciplinary problems, and cyberbullying that educators and campus administrators have expressed concern about RISD over the years. Yondr also works with concert and comedy venues to create cell-phone free environments. The pouches have been used by other school districts across the country since 2014.

As this pilot rolls out at this one campus, students will be required to turn off and lock up their phones in the pouches. The district said students will carry the pouch with them throughout the day and at dismissal, they can unlock it at designated stations.

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

“RISD will track cellphone-related student discipline data and survey classroom teachers at all schools later in the first semester to evaluate the effectiveness and potential expansion of the Yondr pouch system to other schools. FMJH will communicate guidelines and expectations for the pilot to families,” district officials said in a statement posted online.

Originally, the district was going to implement this idea at all campuses. But after a massive outcry from parents and the community during a meeting last week, they decided to test it first at one campus.

“Parent input is an important factor in school district decisions, and we appreciate those who have engaged on this topic,” superintendent Tabitha Branum said in an online statement. “The overwhelming takeaway from the feedback is that parents almost universally agree that cellphones are a distraction for students and a problem in the classroom. I can tell you that our principals and many secondary teachers strongly agree with this as well.”

In the meetings leading up to the pilot program, some principals spoke in support of banning cellphones from secondary schools and shared the effect its having on teachers.

According to the Dallas Morning News, the principal of Richardson High School said almost 90% of the discipline issues they’ve dealt with last year started with a cellphone and that it was wearing teachers down.

On the flip side, parents expressed safety concerns that the pouch could prevent them from communicating with their child during emergency situations.

“Some parents cited concerns with the cost of implementing it districtwide, others cited concerns about being able to reach their student in a potential safety situation, and others questioned whether the program would be effective as some students work to circumvent the pouches,” said Branum. “These are valid and fair questions.”

During this pilot test at Forest Meadow Junior High, the district said parents can still communicate with their kids through email on school-issued laptops. Phones will also be unlocked during emergencies.

While Richardson ISD tries to hammer out a long term solution, it will start enforcing a "cellphone free environment" in hallways and classrooms at all middle school and high schools starting Tuesday.

These changes are the first updates RISD has made to its cellphone policy since 2012.

RISD said parents who choose to provide their child with a cellphone are strongly encouraged to set expectations with their child related to use at school. 

It provided resources that parents can consider when setting expectations for their child’s cellphone use.