Parents crowded into an MCPS board meeting last month and urged administrators to quickly adopt a cellphone-free policy at local schools. Many speakers expressed concern about the impact smartphones have on students’ ability to learn and socialize. On Tuesday, school officials presented a timeline outlining the implementation of a new policy.

“Experts recommend setting clear boundaries,” said Cindy Leary, a mother of two Missoula middle school students, at a July 30 meeting. “I think a clear policy for MCPS would be really helpful for all teachers and parents.”

Comments at the July 30 meeting echoed the statements of teachers interviewed, many of whom said they struggled with students who had become less respectful and whose attention spans had shortened.

On Tuesday, MCPS Superintendent Micah Hill joined the numerous public comments made at the July 30 meeting in support of a ban.

“They’ve done a great job of making the case for why we should implement a smartphone-free policy,” Hill said at Tuesday night’s board meeting. “Knowing that these things can sometimes be controversial and have an impact on our schools, we thought it was important that we look at this at an administrative level.”

As NPR reported in June, similar bans have been implemented across the country in recent months, including in New York City, the country’s largest school district.

Hill said the district’s timeline begins this September and ends with a possible full implementation plan in August 2025. Collecting data and surveys and engaging parents and communities on the proposals would be part of the review. The district’s legal counsel would also be involved.

“We will not deal with the first reading of a directive until December,” he said.

The district’s current phone policy states that cellphone use in the classroom and for educational purposes is limited to the discretion of teachers, Hill explained. He said he has asked school principals to immediately begin collecting information on building incidents involving cellphones, in accordance with current rules.

Erika Peterman, who leads the local working group pushing for a ban, said at a public hearing Tuesday that she was surprised by the district’s timeline.

She argued that the longer it takes to establish a policy, the greater the damage.

“These phones prevent children from connecting with each other and prevent communities from forming,” she said. “If we don’t do something about it now, not next year, but now, our community will continue to deteriorate.”

Jennifer Boyer, a Missoula mother, said the rule they are asking for is all-encompassing and would ban phones in hallways and during lunch breaks.

“This is a crisis,” she said.

The district has struggled with budget shortfalls this year that triggered 47 layoffs at both elementary and high schools. MCPS had previously acknowledged that layoffs would be necessary to offset a million-dollar deficit for the 2024-25 school year, and Hill had warned that as many as 100 layoffs could be necessary. Trustees on Tuesday approved budgets for the 2024-2025 school year for both MCPS high schools and elementary schools.

Three of four MCPS levies were passed by Missoula voters in May, helping the district regain some positions that were slated for elimination. Due to changes in the budget, homes will be taxed about 37 cents less per $100,000 of assessed home value, according to MCPS officials. Total budget amounts for MCPS elementary school properties are $72 million, a 6.2% increase over the 2023-2024 school year. The total high school budget is $57.7 million for the 2024-2025 year, a 6.9% increase over the previous year.

“We appreciate everyone’s work on this,” Vice Chairman Jeffrey Avgeris said at Tuesday’s meeting. “It was a very difficult budget to put together. (I) appreciate the administration and all the work you’ve done to get this done, and I’m glad we found a way to balance a budget and move forward.”