MISSOULA, Mont. — The 2024 school year in Missoula begins in just over a week.
Missoula County Public Schools leaders are looking to address a growing challenge: the proliferation of smartphones. At Tuesday’s school board meeting, trustees got a preview of a new cellphone-free policy that could be implemented in Missoula.
The plan for the coming school year includes data collection, statewide surveys and an examination of the potential costs of the measure.
The school district has established a data collection schedule. Community data review is currently underway. Additional policy research and survey development is scheduled to begin on October 1. Surveys for parents, students and staff will follow.
A draft is expected by November, with final adoption scheduled for January 2025.
Parents support this idea, pointing to an increase in anxiety and bullying and believing that mobile phones distract them from education.
“It seems like this solution is being implemented across the country with very rapid and positive results, and I think we might not be behind, but right in the middle of it,” said Matt Simms, a Missoula resident and former teacher.
The current policy allows phone use at the discretion of teachers.
The new mobile phone-free school policy could be fully implemented by the start of the 2025 school year.
The next school board meeting is scheduled for September 10.
