Stevens Point, Wis. (WSAW) -Students are acting different at Pacelli Catholic High School this year, in a good way. They’re talking more in the halls and making better eye contact. All because of a new cell phone ban.
From 7:40 a.m. to the last school bell, students phones and smartwatches are locked inside Yondr pouches. So instead of scrolling during passing periods, lunch or even class, they’re talking to each other.
“It’s different actually talking to people than actually texting,” said Pacelli senior Kaydyn Nelson. “We understand each other a lot more right now. We are really building connections with each other, and we’re all becoming this bigger family, like how it’s supposed to be.“
Nelson is able to get more school work done with her phone locked away and has noticed less drama in school.
Some parents were concerned about not being able to get ahold of students. Bu they can now call the office instead, or e-mail students on their school Chromebooks. If there was an emergency, and students needed their phones, they could cut the pouches open with scissors.
“It’s okay to put it away,” said Angelo Bruscato.“You’re at school, you’re in a safe place to be yourself, to be who you want to be.”
Bruscato, better known as “Mr. B,” is the school’s social studies department chair and head of the junior senior leadership team. Before the ban, he collected phones in a classroom bin. Now, students are interacting more in class and are becoming closer with their teachers.
“Mr. B” helped bring Yondr pouches to the school and says the affects have been heartwarming.
“It makes me feel like I’ve accomplished something, or that I’ve done good. Especially seeing the types of anxiety and other mental health issues that phones and social media causes a lot of our young people, our teenagers. It’s okay to step away from it,” said “Mr. B.”
Students unlock their phones at the end of the day with magnets by the front office. If they get caught with a phone, it gets locked in the school vault for the day. Pacelli received a grant for the pouches and fundraised.
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