Crawford Central School District Cell Phone Policy (2026)

Crawford Central School District, based in Meadville, enrolled 3,003 students in 2024-25 according to federal data. In 2025 it rewrote a phone ban that the Meadville Tribune said had been "largely ignored in recent years."

Crawford Central phone rules today

The Meadville Tribune reported in August 2025 that the board was set to vote on a revised electronic devices policy that keeps the existing ban on use during the day and adds: "All personal electronic devices must be turned off and stored in student's bookbag, personal storage device, locker, or district-provided caddy at all times during the school day as described in the respective school handbook." A quick reference guide sent to Meadville Area Senior High parents said devices must be off and out of view, stored in lockers or vehicles. Whether the vote passed is not confirmed.

Exceptions

The policy's exceptions cover devices needed for health reasons or under an individualized education program, devices used by students who are members of volunteer fire or emergency medical departments, and devices needed because of an immediate family member's medical condition. The volunteer responder exception is not one Act 117 allows.

What Act 117 requires of Crawford Central by 2027-28

Gov. Josh Shapiro approved SB 1014 on October 26, 2026. It is Act 117 of 2026, and it took effect that day. The text is Printer's No. 1697 on palegis.us. Every school entity must adopt a bell-to-bell policy by the start of the 2027-28 school year.

Act 117 requires	Crawford Central today	What changes by 2027-28
No student use for the whole school day, including homeroom, lunch, recess and passing time	Off and stored all day	Aligned with the whole-day rule.
The board decides how possession is restricted (taking phones is not required)	Bookbag, locker, caddy or vehicle	Aligned: Act 117 lets boards decide possession.
Required exceptions: documented medical need of the student or an immediate family member, IEP or 504, English learner translation, limited teacher-approved instructional use	Health, IEP and family medical needs	Add 504 plans and English learner translation.
Optional: a principal may approve another exception for up to one school day, with notice to the superintendent within 5 days after	Volunteer fire and EMS members	Teacher use must meet Act 117's three conditions; other exceptions capped at one day. The volunteer responder exception needs counsel review.
Written notice each year and on enrollment: a staffed way to reach your child, and how to sign up for emergency notifications	Not stated	Written notice each year and on enrollment of a staffed contact method and emergency sign-up.
Tell families, teachers and students about the policy each year; verify to PDE within 5 business days that it is posted online	Revised electronic devices policy (Aug. 2025)	Board policy posted, announced each year and verified to PDE.

Where LockedIn fits

Crawford Central already says devices stay off all day; its challenge was enforcement. LockedIn locks students' own phones from an admin dashboard with nothing to collect, so the rule holds in every building without staff checks, alongside the lockers and caddies already in use.

Act 117 has no general student emergency-use exception. The closest tool is the optional principal exception, which is capped at one school day and reported to the superintendent within five days afterward. LockedIn's Emergency Mode unlocks every phone on campus at once, so districts should have counsel review how that fits their emergency procedures and Act 117's exception rules.

Private and independent schools in Meadville

Act 117's definition of "school entity" includes private schools, approved private schools and nonpublic schools, so Meadville's private, independent and parochial schools need their own bell-to-bell policy by 2027-28. For those schools, the governing body plays the role the superintendent plays in a district, including receiving notice of any principal-approved exception.

Draft a policy that tracks Act 117's required exceptions and family notices with our policy generator.