Dallastown Area School District Cell Phone Policy (2026)

Dallastown Area School District enrolled 6,365 students in 2024-25 according to federal data. In August 2026 its board asked directly whether the high school should go all day, and Act 117 has now answered.

Dallastown phone rules today

The board's August 4, 2026 special meeting agenda posed the question: "Should cell phones be restricted for students at DAHS for the entirety of the instructional day?" The attached "Cell Phone Expectations" set out the rules by grade band:

• Grades K-6: "Off and Away" at all times. Grades 4-6 have zero tolerance for in-school social media posting.
• Grades 7-8: "Off and Away" at all times, with use only for a specific educational purpose under teacher supervision.
• Grades 9-12: prohibited during direct instruction. Phones are allowed in hallways, study halls and at lunch, and a teacher may allow them during self-directed work.
• Consequences escalate by grade band. In K-6, a first offense means confiscation, pickup at the end of the day and parent contact, and repeat offenses mean parent pickup, detention and a phone ban. In 7-8, the phone is held until 2:50 p.m. and the offense is logged in Skyward. In 9-12, a teacher warning comes first, then a call home, then teacher detention.

We did not find the board's final decision on the high school question.

What Act 117 requires of Dallastown 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	Dallastown today	What changes by 2027-28
No student use for the whole school day, including homeroom, lunch, recess and passing time	K-8 off and away; 9-12 hallway, study hall, lunch and self-directed work allowed	End all high school use outside direct instruction.
The board decides how possession is restricted (taking phones is not required)	Off and away; confiscation after violations	Choose a whole-day method at the high school.
Required exceptions: documented medical need of the student or an immediate family member, IEP or 504, English learner translation, limited teacher-approved instructional use	Educational purpose under supervision (7-8)	Add the four required exceptions; teacher use must meet Act 117's three conditions.
Optional: a principal may approve another exception for up to one school day, with notice to the superintendent within 5 days after	Teacher discretion during self-directed work	Cap other exceptions at one school day with notice within 5 days.
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	Expectations document; Policy 815.1 under discussion	Board policy posted, announced each year and verified to PDE.

Where LockedIn fits

Dallastown's high school would move from four open settings to none. LockedIn locks students' own phones from an admin dashboard with nothing to collect, so the rule can cover hallways and study halls without staff checking each room.

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 the Dallastown area

Act 117's definition of "school entity" includes private schools, approved private schools and nonpublic schools, so the Dallastown area'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.