Millville Area School District Cell Phone Policy (2026)

Millville Area School District in Columbia County enrolled 527 students in 2024-25 according to federal data. Its board approved a revised policy for 2026-27.

Millville Area phone rules today

The district announced on August 25, 2026 that the board approved a revised Electronic Devices Policy: "student cell phones will be required to remain in their lockers throughout the entire school day. Students will not be permitted to carry or use their phones during instructional periods, lunch, transitions between classes, or other portions of the school day." The Press Enterprise reported the board's ban on August 30, 2026. The 2025-26 handbook had allowed limited use outside class.

Medical accommodations

"When access to a cell phone or connected device is medically necessary, the District will work with families through the appropriate process, including Section 504, when applicable." Families with questions are directed to their school's office.

What Act 117 requires of Millville Area 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	Millville Area today	What changes by 2027-28
No student use for the whole school day, including homeroom, lunch, recess and passing time	Entire school day, lunch and transitions included	Aligned with the whole-day rule.
The board decides how possession is restricted (taking phones is not required)	Lockers	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	Medical, through Section 504 when applicable	Add family medical, IEP 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	Not stated	Teacher use must meet Act 117's three conditions; other exceptions capped at one day.
Written notice each year and on enrollment: a staffed way to reach your child, and how to sign up for emergency notifications	School office	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. 2026)	Board policy posted, announced each year and verified to PDE.

Where LockedIn fits

Millville already meets the whole-day rule with lockers. LockedIn locks students' own phones from an admin dashboard with nothing to collect, so a student with a medical need can keep a phone unlocked while every other phone stays locked, alongside the lockers.

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 Millville

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