New Castle Area School District Cell Phone Policy (2026)

New Castle Area School District in Lawrence County enrolled 2,920 students in 2024-25 according to federal data. It moved to a lockers-only rule midway through 2023-24.

New Castle Area phone rules today

The New Castle News reported in January 2024 that the board voted 8-0 to restrict student phones: phones may be kept only in lockers, not in classrooms or anywhere else on school grounds. Superintendent Dr. Gregg Paladina recommended the change.

What Act 117 requires of New Castle 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	New Castle Area today	What changes by 2027-28
No student use for the whole school day, including homeroom, lunch, recess and passing time	Lockers only during school	Aligned with the whole-day rule if it covers lunch.
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	Not confirmed	Write in all four required exceptions.
Optional: a principal may approve another exception for up to one school day, with notice to the superintendent within 5 days after	Not confirmed	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	Not confirmed	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	Board vote (Jan. 2024)	Board policy posted, announced each year and verified to PDE.

Where LockedIn fits

New Castle Area already keeps phones in lockers. LockedIn locks students' own phones from an admin dashboard with nothing to collect, so students without a usable locker, or on trips and at events, are covered by the same rule, 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 New Castle

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