Parkland School District Cell Phone Policy (2026)

Parkland School District enrolled 9,996 students in 2024-25 according to federal data. Its board revised Policy 237 in September 2026, a month before the legislature passed SB 1014, and the new version still allows high school phone use at lunch.

Parkland phone rules today

The Lehigh Valley Press reported that the board unanimously approved a revised Policy 237, Electronic Devices, on September 15, 2026, along with a new electronic search policy:

• Covered devices include smartwatches, AI-enabled devices, smart glasses, virtual reality headsets and wireless earbuds.
• Recording of students, staff, classrooms or non-public events is banned without authorization.
• Elementary: generally no use in buildings, on property, on buses or at activities.
• Middle school: no use during instructional periods unless authorized.
• High school: use is allowed during non-instructional periods, including lunch and between classes, if not disruptive.
• Searches: a device taken for a Policy 237 violation may be searched only with articulable reasonable suspicion, and password-protected content needs consent.

At the meeting, resident Mike Bodnar said, "We don't need another policy written on paper... We need consistent enforcement and results," and pointed to Bethlehem Area as the stronger model.

What Act 117 requires of Parkland 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	Parkland today	What changes by 2027-28
No student use for the whole school day, including homeroom, lunch, recess and passing time	Middle and high school allow non-instructional use; high school lunch and passing time	Revise Policy 237 again so no grade allows use at lunch or between classes.
The board decides how possession is restricted (taking phones is not required)	Phones stay with students	Choose a possession method for the whole day.
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 stated in coverage	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	Authorized use	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	Policy online	Annual notice and PDE posting verification.

Parkland's device list is already broader than Act 117's. Act 117's definition of a mobile device excludes FDA medical devices and dual-use watches with Wi-Fi and data turned off, so the district should check its smartwatch language against that.

Where LockedIn fits

Bodnar's point was enforcement. LockedIn locks students' own phones from an admin dashboard with nothing to collect, so the rule does not depend on staff spotting phones. That could also mean fewer confiscations, and fewer of the device searches the new search policy governs.

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 Parkland area

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