PENNCREST School District Cell Phone Policy (2026)

PENNCREST School District in Crawford County enrolled 2,408 students in 2024-25 according to federal data. Its board narrowed classroom phone access in August 2025.

PENNCREST phone rules today

Citizen Portal reported in August 2025 that after extended discussion the board approved an updated acceptable-use policy and 2025-26 handbooks requiring students to store phones in lockers by the start of homeroom or first period, with access permitted in the cafeteria and at dismissal. The rule took effect August 27, 2025.

What Act 117 requires of PENNCREST 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	PENNCREST today	What changes by 2027-28
No student use for the whole school day, including homeroom, lunch, recess and passing time	Lockers from homeroom; cafeteria and dismissal access	End cafeteria use.
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 stated	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 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	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	Acceptable-use policy and handbooks (Aug. 2025)	Board policy posted, announced each year and verified to PDE.

Where LockedIn fits

PENNCREST already keeps phones in lockers through class time. LockedIn locks students' own phones from an admin dashboard with nothing to collect, so lunch can be locked too without sending students back to lockers, alongside the lockers 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 Saegertown

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