Pennridge School District Cell Phone Policy (2026-27)

Pennridge School District enrolled 5,987 students in 2024-25 according to federal data. Its K-8 rule is already all day, and in September 2026 residents asked the board to extend it to the high school.

Pennridge phone rules today

From Pennridge's handbooks:

• Elementary (2025-26): phones are off and stored in backpacks.
• Middle school (2026-27): "cell phones are to remain turned off and away until the end of the school day," unless a teacher directs otherwise. Phones are not allowed in in-school suspension.
• High school: the 2024-25 handbook allowed phones in common areas but not in class unless for an educational purpose.

Citizen Portal reported that at a meeting around September 1, 2026, several residents urged a high school bell-to-bell policy, saying it "means phones are off and away from the first bell to the last bell of the day." The board was still discussing classroom device rules.

What Act 117 requires of Pennridge 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	Pennridge 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 all day; high school common areas allowed	Extend the K-8 rule to the high school.
The board decides how possession is restricted (taking phones is not required)	Backpacks; off and away	Choose a high school method.
Required exceptions: documented medical need of the student or an immediate family member, IEP or 504, English learner translation, limited teacher-approved instructional use	Teacher direction	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	Not stated	Optional one-day principal exception 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	Handbooks	Board policy posted, announced each year and verified to PDE.

Where LockedIn fits

Pennridge would be extending a K-8 rule it already runs. LockedIn locks students' own phones from an admin dashboard with nothing to collect, and can run alongside backpack storage at the high school.

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 Pennridge area

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