Pine Grove Area School District Cell Phone Policy (2026)

Pine Grove Area School District in Schuylkill County enrolled 1,469 students in 2024-25 according to federal data. It already bans phones during school hours.

Pine Grove Area phone rules today

The Republican Herald reported on December 26, 2025 that Pine Grove Area bans students from possessing phones during school hours. Lunch used to be quiet as students stared at screens. "Everyone used to sit there with their faces in their phones. Now they're socializing. That's a great thing," Superintendent Heath Renninger said. He also pointed to the state bill: "We customized our policy to what our parents wanted. My concern is what the language in the state law would be."

The 2026-27 high school handbook, as summarized in search results, has phones concealed in a backpack or locker from 7:48 a.m. to 2:35 p.m., visible phones confiscated until dismissal and emergency calls handled through the office.

What Act 117 requires of Pine Grove 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	Pine Grove Area today	What changes by 2027-28
No student use for the whole school day, including homeroom, lunch, recess and passing time	School hours (7:48 a.m. to 2:35 p.m. at HS)	Aligned with the whole-day rule.
The board decides how possession is restricted (taking phones is not required)	Backpack or locker	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	Add medical, IEP/504 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	Office handles emergency calls	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	Handbook (2026-27)	Board policy posted, announced each year and verified to PDE.

Where LockedIn fits

Pine Grove's superintendent wants the policy to keep fitting what parents asked for. LockedIn locks students' own phones from an admin dashboard with nothing to collect, so the backpack-or-locker rule can stay as it is while the lock does the enforcing.

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 Pine Grove

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