Reading School District Cell Phone Policy (2026)

Reading School District in Berks County enrolled 16,664 students in 2024-25 according to federal data, making it Pennsylvania's fifth-largest district. Reading has not published a current districtwide phone rule that we could find, so this page focuses on what Act 117 requires.

Reading phone rules today

The most recent Reading Senior High rules we found are in a 2020-21 staff handbook. They let students carry phones but barred use during instructional time unless for an instructional purpose. Repeated disruptive use could lead to lost class points, parent contact and a discipline referral. That document is several years old, and we could not find a current board policy or 2026-27 handbook.

Search results for "Reading High School cell phone policy" mostly point to a different district, Reading Community Schools in Ohio. Families should check that any policy they find comes from readingsd.org.

What Act 117 requires of Reading 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	Reading today	What changes by 2027-28
No student use for the whole school day, including homeroom, lunch, recess and passing time	No current rule found; 2020-21 handbook banned class-time use only	Likely the biggest change: no use at lunch, in hallways or at any point in the school day.
The board decides how possession is restricted (taking phones is not required)	Not found	Choose a possession method, such as backpacks, lockers, pouches or another approach.
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 found	Write in all four required exceptions. The English learner exception matters in a district with many English learners.
Optional: a principal may approve another exception for up to one school day, with notice to the superintendent within 5 days after	Not found	Optional one-day principal exception, reported to the superintendent 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 found	Written notice each year and on enrollment of a staffed contact method and emergency alert sign-up.
Tell families, teachers and students about the policy each year; verify to PDE within 5 business days that it is posted online	Not found	Post the policy, tell families each year and verify to PDE.

Where LockedIn fits

Whatever method Reading picks, Act 117 requires that phones not be used at any point in the school day. LockedIn locks students' own phones from an admin dashboard with nothing to collect, and can run alongside lockers or backpack storage if the board chooses those.

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 Reading

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