Redbank Valley School District Cell Phone Policy (2026)

Redbank Valley School District in Clarion County enrolled 959 students in 2024-25 according to federal data. It changed its rule in July 2026.

Redbank Valley phone rules today

The Leader-Vindicator reported on July 23, 2026 that at the board's July 21 meeting, Assistant Principal Abby MacBeth announced an updated policy: students place phones in classroom lockboxes or their lockers to create a "phone-free, zero-tolerance" environment, turning them in at the start of the day and getting them back at the end rather than having them confiscated after a violation. The same night the board approved a full-time school resource officer agreement with the Southern Clarion County Regional Police Department.

The 2025-26 handbook, as summarized in search results, had allowed use before 7:45 a.m., at lunch and after dismissal.

What Act 117 requires of Redbank Valley 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	Redbank Valley today	What changes by 2027-28
No student use for the whole school day, including homeroom, lunch, recess and passing time	Start to end of day (2026-27)	Aligned with the whole-day rule.
The board decides how possession is restricted (taking phones is not required)	Classroom lockboxes or 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	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	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	Updated policy (July 2026)	Board policy posted, announced each year and verified to PDE.

Where LockedIn fits

Redbank Valley collects every phone each morning and hands it back each afternoon. LockedIn locks students' own phones from an admin dashboard with nothing to collect, so the lockboxes are not filled and emptied daily, and it can run alongside storage.

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 New Bethlehem

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