Souderton Area School District Cell Phone Policy (2026-27)

Souderton Area School District enrolled 6,061 students in 2024-25 according to federal data. Its 2026-27 handbook already keeps phones away all day through eighth grade.

Souderton phone rules today

From the SASD District Handbook (revised for 2026-27):

• Elementary and middle school: phones, smartwatches and smart glasses stay in school bags, silenced, throughout the school day, including on the bus. The district recommends not bringing them. A first offense means confiscation until the end of the day. A second means a parent picks the phone up. A third means parent pickup or leaving the phone in the office all day, plus progressive discipline.
• High school: phones and headphones are not allowed in class, including Block 2.5, unless the teacher says so. Without permission, use is limited to the cafeteria, hallways during passing and study halls. Some teachers use a phone caddy. Consequences run from a verbal warning to a call home, then teacher detention, then administrative detention.
• Sick students at the middle schools may not call home on their own phone. They go to the health suite.

Policy 236, Mobile Devices, covers district-issued 1:1 devices, not personal phones.

What Act 117 requires of Souderton 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	Souderton today	What changes by 2027-28
No student use for the whole school day, including homeroom, lunch, recess and passing time	Elementary and middle all day; high school cafeteria, passing and study hall	End high school cafeteria, passing and study hall use.
The board decides how possession is restricted (taking phones is not required)	School bags (K-8); caddies in some high school classes	Extend restriction at the high school.
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	Teacher permission in class	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	School office phones for emergencies and rides	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	District Handbook	Board policy posted, announced each year and verified to PDE.

Where LockedIn fits

Souderton's high school leaves storage to each teacher. LockedIn locks students' own phones from an admin dashboard with nothing to collect, so every classroom, hallway and study hall gets the same rule.

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 Souderton area

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