Stroudsburg Area School District Cell Phone Policy (2026)

Stroudsburg Area School District in Monroe County enrolled 4,361 students in 2024-25 according to federal data. It is planning a ban timed to the state deadline.

Stroudsburg phone rules today

A 2026 TV report syndicated on Yahoo News said the district is planning a student cell phone ban expected to start in 2027-28. "The primary benefit is more focus on your academic instruction," Superintendent Dr. Cosmas C. Curry said, adding that "when the phone is on a student, it's going to be a distraction whether we like it or not." A parent quoted said she would prefer her child keep a phone for emergencies.

Today, the high school allows phones in the halls and uses classroom caddies, and the junior high already has a phone ban, according to the student paper. The 2024-25 K-4 handbook said students should not bring phones or electronic games to school.

What the principal said

In an interview with the Mountaineer, the high school's student paper, Principal Jeffery Sodl said he was considering "just continuing [the phone ban] from the junior high and bringing it to the high school," but added: "Personally, I'm against it because phones are a key part of communication, and the end goal of the phone ban can be reached by more strictly enforcing phone caddy usage." The paper reported a March 3, 2026 staff meeting on stricter phone collection.

What Act 117 requires of Stroudsburg 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	Stroudsburg today	What changes by 2027-28
No student use for the whole school day, including homeroom, lunch, recess and passing time	HS hallway use; junior high ban	Extend the ban to the high school, including lunch and passing time.
The board decides how possession is restricted (taking phones is not required)	Classroom caddies at the HS	Choose a whole-day method; caddies cover class time only.
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.
Optional: a principal may approve another exception for up to one school day, with notice to the superintendent within 5 days after	Not found	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 found	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	Ban planned for 2027-28	Adopt by 2027-28, post, announce each year and verify to PDE.

Where LockedIn fits

Stroudsburg's principal prefers stricter caddy use to taking phones away. LockedIn locks students' own phones from an admin dashboard with nothing to collect, so it runs alongside the caddies and covers the halls, which is where Act 117 and the current rule differ.

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 Stroudsburg

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