New policy bars students from bringing cellphones into Athens classrooms

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By Joe Johnson

When students this week returned to school in Athens for the start of the 2023-24 academic year many of them immediately had to adapt to a significant change.

Students in Clarke County School District middle and high schools were not allowed to bring their cellphones into classrooms.

Shortly after Dr. Robbie Hooker began his tenure as CCSD's schools superintendent last fall, he held a series of town hall meetings around the community to communicate his vision for CCSD and hear concerns from families, students, staff, and community members.

A recurring concern from parents and staff was the use of cellphones in middle and high school classrooms, which was cited as a significant distraction from active and continued engagement in classroom instruction.

As a result, starting this school year, middle and high school students are required to place their phones in pouches by the door of each classroom at the start of each class period and will be allowed to retrieve them at the end of each period.

Pouches for every classroom were purchased by the district so that they would be in place for the new procedure to go into effect immediately when school began this week.

school principals.