School Board to adopt cell phone ban at Aug. 11 meeting

posted on 8/8/2025

The School Board is expected to adopt a cell phone ban for students as required by state law at its meeting this Monday, Aug. 11.

The new law was included in the state’s budget bill, House Bill 2, which Gov. Kelly Ayotte signed into law on June 27, 2025. The new law is in effect as of July 1, 2025.

The law mirrors the language in the amended Senate Bill 206, which states:

"School boards and the board of trustees of chartered public schools shall develop and adopt a policy governing the use of student cell phones and other personal electronic communication devices in schools. Such policy shall prohibit all personal communication device use by students from when the first bell rings to start instructional time until the dismissal bell rings to end the academic school day, with approved exceptions determined by the superintendent or their designee with respect to student medical, disability, or language proficiency need. Such policy shall be developed in collaboration with school parents and teachers and shall be reviewed annually.

"School district and chartered public school policies shall not prohibit students with medical needs, such as insulin pumps and glucose sensors, or disabilities from using a device to support their learning as identified by their individualized education program (IEP), plan developed under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, 29 U.S.C. section 794, or when required to support emergent multilingual students with appropriate language access programs and services pursuant to Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964."

The meeting begins at 7 p.m. in City Hall’s Council Chambers. It will be televised on Channel 22 and online https://dovernh.viebit.com.