School Leaders, Students Say Bell-to-Bell Cellphone Ban Has Been a Massive Success

By ERIC SANTOMAURO-STENZEL
OTSEGO COUNTY

Local school leaders are saying the New York State school cellphone ban has been a huge success, increasing student engagement and decreasing behavioral issues.

“Teachers are excited about it. Students are more engaged,” Oneonta High School Principal Kevin Stevens said in an interview. Students “like that they’re talking more with their friends and have less time being spent on their own personal devices.”

Some of those students, Oneonta High School seniors Anna Schultz and Hudson Pasternak, told AllOtsego they were surprised by how well the policy has played out.

“My immediate reaction was that it wouldn’t be able to work, that there’s no way to put the cell phones away,” Schultz said.

Pasternak said he was even annoyed. Now, “I think students are so much less distracted,” Pasternak said.

Both recalled that in previous years, students would often be on their phones during class playing games or messaging others.

The 2025-2026 school year is the first where students in public, charter and BOCES schools across New York cannot use their cellphones from “bell-to-bell” by state law. Governor Kathy Hochul (D) pushed for the policy in the state budget last May.

“New York was the first state to target addictive social media feeds—and now we’re the largest state to restrict smartphones in schools throughout the entire school day,” Gov. Hochul said at the time. “I know our young people succeed when they’re learning and growing, not clicking and scrolling—and that’s why New York continues to lead the nation on protecting our kids in the digital age.”

Multiple local districts put together committees over the summer to prepare their policies and procedures. Some districts require phones to be dropped off with administrators or put in a sealable pouch, whereas others simply require students not to use them during the school day.

Several months into the school year, every local educator and student who spoke with AllOtsego heralded the policy as a success. Among the positives, they cited improved attention spans, more face-to-face socializing, fewer behavioral issues, less cyberbullying, and more. Additionally, they reported that school communities have largely been supportive of the policy.

“We were actually surprised,” said Unatego High School Principal Abby Costello.

Costello said that in a recent student survey, students shared that they “felt more present, that they were able to pay attention better, and that some of them even remarked their grades were better.”

“Across the board, we are seeing a lot less discipline due to online or social media or just cellphone-based things,” Costello said.

Avery, a student athlete and vice president of the student council at Unatego High School, shared that her initial upsetness quickly went away.

“Honestly, I haven’t missed my phone at all. It took a bit to get used to at first and I caught myself reaching for my phone, but I am used to it now and don’t miss it. I find myself having more conversations at lunch especially.”

She added that her friends felt similarly, and that it helped with other phone-related issues.

“Nobody can hide behind a screen now at school,” Avery said.

For the Worcester Central School District, this is the second year of the restrictions.

“We wanted to do it on our own terms. So we started it last year, and it went pretty well,” Superintendent Tim Gonzalez told AllOtsego. “We really haven’t had too much resistance. The kids are, I think, enjoying each other’s company.”

“The noise in the cafeteria has increased, but it’s all good noise,” he said, echoing the observations of other school leaders and students.

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