Youngkin’s executive order has finally made its way to CHS

On July 9,  Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin issued Executive Order 33, which put the Virginia Department of Education in charge of defining, and enforcing a “cell-phone free education.” The guidance for Executive Order 33 was released on Sept. 16, and detailed the guidelines for all personal cellular devices in elementary, middle, and high school. The order states, “1. High school students shall not have a cell phone or personal electronic communication device during the bell-to-bell school day. 2. If cell phones or personal electronic communication devices are brought to school, they must also be stored and off during the bell-to-bell school day.” At Charlottesville High School (CHS), this includes lunches, transitional periods, and all classes and instructional periods. 

CHS has had an “off and away” policy since the beginning of the school year; however, almost no actual disciplinary action was taken if students were seen with their phones. This changed on Oct. 30, when care and safety assistants (CSA) began entering classrooms and taking any phones that were visible. Many students and teachers were surprised, as nothing of this new policy had been communicated to the student body beforehand. Throughout the first two days of this new policy, over 600 phones were taken from students, according to CHS faculty. These students were told they had to come to the office at the end of the day to pick them up. At 4 p.m. on the first day, students rushed to the office to collect their cell phones. The process of  redistributing  took long enough that buses had to be delayed. 

“It was poorly communicated,” said Gene Dunfee, a biology teacher at CHS. Dunfee said that while he does agree that cell phones are a major issue in school and teaching has become easier without them, the policy change was far too abrupt, and he wishes that the enforcement would be more supportive to teachers in instructional spaces, not just as a punitive measure. Dunfee said that he sincerely hopes that CSAs will not feel the need to come into classrooms anymore. 

Howard Norris, a CSA at CHS, says this kind of phone policy is absolutely needed at CHS, And thinks it will help students socialize better and help to keep fights down.  Norris said it’s “rough around the edges when it starts; kids have to get used to it.” Norris said that since the policy change, he’s been seeing more face-to-face interaction among students, especially during free times such as lunch. 

While most teachers and CSAs seem completely on board with the new plan, some students seem less than happy about it. “I enjoy the idea that students shouldn’t have their phones in classrooms, but I don’t think this is an effective way to do it,” said Isla Wickersty, a sophomore at CHS. While she does think a phone policy is needed, she sees more bad than good to this particular policy, especially when it comes to CSAs coming into classes mid-lesson. “It scares the students and disrupts the lesson,” she said. “It also hurts the students more than helps them because, although it may get them off their phones for a second, they’re just gonna pull them back out when the CSA isn’t there.” 

This sentiment seems to be shared by many of her peers. “I don’t think it was very thought through,” said Adeline Gustafson, another sophomore at CHS. “Some people that don’t get their phones taken during the day, their buses are being delayed, and that’s not fair because some people have jobs that support their families, some people have to take care of younger siblings, and some of that’s unavoidable.” 

Many other concerns have been raised by students: how they will coordinate rides with parents, medical concerns, as well as concerns about how this policy will work with 504 (disability and mental health) plans. 

By Jan. 1, 2025, according to Gov. Youngkin, the school must have an effective “off and away” policy that its students will follow. Some students are doubtful that the enforcement of this policy will last until the end of the year; however most teachers are confident that it will be the new baseline for high schools in Virginia.