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The Tennessee Conservative [By Paula Gomes] –
Just in time for the 2025-2026 school year, the use of cell phones in Tennessee’s public school classrooms will be banned thanks to a new state law.
In his remarks on the bill before a full Senate vote on March 3rd, Senator Ferrell Haile (R-Gallatin-District 18) said that the aim of the legislation is “to minimize classroom distractions and internet bullying on our school campuses.”
Ten days later before the House vote, Representative Rebecca Alexander (R-Jonesborough-District 7) said that school superintendents had asked that the Tennessee General Assembly make a law regarding the use of cell phones despite most districts having policies regarding their use already.
In a rare display of nonpartisan politics, the legislation gained the support of both Republicans and Democrats alike with a 30 to 0 vote in the Senate – Senator Heidi Campbell (D-Nashville-District 20) was the lone dissenter and did not vote because of her belief that the issue belongs at the local level rather than the state – and a 90 to 0 unanimous vote in the House.
The new law mandates that all LEAs and public charter schools create a wireless communication device policy that prohibits the use of cell phones or other “wireless communication devices” during instructional time unless teachers allow their use for educational purposes during class. Students with disabilities or health issues who must use a wireless device are exempt from the prohibition.
LEAs must also establish “a process by which parents or guardians of students will be contacted in the event of an emergency or possible emergency occurring at the school at which the parent’s student is enrolled to ensure that the absence of, or restricted access to, wireless communication devices during the school day does not prevent parents from receiving notice of an emergency or possible emergency.”
Alexander sponsored similar legislation last year which failed in the House Education Administration Committee when critics argued that students needed the ability to use phones in case of emergencies.
While parents across the state generally support the restriction of cell phone use at school, this has been the major area of concern. Along with wanting to be able to communicate with their child in an emergency like a school shooting, parents have also argued that students should have access to their phones in order to document questionable behavior in the classroom.
Representative Michele Reneau (R-Signal Mountain-District 27) made reference to the latter on the House floor.
Last year, a cross-dressing substitute teacher in a Hamilton County middle school sparked outrage after he allegedly insisted that students only address him using a female honorific. One student took a photo of the man during class and sent it to a parent.
Regarding mass shootings, Senator Rusty Crowe (R-Johnson City-District 3) cited research on the Senate floor that use of cell phones during an emergency situation interferes with safety plans potentially endangering students.
It will be up to school districts how much they restrict cell phone usage during school hours but Haile said he encouraged LEAs to prohibit their use during lunch periods as well as class time.
LEAs must also choose to amend or update their existing discipline policies pertaining to cell phones.
The Clarksville-Montgomery County School System’s (CMCSS) School Board has already chosen to make changes, making use of cell phones and other electronic devices a Category 2 offense rather than Category 1. The policy change escalates the consequences and should students have to be repeatedly disciplined, they could ultimately face being suspended.
The CMCSS policy will not just limit cell phone use during instructional time but also as students traverse the hallways between classes.
A second and final reading of the new policy will take place at the Board of Education’s meeting on Tuesday, May 20th, 2025.
While lawmakers cited positive outcomes in classrooms in their districts that have already adopted such policies, an elephant remains in the room, in this case the classroom, and that elephant is the school-issued chrome book.
One popular method is to use Google Docs as a means to send notes, often by cloning a shared document, highlighting keywords, and then adding comments – intended for editing purposes – but which students use to chat with one another and which can be quickly hidden. Students can also create a shared document and write to each other in a designated font, or use the live-chat function.
Ultimately, even with policies in place that ban cell phone use, students may still find ways to remain distracted in the classroom.
About the Author: Paula Gomes is a Tennessee resident and reporter for The Tennessee Conservative. You can reach Paula at paula@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
