Educators gathered in Albany on Monday, urging state leaders to institute a statewide policy for cell phone use in schools. They say consistent statewide policy is needed as opposed to the district-by-district approach that exists now.

At the state capitol, educators led by the New York State United Teachers pointed to guidance from the U.S. Department of Education calling on states to take action on cell phones in the classroom.

“They specifically called for clear and consistent policies, which is the thing that we are lacking here in New York state,” said NYSUT President Melinda Person.

Their proposal is for a “bell to bell” ban.

“Research has shown that adopting a phone-free school policy is one of the most impactful steps you can take to enhance student educational outcomes, behavior and well-being,” Person said. “We have an opportunity to provide children with an average of seven hours each school day to be fully present and free from the pressures and harms of phones and social media. Now is the time to act on it.”

The panel of educators and one student stressed that the implications of cell phone use in school range from simply being an unnecessary distraction to much more serious consequences: Opportunities for bullying that have no physical boundaries.

“I have witnessed things such as air dropping of pictures across classrooms or the auditorium, or the lunch room, and then watched the mental health impacts of that,” said Blanca Gonzalez-Parker, Guilderland School Board president.

Those who work in schools who have instituted a ban of their own, like David Rounds, president of the Bethlehem Central Teachers Association, spoke of the impact the ban had on students’ ability to connect with those around them.

“When I said hi to them, or reached out to them, it was like I was startling them. They would look up quickly and jump, startled that somebody was talking to them, that’s not the case anymore,” he said.

The proposal, which has the support of several lawmakers, and mimics action Gov. Hochul herself has called for in recent months, also has the support of Jax, a Schoharie High School senior who described how phones fueled social anxiety and acted as a shield for wary students.

“When the ability to use phones as shields gets removed, socializing becomes possible again, and it's never as scary as I told myself it would be,” Jax said.

Describing the challenge of making friends as new student, Jax stressed that more students would be convinced if it could be framed in a way that makes it clear that this is about making their life and their experiences more valuable, and protecting them from the mental health impacts of constant cell phone use.

“There are still kids at my school and everywhere who think a phone ban is unfair because they see it as punishment, and that’s what I think is crucial for this phone ban, to reframe it to show that it is not collective punishment it is collective protection," he said.

The governor’s office declined to address whether or not such a proposal will be part of her State of the State address, but in the past she has expressed a desire to make the change through legislation rather than executive action.