High school campuses across Bend-La Pine Schools rang in the new year by implementing a complete cell phone ban, restricting access to personal technology during the school day in accordance with a state executive order. The policy, which directs students to keep their cell phones in their bags from “bell to bell,” has received both criticism and commendation from the community.
Following the signature of a July executive order by Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek, school districts across the state scrambled to implement a corresponding policy by the Jan. 1 deadline. Many districts around the state, including Redmond, launched the ban in September. Bend-La Pine Schools chose to wait until the new year.
While some districts opted to use lockable cell phone containers or communal storage systems, Bend-La Pine Schools chose a simpler and, in the eyes of some, less effective solution: instructing students to keep their personal electronic devices in their backpacks throughout the school day.
This new directive replaces a previous policy utilized in local high schools, in which students put their devices in a “phone caddy” during class and were permitted to use them during passing periods and lunch. According to Summit High School senior Audrey Koegler, this system was far more practical, as it physically separated students from their phones during class.
“I think that it’s actually easier to use my cell phone now than it ever was with the phone caddies,” Koegler said.
The primary rationale of the statewide mandate is improving student mental health, social connection and academic performance, all areas that research has shown are negatively impacted by personal technology access. While these impacts are difficult to gauge over such a short period of time, Summit social studies teacher Sarah Warsaw reported a palpable shift in the school’s atmosphere, particularly among underclassmen.
“At the end of class, they don’t rush to the cell phone caddy to get their phone,” Warsaw explained. “So then they’re forced to either finish up their work or talk to people next to them. It’s a very visible change.”
Summit Assistant Principal Kristy Knoll reported similar impacts, noting that “kids are grouping up and interacting more,” even playing board games provided by the school.
However, Knoll acknowledged a variety of potential problems with the new policy. A primary concern for many families is the inability for students to communicate with their parents throughout the school day or in the case of an emergency. This anxiety was compounded when, on Monday, Jan. 5, the first day of the new policy, an unrelated event caused school phone lines to lose function. With school phones down, parents were largely unable to contact their children.
Another worry is that students will simply take advantage of open campus policies and leave school to use their phones. Indeed, Knoll acknowledged that, in the first days of the new policy, more students than usual seemed to be going off campus during lunch.
“People are going off campus and going to the coffee shop instead of sitting here because they want to use their phone,” she said. “I don’t like that. I like kids to be here because I know they’re safe.”
Knoll, who was previously an administrator at Cascade Middle School, which implemented a similar policy years ago, also said that the complete ban felt more applicable to younger students.
“We’ve got 18-year-olds that pay their own bills,” Knoll explained. “Some don’t even live at home anymore. Some that have children of their own, some that have jobs, some that are taking college courses and we’re here telling them they can’t have their phones.”
Mackenzie Shaughnessy, a senior at Bend Senior High School, also recognized this issue. As a student athlete, she reported difficulties with team communication. Many students use text messages or mobile apps like SportsYou to make activity arrangements throughout the day, a system which is no longer viable.
“Everything’s constantly changing [with my team] and I just have no way of keeping updated until the end of the day,” Shaughnessy explained.
However, aside from the inability to connect with teammates throughout the day, she feels that the phone ban is an improvement and most of her peers have taken the policy in stride.
Around two weeks after implementation, long-term impacts remain unclear. Some believe that the policy is inherently problematic, while others think that it will ultimately improve student culture and wellbeing.
“Maybe it’ll help kids make relationships with each other because now they’re going to have to talk to each other more,” said Knoll. “I don’t know. We’ll find out.”
This article appears in the Source January 15, 2026.
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