Hello? Can you hear me now?
NYC public schools lift the ban on cellphones
Presentation by;
A new Mayoral Era
In January of 2015 Mayor Bill DiBlasio announced his plan to follow through on a campaign promise to lift the cell phone ban for NYC school students. At a live press conference held at the High School of Telecommunication Arts and Technology, in Brooklyn, NY, Mayor DiBlasio stated that, " it is tough to be a modern day parent."
The New York Daily News reports, that one of the major goals for parents is allowing parents to stay in better touch with children in case of an emergency.
“Parents should be able to call or text their kids — that’s what this comes down to,” Mayor Bill de Blasio reportedly said.
The new policy will effect more than 1.1 million NYC school students.
Background Breakdown
The difference?
OLD PLAN - The New York City school band currently requires students to leave their cell phones at home iPad cell phones etc. or they can leave it with a local business (bodega or specialized van) that charge a fee for storage services.
NEW PLAN - The new plan requires principles to work alongside teachers and parents to form school leadership teams (SLA) to come up with a plan that suits their particular school needs.
What does this mean?
The old plan was costly to families who had children enrolled in schools that were equipped with metal detectors. These families often incurred a daily charge for private storage that could cost a family on average $180 each year.
Under thhe NYC school Chancellor Carmen Fariña expects each school to develop their own individual policy, but at the core of each policy to have a detailed guidelines with clear consequences. Also she anticipates that school will hold open assembly for students and parents to review their policy, discuss student rights, and the consequences if there is a violation of the policy.