DeSoto ISD Secondary Schools Set Progressive Phone-Violation Protocol
DeSoto ISD’s secondary campuses will use a progressive response to personal-communication-device violations when the 2026-27 school year begins Monday, August 10. The district posted the updated protocol July 21, outlining escalating interventions rather than one automatic punishment for every violation.
The written procedure says students retain possession of their phones while the devices are secured in a phone pouch during the school day. It also preserves required protections for students with Individualized Education Programs and Section 504 plans.
First violation brings redirection, warning and documentation
For a first offense, staff are directed to provide verbal redirection and review expectations with the student. The teacher documents the incident, the student receives a warning and expectation reset, and an administrator records the offense in the district’s student-information system.
The protocol does not call for an automatic phone-pouch assignment or in-school suspension after a first violation.
Second violation may lead to five school days in a secured pouch
After a second offense, the student is assigned a secured phone pouch for five school days. The student keeps possession of the personal communication device, but it must remain secured in the pouch during the school day. The district protocol also calls for parent or guardian notification and documentation of the offense.
If a pouch is not immediately available, the student may be placed in a pouch-assignment queue and receive an interim response such as detention, a reflection activity or a restorative check-in.
ISS is not automatic for every second offense. The protocol says administrators may assign in-school suspension when a student shows persistent noncompliance, refuses to follow directions or significantly disrupts instruction.
Third violation adds ISS, conference and behavior contract
A third offense brings a 10-school-day secured-pouch assignment and a three- to five-school-day ISS assignment under the protocol. It also requires a parent or guardian conference, a behavior contract signed by the student and parent or guardian, and a formal restorative conference.
These are written procedural steps for repeated violations, not a report that the district has already imposed them on particular students.
Fourth and later violations can trigger individualized support
For a fourth offense and beyond, the protocol allows extended or ongoing secured-pouch use as a behavioral intervention. Students may also be placed on a daily device-compliance check-in and check-out system, while the campus may develop an Individual Behavior Support Plan.
Additional administrative consequences may be applied under the Student Code of Conduct, and continued parent or guardian communication is required.
IEP and Section 504 protections remain in place
The protocol says disciplinary responses must comply with applicable federal and state law. Before assigning consequences to a student with an IEP or Section 504 plan, campus administrators are directed to review the plan to ensure accommodations, behavioral supports and procedural safeguards are provided.
If a disciplinary removal could constitute a change of placement, the district says it will follow applicable procedures, including a manifestation determination review when required.
District procurement record shows proposed pouch purchase
DeSoto ISD’s broader device-policy implementation documents connect the local approach to Texas House Bill 1481, which requires school systems to prohibit student use of personal communication devices during the school day while allowing specified exceptions, including documented medical and special-education needs.
A separate April 20, 2026, board agenda item identifies a proposed $39,539.60 purchase of CellockED cell phone pouches, with the Texas Education Agency Phone Free Schools Grant listed as the funding source. The agenda record describes a consideration for possible approval; it does not by itself establish that the purchase was completed.
For DeSoto families, the practical sequence is straightforward: a documented warning after a first offense; a possible five-school-day secured-pouch assignment and parent notification after a second; and longer pouch use, ISS, a conference and a behavior contract after a third. The updated secondary-campus protocol is in place as DeSoto ISD prepares for the August 10 first day of school.
Sources
- DeSoto ISD Personal Communication Device Violation Protocol – Secondary Campuses
- DeSoto ISD Board Agenda Item Overview: CellockED Cell Phone Pouches
- Texas Education Agency: Implementation of Texas House Bill 1481
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