Kansas schools face an Aug. 31 deadline for new cellphone and social-media policies

Kansas school districts and accredited nonpublic elementary and secondary schools have until the end of Monday, Aug. 31, to certify that they adopted new policies governing student personal electronic devices and employee use of social media.

The Kansas State Department of Education said Thursday, Aug. 27, that 250 of the state’s 297 school systems had certified their policies. That left 47 systems not certified at that point. The figure is an interim status report, not a final compliance total.

KSDE’s administrative instructions set the deadline at the end of Monday, Aug. 31. The enacted law states that certifications must be submitted “on or before September 1, 2026.” Neither source establishes a statewide punishment schedule for systems that miss the certification date.

What students should expect during the school day

Under 2026 Senate Substitute for Substitute for House Bill 2299, school districts and accredited nonpublic elementary and secondary schools must adopt policies that prohibit students from using or accessing personal electronic communication devices during the school day.

The school day runs from the start of school until dismissal on school premises. It includes classes, structured and unstructured learning settings, recess, lunch and passing periods.

Covered devices include personal phones, tablets, computers, watches, wireless headphones or earbuds, text-messaging devices and other wireless devices capable of voice, text or video communication. The rule applies to devices that are not owned or issued by the school.

Devices must be turned off and securely stored away from the student’s person in an inaccessible location. Students may instead leave devices at home or in a vehicle, including a vehicle parked on school property.

The law does not require every Kansas school to use the same storage system or impose identical discipline. Each district or accredited nonpublic school must set its own enforcement procedures and disciplinary actions within the law’s requirements, so families should review their school’s written policy.

Parents will use a school communication channel

Each covered school must designate and make available a school telephone or another communication device that students can use to contact a parent or person acting as a parent during the school day.

Parents should check their district or school’s instructions for contacting students rather than assuming a child can use a personal phone during lunch, passing periods or other parts of the school day.

Exceptions are limited

The law allows device use when it is required to implement a student’s individualized education program or 504 plan, or when a licensed physician has approved use as medically necessary to support the student’s health or well-being.

In either situation, device use must be a last-resort intervention when no other reasonable alternative is available. Students and families should work with the school to confirm what documentation, procedures and supervision will apply.

The law does not apply to virtual schools. It also does not apply to time associated with a student’s travel to or from a learning experience off school premises, including a postsecondary course, career technical education course, work-based learning program or other alternative educational opportunity.

Social-media rules also affect school employees

Schools must adopt policies prohibiting employees from privately or directly communicating with students through social-media platforms, except as allowed under the law. Employees also may not require students to use social media for an assignment or extracurricular activity.

The law does not ban every school social-media account. A district or accredited nonpublic school may approve a platform for official school purposes, but those purposes are limited to public, one-way communications about school functions, activities or events. The statute does not treat private, direct or two-way communications with students as official school purposes.

The statute’s definition of social media excludes some tools, including email, primarily educational websites and applications, qualifying direct-messaging services that communicate only between a sender and named recipient, and certain board-approved platforms controlled by the school. A board-approved platform must allow required user accounts, permit communications to be monitored, archived, retained or audited, be accessible to parents or guardians and be used in accordance with school policy.

Those exclusions do not eliminate the need to follow local policy or other school rules. Teachers, coaches and other employees should review the approved tools and communication procedures before using online services with students. Families should distinguish between a school’s public account and private or direct contact between an employee and a student.

What families should do now

District boards and governing authorities of covered nonpublic schools must submit certifications to KSDE using the form and process prescribed by the department. KSDE said systems with questions or those that have not received the certification survey should contact the department.

Families should locate their district or school’s written policy before Monday, Aug. 31. It should explain where devices will be stored, how violations will be handled, how parents can reach students and how qualifying disability-related or medical exceptions will operate.

Sources

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