Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed a law limiting cellphone use in schools. (iStock; Getty Images)
The bill strictly limits the use of phones in classrooms to reduce distractions and disruptions, codifying Youngkin's executive order signed last year "to protect the health and safety of students in Virginia’s K-12 public schools by issuing guidance on the establishment of cellphone-free education policies and procedures."
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"We are building on the foundation laid by Executive Order 33 to make Virginia the national leader in restoring focus, academic excellence in the classroom and restoring health and safety in our schools. This legislation ensures that every school division adopts a full bell-to-bell policy and removes cellphones from classrooms, creating a distraction-free learning environment," Youngkin said as he signed the bill into law.
Research indicates using cellphones in the classroom can have a negative effect on students' grades, social skills, emotional development and mental health.
In a 2024 Pew Research Center study, more than 70% of high school teachers said cellphones distracting students in the classroom is a major problem.
"This wasn't just an issue. It's a crisis. And when we have a crisis, we have a unified call for action, and that's what this gathering is all about, this unified call for action," Youngkin said Friday.
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin speaks during the Faith & Freedom Coalition's Road to Majority Policy Conference at the Washington Hilton June 22, 2024, in Washington. (Samuel Corum/Getty Images)
The law also prohibits schools from suspending, expelling or removing students from class for violating cellphone policies.
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Florida became the first state to pass a law regulating cellphone use in schools in 2023. More than half of all states now have similar laws in place.
Deirdre Heavey is a politics writer for Fox News Digital.
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