Dear Black Knight families,
You may have heard about the upcoming change mandated by New York State that will impact all public schools beginning August 1, 2025. To support student well-being, engagement, and academic focus, the state has instituted a "bell to bell" smartphone ban during the school day. This includes any internet-enabled device and means students will not have access to their phones from the time they arrive at school until the final bell rings at the end of the school day.
There will be exceptions to this mandate, including students who require internet-enabled devices for medical reasons, as per IEPs, translation, or school issued devices. Please understand this is not a Silver Creek specific rule but is a mandate that applies to all public schools in the state of New York.
At Silver Creek Central School District, this will begin with summer school. Cell phones will not be permitted for student use during summer school hours.
This new regulation aims to create a healthier, distraction-free learning environment and to address growing concerns about screen time, social media, and student anxiety. As a school community, we recognize that the implementation of this policy must be thoughtful, supportive, and aligned with the needs of our students and families.
The following are key points to consider as we embrace this new mandate:
· Impaired Social Skills from Digital Communication
o Over-reliance on digital communication has hindered the development of critical social skills in teens, making it harder for them to navigate real-world situations and form meaningful relationships (The Daily Guardian, 2025).
· Academic Performance Decline Linked to Cell Phone Use
o Frequent cell phone usage has been correlated with decreases in grade point average (GPA) and increased anxiety, negatively impacting self-reported life satisfaction among students (Kent State University, 2022).
· Nomophobia: Fear of Being Without a Phone
o Many teens experience "nomophobia," the fear of being without their mobile phones, which can lead to increased anxiety and dependence on digital devices (Industrial Psychiatry Journal, 2019).
· Distraction and Reduced Focus in Educational Settings
o Smartphone addiction is closely related to internet addiction, which is considered an impulse-control addiction. Teens who are addicted to the internet tend to experience decreased brain connectivity in parts of the brain that regulate emotions, decision-making, and impulse-control (MentalHealth.com, 2019).
We invite you to be part of this important process. We are forming a planning committee made up of administrators, teachers, students, and parents to help shape our school’s plan for enacting this policy in a way that promotes positive outcomes for everyone. If you are interested in joining the committee, please email Emily Cole (ecole@silvercreekschools.org) by June 10, 2025. Please understand that this committee is not to find ways to avoid the mandate, but ways that we can effectively work together to create a distraction free environment.
To provide more context and to open the door for discussion, we warmly invite all families to attend a Q&A and Discussion Session on:
Wednesday, June 18, 2025
5:00 PM – High School Auditorium
Following the session, we will host a partial screening of the documentary "The Social Dilemma" and share snippets of the podcast, “The Anxious Generation”, both of which explore the relationship between technology use and youth mental health. This film offers insights into why policies like the bell-to-bell ban are being adopted and how we can work together to support our students through this cultural shift.
We hope you will join us for this important evening and consider playing an active role in shaping our school’s approach to the new cell phone guidelines.
Thank you for your partnership and continued support.
Warm regards,
Dr. Katie Ralston
Superintendent