N.Y. Education Law § 2803: Use of internet-enabled devices during the school day

§ 2803. Use of internet-enabled devices during the school day. 1. For

purposes of this section:

(a) "Internet-enabled devices" shall mean and include any smartphone,

tablet, smartwatch, or other device capable of connecting to the

internet and enabling the user to access content on the internet,

including social media applications; provided, however, that

"internet-enabled devices" shall not include:

(i) non-internet-enabled devices such as cellular phones or other

communication devices not capable of connecting to the internet or

enabling the user to access content on the internet; or

(ii) internet-enabled devices supplied by the school district, charter

school, or board of cooperative educational services that are used for

an educational purpose.

(b) "School day" shall mean the entirety of every instructional day as

required by subdivision seven of section thirty-six hundred four of this

chapter during all instructional time and non-instructional time,

including but not limited to homeroom periods, lunch, recess, study

halls, and passing time.

(c) "School grounds" shall mean in or on or within any building,

structure, athletic playing field, playground, or land contained within

the real property boundary line of a district elementary, intermediate,

junior high, vocational, or high school, a charter school, or a board of

cooperative educational services facility.

2. Notwithstanding paragraph b of subdivision one of section

twenty-eight hundred fifty-four of this chapter, each school district,

charter school, and board of cooperative educational services shall

adopt a written policy prohibiting the use of internet-enabled devices

by students during the school day anywhere on school grounds. Each

school district, charter school, and board of cooperative educational

services shall consult local stakeholders, including but not limited to

the employee organization representing each bargaining unit within the

school building, parents, and students, in the development of such

policy prior to its adoption.

3. The policy adopted and implemented pursuant to subdivision two of

this section shall include one or more methods for persons in parental

relation to a student to contact the student during the school day and

provide for written notification to such persons in parental relation to

a student of these methods at the beginning of each school year and upon

enrollment.

4. The policy adopted and implemented pursuant to subdivision two of

this section shall include one or more methods for on-site storage where

students may store their internet-enabled devices during the school day,

which may include student lockers.

5. (a) The policy adopted and implemented pursuant to subdivision two

of this section may authorize student use of an internet-enabled device

during the school day on school grounds:

(i) if authorized by a teacher, principal, or the school district,

charter school, or board of cooperative educational services for a

specific educational purpose;

(ii) where necessary for the management of a student's healthcare;

(iii) in the event of an emergency;

(iv) for translation services;

(v) on a case-by-case basis, upon review and determination by a school

psychologist, school social worker, or school counselor, for a student

caregiver who is routinely responsible for the care and wellbeing of a

family member; or

(vi) where required by law.

(b) The policy may not prohibit a student's use of an internet-enabled

device where such use is included in the student's:

(i) individualized education program; or

(ii) plan developed pursuant to section five hundred four of the

federal rehabilitation act of 1973, 29 U.S.C. 794.

6. No later than August first, two thousand twenty-five, each school

district, charter school, and board of cooperative educational services

shall adopt and publish in a clearly visible and accessible location on

its website the internet-enabled device policy established pursuant to

subdivision two of this section. Translation of such policy into any of

the twelve most common non-English languages spoken by limited-English

proficient individuals in the state, based on the data in the most

recent American community survey published by the United States census

bureau, shall be provided upon request by a student or persons in

parental relation to a student.

7. (a) No later than September first, two thousand twenty-six, and

each September first thereafter, each school district, charter school,

and board of cooperative educational services shall publish an annual

report on its website detailing enforcement of the policy within the

district, charter school, or board of cooperative educational services

in the prior school year, including non-identifiable demographic data of

students who have faced disciplinary action for non-compliance and

analysis of any demographic disparities in enforcement of the policy. If

a statistically significant disparate enforcement impact is identified,

such report shall include a mitigation action plan.

(b) Each school district, charter school, and board of cooperative

educational services shall not permit the suspension of a student if the

sole grounds for the suspension is that the student accessed an

internet-enabled device in violation of the policy adopted and

implemented pursuant to subdivision two of this section.