District policy · 2026-2027
Jackson School District
Ocean County · K-12 district · Grades PreK-12
Last verified · policy year 2026-2027 · policy 5516
Read this entry with one caveat
The clearest example in this dataset of a district matching rather than exceeding the state minimum: it answers YES to use on the bus, YES before and after school, and YES at school-sponsored events outside the school day such as clubs. The district's own page also contains an apparent slip, saying the requirements “apply to all students in grades PreK through 4” and then setting out three grade bands running through grade 12.
Period by period
1 of 6 not yet verifiedEach row is either something this district’s own document says, or an explicit admission that we have not found it. We never infer one period from another. Passing time, lunch and study hall, the three periods the statute never mentions, are marked with an amber rule.Q8
- Class time
- Not allowed
- Phones and other personal internet-enabled devices are prohibited.Instructional time. Restricted under the statute itself.
- Passing timeNot named in the statute
- Not allowed
- Phones and other personal internet-enabled devices are prohibited.Between classes. NJDOE guidance restricts it; the statute never mentions it.
- LunchNot named in the statute
- Not allowed
- Phones and other personal internet-enabled devices are prohibited.On-campus lunch. NJDOE guidance restricts it; the statute never mentions it.
- Study hallNot named in the statute
- Not yet verified
- We have not found a source that states this district's rule for this period. We have not guessed one.Study hall. NJDOE guidance restricts it; the statute never mentions it.
- School bus
- Allowed
- The policy permits device use during this period.State guidance permits phones on buses unless the district goes further. A district rule here is stricter than the state floor.
- Before and after school
- Allowed
- The policy permits device use during this period.State guidance permits phones outside the school day unless the district goes further.
How phones are stored
A local choice, not a state oneVaries by school
Different schools in the district use different storage methods.
Grades K-4 keep devices off and away in backpacks or bags; grades 5-8 in lockers; grades 9-12 in lockers or backpacks, but explicitly not on their person.
By grade: Storage differs across K-4, 5-8 and 9-12, and the consequence schedule is set in each school's own handbook rather than district-wide.
What happens if the rule is broken
A progressive discipline approach, with the steps for first, second and further violations set at school level in each school's student handbook. Any device seen or used during school hours against the policy is secured by staff.
Asking for an exception
The statute names what a policy must accommodateA written accommodation process. The listed grounds are an IEP, a 504 plan, a student health plan with healthcare-professional documentation, translation services unavailable on a district device, caregiving responsibility for a family member, no reasonable alternative (with Superintendent or Principal authorisation), when required by law, and emergencies. Families print and return the Parent-Guardian Device Accommodation Request Form to the administrator named for their grade level.
The statute itself names circumstances a policy must accommodate, including an IEP, a 504 plan, a documented health plan, translation needs, certain caregiving responsibilities, and emergencies.s.2.b(3)-(5)
In the district’s own words
Quoted exactly, not summarisedAll student cell phones and smartwatches must remain “off and away” during school hours, including classroom time, specials, lunch, recess, and hallway transitions.
Jackson School District · read · Open the document
Everything else on this page is our reading of Jackson School District’s policy. This is the policy. We quote rather than paraphrase so you can check us against the document instead of taking our word for what it says.
The highlighted words are the district’s, not ours. They are the periods the statute never names, and this district wrote one of them into its own rule.s.2.b(2)
Sources
1 primary, 0 corroboratingNothing on this page can be published without at least one primary source attached to it. That is enforced by the database, not by a habit.
District decisionPrimary source
Internet-Enabled Devices In Schools
Jackson School District · checked
Is usage permitted on the bus? YES … Is usage permitted before and after school? YES … Is usage permitted at school-sponsored events OUTSIDE of the school day (e.g. clubs)? YES