District policy · 2026-2027
Kearny School District
Hudson County · K-12 district · Grades K-12
Last verified · policy year 2026-2027 · policy 5516 · adopted October 19, 2009
Period by period
All 6 verified from a sourceEach 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 allowed
- Phones and other personal internet-enabled devices are prohibited.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.
The regulation authorises three storage systems: staff collect devices into assigned lockers or bins on entry; a teacher-managed in-class storage station; or the student's own backpack, locker or bag with the device powered off.
What happens if the rule is broken
First: verbal warning, device held until the end of the day. Second: possible detention plus parent pickup. Third: possible detention, a daily turn-in option, or a year-long ban on bringing the device. Fourth and beyond: detention, a daily turn-in requirement and possible in-school suspension with a mandatory parent conference.
Asking for an exception
The statute names what a policy must accommodateThe statutory exception list applies: IEP, 504 plan, health plan, translation services, student caregiver responsibilities, no reasonable alternative with administrator authorisation, when required by law, and emergencies.
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 summarisedStudents in Kindergarten through grade 12 shall be permitted to use their internet-enabled device on a school bus on their way to school at the start of the school day or on their way home from school at the end of the school day.
Kearny Board of Education · read · Open the document
Everything else on this page is our reading of Kearny 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.
Sources
1 primary, 1 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
Regulation 5516: Student Use of Internet-Enabled Devices
Kearny Board of Education · Revised 24 August 2026 · checked
Upon entry to school, a school staff member will collect and store the internet-enabled devices in assigned lockers or bins.
District decisionCorroborating source · reporting, not an official document
Policy 5516: Student Use of Internet-Enabled Devices (M)
Kearny Board of Education · Revised 24 August 2026 · checked
The Board of Education prohibits student use of internet-enabled devices on school grounds during the school day in accordance with N.J.S.A. 18A:36-40b.