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Fox News
4 days ago
- Health
- Fox News
Youngkin signs Virginia law limiting 'bell-to-bell' cellphone use in public schools
Print Close By Deirdre Heavey Published May 30, 2025 Republican Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed a bill into law Friday limiting cellphone use for all Virginia public elementary, middle and high school students. Youngkin, who built his political career championing parents' rights in education, ceremoniously signed two versions of the bill, HB1961 and SB738, at the Carter G. Woodson Middle School in Hopewell, Virginia. Youngkin said it was a fitting location for a day filled with such "hope." "When we come together — elected officials, administrators, teachers, parents and all of you — we can move mountains, and we can change something that needs to be changed, and that is to find freedom, freedom from cellphones," said Youngkin, who was flanked by his wife, Virginia first lady Suzanne S. Youngkin; public school students; education advocates; and local politicians. "We come together in order to move a mountain," Youngkin said, as he highlighted the negative effect of cellphones in schools on mental illness, conduct in class, academic performance and interpersonal relationships. TEENS SPEND MORE THAN A QUARTER OF THEIR TIME AT SCHOOL ON PHONES, NEW STUDY FINDS 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." DC COUNCIL PROPOSES BILL TO BAN CELLPHONES IN DISTRICT'S PUBLIC SCHOOLS "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. Hopewell City Public Schools adopted a "pouch system" in its secondary schools at the start of the 2022-2023 school year, which has been used as a case study and potential model for the Virginia Department of Education's cellphone-free education rollout. "I want to add my appreciation for Hopewell's leadership because it was your leadership that inspired the executive order that I wrote last summer," Youngkin said. The statewide legislation requires school boards to develop and public schools to enact policies to restrict student cellphone use during the school day. The law includes exceptions for students with individualized education plans, Section 504 plans or health conditions, so cellphones can be used when medically necessary. The law also prohibits schools from suspending, expelling or removing students from class for violating cellphone policies. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP 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. Print Close URL
Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Virginia first lady promotes fentanyl awareness in Roanoke
ROANOKE, Va. (WFXR) – Flags were flown at half-staff on Tuesday, April 29, in honor of National Fentanyl Awareness Day, an issue Virginia's First Lady, Suzanne Youngkin, holds close to her heart. 'We lost a young friend, a precious young friend from our community in Great Falls, Virginia. And at the time when we found out that he had passed from fentanyl poisoning, we really had no idea about the dangers of fentanyl. I felt very, very strongly that it was important to talk about an issue that oftentimes can be associated with a lot of shame and a lot of confusion.' She introduced her 'It Only Takes One' campaign in Roanoke last year. According to the Virginia Department of Health, in 2023, fifty-eight people died of a fentanyl overdose in the city of Roanoke, accounting for eighty percent of all drug overdoses. Law enforcement warns deadly drug cocktail circulating in Virginia and nation 'The rates in Roanoke are pretty shocking and staggering. And so, we knew it was an area where we wanted to help, and we know that it's a passion project for the leaders in Roanoke. So, it was the perfect place.' The city's sheriff's office started its own campaign called 'Be Bright Choose Right,' turning the focus to the schools. Sheriff Antonio Hash said he has a responsibility to protect the city's youngest residents, which is a major point in the creation of the campaign. 'With Fentanyl, it only takes one opportunity or one contact with fentanyl, and it can take out a whole school, it can take out a whole community, and we don't want that. So, this proactive measure is how we found that it is beneficial for our entire city.' The faces of the campaign are five children. Hash said each character represents the diversity of the city. Fatal overdose numbers down across Virginia, but not everywhere In videos and posters, the characters highlight the dangers of fentanyl, promoting 'if you see something- say something.' 'Just because it looks like it's safe on the playground, just because they look like you're safe in your community, that may not necessarily mean that it's not laced with something. So, take those precautionary measures before you consume something or put it in your mouth, or take a piece of candy that you found.' Fentanyl overdoses are down from 2022 to 2023, but First Lady Youngkin believes there's still more work to be done. 'It takes one pill to take a life, but it takes one caring adult or one conversation to save a life.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
