Gov. Josh Stein signs law banning NC students from using their phones in class
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- North Carolina law now bans student phone use during instructional time.
- Policy mandates include social media literacy and defined discipline measures.
- Exemptions apply for emergencies, education plans, or documented medical needs.
It’s now illegal for North Carolina public school students to have their phones on in class unless there’s an emergency or they get permission from the school.
Gov. Josh Stein signed a bill into law on Tuesday that requires school districts and charter schools to — at a minimum — adopt policies prohibiting students from using, displaying, or having a wireless communication device turned on during instructional time. House Bill 959 also requires schools to teach social media literacy skills to students.
The new state law was passed with near unanimous support last week from state legislators. Stein, a Democrat, has been vocal about the benefits of restricting students from using their cellphones in class.
“Cellphones are a major source of distraction for students and disruption for our educators,” Stein said at the bill signing in the Executive Mansion. “When teachers do not have to compete with social media for their students’ attention, that is when real learning happens. There are also real mental health benefits for our teens by limiting cellphone usage at school.”
The N.C. School Boards Association has said most school districts have policies banning phone using during instructional time. But even districts like Wake County which already have policies will have to make changes because they only required phones to be silenced but not turned off.
The phone bill was among six pieces of legislation that Stein signed into law on Tuesday.
Nationwide push to ban phone use in class
The legislation comes amid growing concerns about the negative impacts that phones have on learning and students’ mental health. Some students have become addicted to social media on their phones and have used their phones to cyberbully classmates.
At least 27 states and the District of Columbia require school districts to ban or restrict students’ use of cellphones in schools, according to an Education Week analysis. Some other states are either recommending local districts enact their own bans or restrictive policies, or providing incentives for them to do so.
There’s broad general support for phone restrictions in schools.
A survey released in October by the Pew Research Center found that 65% of parents support banning students from using their cellphone in class.
Exemptions allowed for phone use in class
The law permits phones and other wireless communications devices to be used in class in these circumstances:
▪ If authorized by a teacher for educational purposes or for use in the event of an emergency.
▪ As required by the student’s individualized education program or section 504 plan. This exemption would apply to some special-education students.
▪ As required to manage a student’s health care, in accordance with a documented medical condition. Some students use their phones to monitor their blood glucose levels.
The law requires schools to establish the consequences for violations of the wireless communication policy. This could include confiscation of devices and disciplinary measures.
Law doesn’t ban phones during non-class time
School districts across the state have been adopting or modifying their phone policies in anticipation of new legislation coming this year.
Stein’s student safety council recommended that schools completely ban phone use during the school day.
“As I think about the school year ahead of me, it brings me joy and hope to know that my students will have eight uninterrupted hours away from their screens and the pressures of social media,” said Annie Goldberg, a member of Stein’s student safety council and the 2024 North Carolina School Counselor of the Year.
But the new law doesn’t cover non-instructional times of the school day.
For instance, some schools in the state ban students from using their phones the entire school day. Some schools allow high school students to use phones during noninstructional time such as lunch and class changes.
The law also doesn’t go as far as Johnston County, which extended its phone ban to teachers. The district says staff can only use their phones “for emergency response purposes and when not responsible for supervising or instructing students.”
This story was originally published July 1, 2025 at 9:41 AM with the headline "Gov. Josh Stein signs law banning NC students from using their phones in class."
