By admin 
Thursday was a disturbing day for parents, faculty and students at Lexington High School, when the school received a phoned-in threat, resulting in a lockdown at around 1 p.m.
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Parents were seen across the street from the school waiting for any updates regarding their children’s safety.
Thankfully, the threat was not credible. The lockdown was lifted, and an investigation into the call’s origins is ongoing, according to a Facebook post by the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department.
South Carolina public school districts implement strict phone restrictions to its students, but what happens in the event of an emergency, such as the one that just transpired? Are students allowed to contact their family members?
Here’s everything you should know about the state’s push to create a phone-free environment in schools:
What does state law say about phones in school?
In late 2024, the S.C. Department of Education developed the Free to Focus project, an initiative to create a phone-free school environment.
To receive state funds allocated for state aid to classrooms, a school district has to implement a policy adopted by the State Board of Education that prohibits access to personal electronic communication devices by students during the school day. This is under Proviso 1.103 in the General Appropriations Bill, H.5100 of 2024.
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Under the State Board of Education’s model, “students are prohibited from accessing their personal electronic devices unless authorized for classroom use. Students may not wear or access device accessories during the school day. Students must store their devices and device accessories in lockers, backpacks, or otherwise as directed by the school district during the school day.”
The only exceptions to this rule are if a cellular device is medically necessary or if a student is a member of a volunteer firefighting organization or emergency organization.
Are phones allowed during an emergency?
Students may not be allowed to access their phones during the school day under most circumstances, but in the event of a lockdown or other sort of emergency, phone restrictions are lifted.
“Students are not prohibited from accessing their phones in the event of an emergency once they are safe,” said the S.C. Department of Education in a handbook provided to school administrators.
Even though they won’t enforce phone policies during an active emergency, the department makes clear that they still don’t want students accessing their phones, citing these safety concerns:
- The use of cell phones by students can accelerate the spread of misinformation, rumors, and fear
- In an emergency lockdown situation, cell phones could ring or vibrate audibly at a time when students need to be quiet for safety reasons
- Students on cell phones are less focused on listening to adults for directions on how to respond and stay safe
- Cell phones can lead to families arriving at the school and make it more difficult for First Responders to facilitate safe evacuation and tactical and emergency response
“In the event of a crisis, the priority will always be on taking the appropriate steps to ensure the safety of students and staff, not enforcing the cell phone policy,” said Libby Roof, the Chief Communications Officer for Lexington School District One, in an email.
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