By Heather Michon
Correspondent
With students already back in the classroom for the start of the 2025-2026 academic year, school officials are still working on crafting a cellphone policy that meets Virginia’s new guidelines.
Superintendent Peter Gretz explained to the School Board on Wednesday night (Aug. 13) that this was because the state seems to have moved the goalposts at the last minute.
He showed the board passages from two bills that had emerged from the Virginia House of Delegates during their recent session.
One version said schools should have policies limiting cellphone use “on school grounds during school hours.”
This was a subtle but definite shift away from Governor Glenn Youngkin’s original executive order mandating guidelines eliminating use of phones “bell-to-bell,” and it was the model the district used in drafting its initial policy plan.
However, the House bill that seems to have eventually been enacted replaced the “bell-to-bell” language.
He presented a new draft policy that would require students to have their cellphones off and put away from the first bell all the way to the final bell. Smartwatches would not need to be taken off, but cannot be used for messaging.
Students with wearable medical devices like glucose monitors and students with individualized education plans (IEPs) would be allowed to access their phones.
As they have throughout the months-long discussion, many board members were skeptical that the policy was either necessary or enforceable.
Andrew Pullen (Columbia) mused about whether there would be any legal repercussions if they did not approve a policy at all. “You know, I just say, ride it out until you hear from somebody,” he said. “That’s just me.”
“It’s absolutely silly. It’s an unnecessary restriction. It’s going to be hard to enforce. It’s misplaced. It’s targeted to do something grand, but is narrowly focused on public education. It fails every checkbox….but it is still the law,” said James Kelley (Palmyra).
The motion to accept the new policy went on to fail on a vote of 2-2, with Pullen and Charles Rittenhouse (Cunningham) voting no.
The policy will return on the September agenda.
Abrams school
Josh Bower of Crabtree, Rohrbaugh gave an update on the Abrams School renovation slated for the summer of 2026.
First constructed in 1936 and in perpetual use for almost 90 years, the building needs significant upgrades to repair aging systems and bring the school up to 21st Century standards. The School Board has committed $1.8 million to renovate the building.
Bower said that a request for proposals from area contractors had only elicited one bid, which came far above budget at $2.6 million.
He suggested issuing a new request for proposals, with some modifications to the original plan designed to reduce costs. One example was to change the new bathroom designs to floor-to-ceiling partition walls rather than hard walls as originally envisioned.
Another option would be to use a pre-approved vendor already contracted to work with the state. This can sometimes result in a more competitive rate.
Board members will make a final decision at the September meeting.
Interim rep
Following the resignation of Danny Reed in late July, four residents applied for the position of interim Fork Union representative.
Ashleigh Crocker, Anthony Edmonds, Nikki Sheridan, and Faith Stuart all sat for interviews with the board in a closed session in the days before the monthly meeting.
Multiple members of the public spoke in favor of Crocker’s candidacy during a public hearing Wednesday night.
Board members will vote to approve one of the four candidates in a special meeting on Aug. 20. The interim member will hold the seat until Dec. 31.
A special election to fill the seat for the remainder of Reed’s original term will be held in November, and the winner of that race will serve until December 31, 2027.
