Cell phones are less visible at Old Rochester Regional High School this year as a new policy in effect has banned them from everywhere except lockers.

“I’m hearing from the teachers that it’s great,” said Principal Mike Devoll.

In the spring, the ORR School Committee approved the policy change after several years in which high school students were allowed use of their phones at teachers’ discretion. Cell phones were also allowed during lunch, but the faculty found that the use became so pervasive on campus that it hindered education as well as simple human contact, according to Devoll.

There was also a security issue as kids used their phones to text and tweet during a lockdown in the spring, which was against the rules. Thankfully, that lockdown was a false alarm, but after the event Devoll said social media might have been accessed by an intruder to give them information on what was happening in the building.

Upon hearing of the policy change last school year, some students didn’t take it too seriously, but after several cell phones were confiscated and landed in Assistant Principal Mike Parker's office, that attitude likely changed. (No doubt, students still aren't happy about it.)

Since school started, the principal has posted almost daily updates of how many phones were sequestered from teens found using them apart from their lockers. Phones are returned at the end of the school day.

Devoll said he’s gotten positive feedback from some students who said they are more engaged without the screens. He also said students aren't without devices. The school has more Chromebooks in classrooms this year, and students can use their tablets and laptops for schoolwork.

So, it looks like the cell phone policy is here to stay.

Said Devoll, “It doesn’t mean these kids have locked [their phones] in their lockers, but they’re out of sight, and for teachers they’re out of mind.”