Haverhill High School Principal Beth Kitsos.
Administrators and teachers at Haverhill High School are cracking down on rules for using cell phones at school.
Principal Beth Kitsos said student use of cell phones for reasons other than education has been increasing through the first two terms of the year.
According to the school’s rules for use of personal technology, students may have their phones out during class only if a teacher has instructed them to use them during a lesson.
“It has become such a distraction for some students, that we have begun reminding all faculty and students of the expectations” for proper cell phone use, Kitsos said.
When students returned to school Monday morning, they found cell phone rules posted in all classrooms and common areas of the school.
“As always, our focus here at Haverhill High School is student learning,” Kitsos said.
Students are allowed to use their phones to check messages and to listen to music in the halls when passing between classes, in study halls, at lunch, and in the mall area, Kitsos said. If students are listening to music, they are required to keep the volume low and to use only one earbud.
Students risk having their phones held by their teachers if they don’t put them away during class, or having their phones confiscated by the associate principal for the school day. Students who are repeat offenders can have their phones taken and held in the main office for a parent to pick up.