Sept. 22, 2026 — A stalemate over the cell phone ban in Ithaca's public schools

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It’s the second school year since Governor Kathy Hochul issued a statewide ban on student cell phone use during the school day. The Ithaca City School District, like many others across the state, is still working out the kinks on how to best to implement the reforms.

For months, some parents, teachers and students have said that while the policy has managed to cut down some phone use, it's not uncommon to see students flouting the rule. Infractions related to cell phone use have contributed to a major increase in the number of disciplinary cases, though some teachers and students say they suspect the actual number of violations is much higher.

Now, the majority of the school board seems to agree that change is necessary. They just can't agree on how to do it. An attempt to beef up the policy before the start of the school year fizzled out. And now, several weeks into the school year, the debate seems to have reached a stalemate.

The cell phone ban has become an early point of contention between the district's elected and appointed leaders … and the hundreds of teachers, students and families affected by their decisions.

Access a time-stamped transcript by clicking the button with three lines on the embedded player. For a full page transcript, click here. The transcript is auto-generated and may contain errors.

Original air date: September 22, 2026.

Reported and edited by Megan Zerez.

Hosted by Jimmy Jordan.

Cover art image by Jimmy Jordan.