Northview High School students face a statewide ban on personal devices in Georgia's public high schools after Gov. Brian Kemp signed House Bill 1009 in May.
The law, first reported by the Georgia Recorder, extends Georgia's existing K-8 device ban to high schoolers. Students will not be allowed to use personal electronic devices between the morning bell and dismissal, including between classes and at lunch. The ban takes effect in the 2027-28 school year.
State Rep. Scott Hilton, a Peachtree Corners Republican who represents District 48 and authored HB 1009, told the Northview student newspaper that classroom distractions drove the legislation. "Over the last 10 years, we've seen a proliferation of personal electronic devices throughout school, and the data has shown it creates a distraction in the classroom and makes learning difficult," Hilton said.
The bill passed with bipartisan support in the Georgia House and unanimously in the Senate.
At Northview, Assistant Principal Marisa Disano said the school is following Fulton County Schools' current policy, which bans phones during instructional time but still allows them between classes and at lunch. That changes under HB 1009.
"When the phone ban comes down from the state, we will follow what the state tells us we need to do," Disano told the student newspaper.
Dr. Ashley Ulrich, an English Language Arts teacher at Northview with 19 years of experience, said the state mandate gives teachers enforcement backing they lack under the district policy. She said the ban will let teachers focus on instruction instead of policing screens.
Some Northview students disagree. Cadence Winkler questioned the law's motives, telling the student newspaper she believes it was passed to improve the state's image rather than to help students. Winkler and other students have raised concerns about emergency access, asking how they would reach parents during a crisis.
Hilton said the law requires each school to develop an emergency reunification plan. He cited safety experts who said students in active-shooter situations are safer without phones because they follow instructions more quickly.
Individual districts decide how to store devices. Locked pouches from companies like Yondr, which the student newspaper reported cost $25 to $30 per student, are one option. Hilton said schools can tap roughly $100,000 in annual state safety-grant funding, allocated by student population, to cover those costs.
Fulton County Schools, which projects about 85,000 students for the 2026-27 year, has already begun revising its personal device policies ahead of the 2027-28 deadline. The district's K-8 ban launched Aug. 3, the first day of the 2026-27 school year.
No specific Fulton County Schools board vote or Northview implementation timeline has been announced for the high school expansion.
