New York prepares to ban cell phones in schools in the next school year

New York.- New York City is preparing to ban the use of smartphones in schools for the next school year 2025-2026 after the approval of a new state law.

In over 700 districts, including New York City, schools will be required to create measures to ensure that students store their devices -including smartwatches- from start to finish and prevent their unauthorized use during classes, lunch, and other times of the school day.

The chancellor of the New York City public school system, Melissa Avilés-Ramos, explained in a press conference that educational centers can design their own models, so some schools will choose to collect the devices from the minors and others will require that they not enter the building with them.

"It's a real distraction that our young people have their phones in schools, but it's also a public safety issue. It promotes student violence and bullying. Many fights are recorded and spread throughout the system, and we just want to have an environment where children can learn," said the Mayor of the Big Apple, Eric Adams.

However, Adams pointed out that the law was a decision by New York Governor Kathy Hochul, but that the state is not "giving (the city) the dollars" they believe they need.

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Hochul achieved this historic victory as part of the agreement on the Fiscal Year 2026 State Budget. Following this agreement and the enactment of the Fiscal Year 2026 State Budget, New York State's 'schools without distractions' policy will take effect this fall for the 2025-2026 school year. The ban, which will apply from kindergarten students to those in their final year of school, already exists in other states such as California, Florida, Louisiana, and Virginia.

ICE will not enter schools

Avilés-Ramos reiterated today that New York schools continue to be safe places where the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) cannot enter to deport undocumented immigrants, as the fear of random deportations has increased since Donald Trump returned to the White House, and said that deporting irregular immigrants was one of his main goals.

On May 21st, Venezuelan student Dylan López Contreras was detained by immigration agents after attending a hearing in a court related to his immigration status.

This week, the Mayor's Office reported that the city has joined the legal case with the 'amicus curiae' figure in support of the 20-year-old, who lived in The Bronx with his family and has no criminal record.

This is the first known case of ICE detaining a student from the New York public school system. "Our goal is to go after criminals, not those who do the right thing," Adams told the media today.