By David Nash, Esq., Director of Legal Education and National Outreach, Foundation for Educational Administration
New Jersey’s P.L.2025, c.195 requires public schools to adopt a “bell-to-bell” ban on students’ use of personal internet-enabled devices to promote academic engagement and digital safety. However, the law provides several allowable exceptions, one of which explicitly permits device use “in the event of an emergency.” The law does not provide specific details on the parameters for the emergency communication exception, but it is critical for school districts to carefully consider this issue and ensure that the district does not adopt policies and protocols that inadvertently increase dangers, heighten confusion and/or impede emergency responders.
Planning for Foreseeable Issues in Emergency Situations
Unregulated access to devices during an active crisis presents several foreseeable logistical and safety issues. If policies simply allow broad student access during any “emergency,” students may ignore critical safety protocols in an attempt to retrieve their electronic devices, such as leaving a secure classroom to run to their lockers.
Additionally, mass unrestricted student device use can lead to an online communications overload that significantly reduces available cellular bandwidth. During the Sandy Hook school shooting, for example, reduced bandwidth severely hindered vital law enforcement communications. Unregulated student device use can also interfere with official emergency communications, contribute to the rapid spread of misinformation, and disrupt coordinated safety protocols.
The dangers of poorly implemented emergency exceptions are severe. If schools lack explicit guidance on when and how devices may be used, students communicating directly with their parents might be given advice that inadvertently undermines the safety of the child or others.
Furthermore, a lack of clear communication protocols can cause immense panic. As seen during the tragedy in Uvalde, Texas, desperation and confusion can lead to family members showing up at the school armed and wanting to enter the building, adding extreme danger to an active scene.
The rapid spread of contradictory information posted online or sent via texts can also severely undermine reunification plans, creating major obstacles for families trying to locate loved ones or receive timely, accurate updates from leadership, hospitals, and law enforcement. Finally, in the event of an unplanned emergency closure, failing to have a clear protocol for how students will retrieve devices that have been locked in pouches or lockers can exacerbate panic and administrative chaos.
Potential Scenarios that May Occur
Here are some scenarios depicting situations where the dangers of unthoughtful device policies during a school emergency may come into play.
Scenario 1: Lockdown and Possible Intruder – Ignoring Critical Safety Protocols
The school initiates a lockdown due to a report of a suspicious person near campus. All students and staff follow training and secure their classrooms.
A sophomore, Maya, realizes her phone is still in her backpack by her locker down the hall. Maya is desperate to contact her mother. Maya recalls that students were told at the start of the school year that they could use their cell phones in the event of an emergency. So she tries to silently slip out of the secured classroom to run to her locker.
Resulting Problem – By leaving the classroom and running down the hall, Maya is potentially exposing herself to increased danger and alerting a possible intruder to the classroom’s location.
Scenario 2: Pipe Bursts – Communications Overload and Misinformation
A major pipe bursts, flooding the main administrative office and necessitating an immediate school evacuation to the football field. As hundreds of students move to the evacuation zone, nearly all of them grab their backpacks. Several students recall that they were told that cell phones could be used in the event of an emergency. They decide this fits the bill. Very quickly, other students follow their lead. Soon, hundreds of students turn on their cell phones and start texting family or go live on social media.
Resulting Problem – This mass, unrestricted device use causes a cellular bandwidth reduction, which prevents the district leadership team from successfully using their primary cellular-based communication system to coordinate with police and maintenance crews. Simultaneously, inaccurate student posts about a “massive explosion” or “hostage situation” begin circulating online, escalating panic among the parent community.
Scenario 3: Weather Event – Undermining Safety Protocols and Heightening Panic
A severe, sudden thunderstorm is causing flash flooding in the area, leading the district to call for an early, unplanned closure and emergency parent pickup from the main gym.
A student, Leo, is instructed to wait in the designated safe area (the gym) for official reunification. He texts his father, stating the gym is too crowded. Leo’s father, panicking, texts back, “Don’t wait! Leave the gym and meet me at the back fence right now.” Leo tells several of his friends what his father just said and urges them to follow his lead. Soon, dozens of students follow.
Resulting Problem – By following this unapproved advice, and influencing others to follow him, students are now violating the reunification protocol, and potentially moving into an unmonitored, unsafe location. It is likely that within minutes, a group of frantic, unverified parents will arrive at the school’s front door demanding entry to retrieve their children, adding chaos and danger to the active scene.
Scenario 4: Power Outage and Evacuation – Demand for Device Retrieval
A significant power outage forces an immediate, unexpected building closure an hour before dismissal. Devices are secured in student lockers. The power outage forces students to exit the building immediately, without their devices.
Resulting Problem – Because the school lacks a clear, centralized protocol for retrieving stored devices, parents immediately begin calling the main office and school leaders’ personal cell phones, demanding immediate access to the building to retrieve the phones. This flood of administrative requests overwhelms staff who are simultaneously trying to execute the emergency reunification and ensure all students are accounted for, severely hindering the coordinated release plan.
Recommendations for Implementing Protocols
Moving forward, school districts must thoughtfully integrate personal mobile device procedures into their comprehensive safety plans. Key recommendations include:
• Clarify Situation-Specific Expectations: District policies must explicitly define the expectations for device use across different types of emergencies. For instance, during a lockdown, students should be instructed to avoid unnecessary communication unless directed otherwise by emergency personnel. In contrast, during events like weather-related evacuations, students should be taught to follow the directions of school staff regarding whether they may use their devices to receive updates.
• Train Staff and Students: School leaders must train staff to recognize that emergencies will naturally trigger strong impulses in students to contact their families or access information. Staff must be trained to respond to these impulses in a supportive, safety-informed manner. Districts should ask critical questions during planning, such as how device use might increase or reduce danger, and incorporate these expectations into emergency drill protocols and professional development.
• Establish Device Retrieval Protocols: Schools must develop and communicate clear, centralized protocols for students and/or parents to safely retrieve stored devices if an unplanned closure occurs. This should include designating specific pick-up windows and a secure location (e.g., the main office) with staff oversight, and communicating these procedures via robocalls, emails, and school websites.
• Direct Family Communication: Schools must proactively instruct families that, in the event of an emergency, they must contact the school’s main office directly rather than trying to call or text their children. Schools should take the time to explain to parents the types of dangerous situations that could arise or be exacerbated if families choose to be in direct communication with students during crisis situations. By following district communication protocols, it is possible to ensure that students and families receive accurate and timely information safely without compromising emergency protocols or safety.
By taking the time now to plan for foreseeable emergencies, and anticipating the ways that students and/or family members may seek to circumvent established protocols for communication, school officials can reduce the potential for dangerous situations to occur or be made even more dangerous for everyone involved.