The big deal about cellphones in school is that they can be as much a distraction as an organizer, as much a tool for misdeeds as for learning, as much a complicator of everyone’s life as a crucial communications device.

Consider the case of the Lake Travis High School junior who, according to www.txcn.com, was charged with felony assault on a public servant for squeezing the hand of a teacher who took his cellphone because he wasn’t supposed to have it in class.

Then there’s the Georgia middle schooler who checked a text message from his out-of-state dad during football period, had his phone confiscated by a coach, then was expelled for a year because of photos on the phone that school officials said depicted gang activity. His mom said the pics were just of him dancing in the privacy of his home.

She sued. Think officials wish they’d just assessed a fine and moved on?

More school districts in Texas and other states are confiscating phones used during school hours and charging students or parents to retrieve them. Disciplinary action, usually in-house suspension, is also possible.

But an online search of policies indicates that some in other parts of the country are so strict that teachers can confiscate any phone in sight, even if it’s lunchtime and the phone isn’t being used.

The problem isn’t just that ringtones might disturb a class or that students might be texting friends when they should be listening to their teachers. They might be contacting a test lifeline or looking online for info they should have learned through homework.

Texas law lets districts restrict cellphone use at school and charge a fine of up to $15 for a violation. The Star-Telegram reported recently that some suburban Tarrant County districts have dropped their fees or loosened their policies. But others, such as in Arlington, have collected as much as $14,775 (Lamar High) during the 2008-09 school year in returning confiscated phones.

KBTX-TV in Bryan-College Station reported in July that the Klein school district near Houston took in more than $100,000 over two years in cellphone fines.

That makes the Fort Worth school district’s 2008-09 numbers, provided to the Editorial Board last week, look almost paltry: $37,415.92 for 43 middle, high and alternative schools. Collections ranged from $6,497 at Paschal High to $43 at Eastern Hills. Poly High and 14 middle and alternative schools reported no fines.

Money collected goes into schools’ activity funds and must be used "for educational purposes that directly and indirectly benefit the student body as a whole."

That meant textbooks and another security cart for campus patrols at Paschal, student incentives at North Side and paying for lost textbooks at Wyatt and South Hills, principals at those schools said.

The Fort Worth school board revised the policy this year, and the district has trained administrators on stricter enforcement. That means a $15 fine even for the first offense.

So, look at it this way: "Th bg del abt fonz n skl" is that using them at the wrong time or in the wrong place can be expensive. LOL? Not!


2008-09 fine collection

Paschal High $6,497
Arlington Heights High $4,655
South Hills High $4,212
Western Hills High $3,908
North Side High $2,255
Trimble Tech High $2,209
O.D. Wyatt High $1,919
Southwest High $1,380
Rosemont Middle $3,715