By Jolie Jackson
The Friendswood ISD School Board met on April 14 to hear perspectives on using Yondr Phone Pouches for the 2025-2026 school year. After hearing grievances and those in favor, the board postponed their decision to the next meeting on May 13.
If passed, students will be assigned a Yondr pouch with a strong magnetic lock to enclose personal electronic devices for the duration of each school day. Assistant Superintendent Kim Cole created a committee of teachers, counselors, parents, and students to discuss phone policy options.
“We acknowledged certainly that cell phones in our schools and classrooms have become an ongoing challenge, both social and academically for our students,” Cole said. “It’s something that we see every single day.”
According to Cole, a survey of FISD teachers in the fall found that the majority of teachers support an ‘Away for the Day’ phone policy. Cole’s data suggests that the current FISD phone holder system takes a toll on teacher efficiency. Below is a quote provided by Cole from a member of the committee:
“The constant daily push/pull with the phones does not help to build social connections with the students; rather, it automatically makes the teacher the ‘bad guy…’” an FISD teacher said. “Our mental energy should be directed towards instruction. Instead, a great deal of that focus is spent watching the phone pockets…”
The committee concluded that Yondr pouches were the best solution for teacher enforcement. However, the Board has received some criticism regarding using the budget to support this project, as the pouches are projected to cost $105,000-$125,000.
“Students have already found ways to bypass [the pouches],” community member Kristen Dellion said. “I do believe the intent behind this proposal is good, but perception matters too. From a parent and taxpayer perspective, it feels like [the district] is looking to spend money before exploring simple, no-cost options.”
Though the committee voted in favor of an ‘away for a day’ policy, one committee member does not think this is the best use of the budget.
“Our head strength conditioning coach just left coaching entirely because he did not make enough money,” junior Luke Boyer said. “We had 39 people make state this year, and that’s 39 people that would have never had that opportunity. With that money, you could take 125 teachers and give each of them a $1,000 raise. That is something at least.”
According to Trustee Beau Egert, while this project is costly, it would be worth it if the desired results were achieved.
“What I’m looking for is an enforcement policy that takes the burden off of teachers,” Egert said. “I’m not sure Yondr pouches are the one, there might be other ways. But I will also say, and I’m sure this can get twisted but that’s just life, but I’m not against paying $120,000 over a period of years if we can actually make an impact.”
