Dear school community member:
I hope this summer mailing finds you in the best of health and spirit as we prepare to welcome a brand-new year with brand new possibilities and opportunities. We have been working hard over the summer months to improve our professional development initiatives and facilities to welcome back students for an exciting 2025-2026 school year!
Cell Phone Ban
With regards to the new Cell Phone Ban, in late March, I notified the school community that the Governor of the State of New York was moving forward a proposal to ban the use of smartphones throughout the school day in public schools.
With the newly enacted state budget, that proposal is now state law. The ban must be in place by this coming September. The new law requires districts to adopt a policy by August 1, 2025, that restricts smartphone use throughout the school day from “bell to bell.” Our policy was adopted by the Board of Education on July 2, 2025.
The ban covers any and all personal devices that connect to the internet, including but not limited to smart phones, personal laptops, tablets, and smart watches. Students will continue to have access to their school issued devices.There are many questions about what this statewide “bell-to-bell” student cellphone ban will look like. At its most basic, the “bell-to-bell” approach, means no cellular phones in a child’s hand from the moment they enter school until they leave. Students would not have access to their phones during lunch, free periods, and between classes.
Students who leave campus on field trips and/or sporting events can use their phones as the law only applies to student cellphone use on school grounds. The policy gives schools the freedom to come up with their own approach on how to address the ban. We plan on using Yondr pouches for our students to store their phones at the Junior-Senior High School and a combination of Yondr pouches and classroom lock boxes at the Benjamin Cosor Elementary School.
Yondr is a company that produces magnetized pouches that students will carry to store their phones in during the school day, and schools can unlock the pouches at the end of the day.
There will be exceptions to the ban. The smartphone ban will not apply to
students who need their device to manage a medical condition or whose Individual Education Programs or IEPs mandate access to their device. Other exemptions may apply.
In terms of contacting your child during the school day: The policy mandates that schools give parents a way to contact their kids during the day when necessary. To that end, we will make school phones available for parents to get messages to kids and vice versa.
We realize that this cell phone ban may be quite an adjustment for students. We also anticipate some challenges and learning along the way, but I believe that our students will reap the benefits of this requirement over time. Further, if we can positively impact our students and their achievement then this effort will be well worth it.
Improvement of Instruction
This past June, 24 of our graduates received associates degrees from Sullivan County Community College along with their high school diplomas. This is an important accomplishment for our students who took advantage of this opportunity and graduated with a full associate's degree at no cost to them. The partnership between the college and the school district is something we are very proud of.
At BCES we are shifting from our Dual Language Model to a Transitional Model in Kindergarten for the 2025-2026 school year. In 2026-2027, both Kindergarten and Grade 1 students who are identified as “entering” or “emerging” English-language learners will follow the transitional model.
Our goal is to transition Spanish-speaking students to English-taught classes at a younger age, leading to improved outcomes, including:
(1) Progressing through NYSESLAT proficiency levels
(2) Increased growth on local assessments (NWEA, DIBELS, etc.
(3) Better performance on ELA, Math, and Science assessments
By providing more intensive support in Kindergarten and 1st grade, we aim to lay a stronger foundation for future success.
Facilities
In terms of facilities, at BCES a section of office suites are being remodeled internally for better space utilization.
All COVID era temporary storage containers will be removed by the end of the summer as they are no longer needed.
The district-wide Buildings and Grounds Committee has continued meeting to plan for an upcoming building project that will address parking lots and other district needs. More information on that will be shared as we move forward.
Family Engagement
This year, we will be utilizing Parent Square (a school and parent communication app) to improve family engagement and school to home communication (ParentSquare_Parent_Intro.pdf).
The 2025-26 school year will be a brand new school year with brand new opportunities for our students. To that end, the District continues to be committed to working with stakeholders to improve instruction and to address the needs of our students. Our Board of Education remains committed to making students and our school community job priority #1! Together, we look forward to continued family engagement events that bring us all together to celebrate our school community.
If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact your principal. If you have any questions for me, please contact me at your own convenience through our telephone system or via email ([email protected]).
Most importantly, I would like to thank you for your support of the school community and school district.
Here is wishing us one and all a successful new school year.
Educationally yours,
Dr. Katz