HENRICO COUNTY, Virginia — Politicians in the state of Virginia are calling on school districts to enact policies that would essentially ban cellphone use in schools when students return to classrooms on Monday.

Governor Glenn Youngkin (R – Virginia) has asked school districts to adopt his Executive Order 33 after months of public meetings. The Virginia Department of Education outlined the recommendations it plans to make to the state’s school systems in a draft released last week.

CBS 6 found that school districts like Hanover Public Schools and Richmond Public Schools already ban cell phone use in the classroom.

Henrico and Petersburg public schools require students to keep their phones in a bag during class.

Tara Courtland’s eldest child was attending Tucker High School in Henrico County when a cell phone ban was introduced in classrooms at the end of the previous school year.

“My child was very concerned at first, but it turned out to be OK. I have no problem with them doing it at the school level. At the broader administrative level, I have a problem with them issuing a broader policy on this statewide or even countywide,” she explained.

“This is a problem”

Courtland noted that Governor Youngkin originally ran for office arguing for individual parental rights, but now cited an “alarming mental health crisis” as a reason for enforcing a blanket ban across the state.

Some of Courtland’s concerns about a blanket ban on cell phones in schools revolve around safety issues as she ponders the what-ifs.

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“If children can’t get to their parents in an emergency, that’s a problem. If no one can call 911 quickly because phones aren’t easily accessible, that’s a problem,” she explained.

Dr. Charles Lowery, a professor at Virginia Tech’s School of Education, expressed concerns about a blanket ban versus a ban at the level of individual school districts.

“There will be teachers who find cell phones disruptive and who will fully support this policy or this regulation,” Dr. Lowery said. “There will be parents who will feel safe knowing their child has a cell phone with them.”

“I don’t think this is controversial at all”

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Matt Lano is the father of a first-grader in Richmond Public Schools.

“I don’t see any real reason why a child would need a cell phone in class,” Lano said. “We try to minimize screens.”

Lano said it would be OK for his daughter to keep her cell phone use limited at school as she gets older.

“I don’t think it’s controversial at all, and most parents I know would probably agree with that,” Lano said. “I mean, in an emergency, the school has ways of contacting parents.”

In a recently published draft policy, the Ministry of Education stated:

At the elementary level, students would not be allowed to have cell phones in the building or on school grounds.

In middle and high schools, students would not be allowed to use their cell phones during class, lunch, or between classes. More flexibility would be possible before and after school.

Certain exceptions to the rules would apply to students with special circumstances, and districts would publicly disclose emergency communication plans to outline crisis management and family notification.

Dr. Lowery urged parents to support teachers in navigating new and changing policies.

“The misuse of cell phones in the classroom is the distraction,” he said. “We should really be thinking a lot about local education providers on this.”

The Department of Education is accepting feedback on its draft until September 15. Schools are expected to implement new cell phone rules by January 1.

CBS 6 wants to share the community’s voices on this important issue. Email your thoughts to the CBS 6 Newsroom.