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Madison County school leaders are working to make sure students stay connected in the classroom by avoiding distractions online.

Starting in July, students will not be able to connect their personal devices on the school Wi-Fi.

However, there is an exception for those who have medical issues.

School board members hope this will limit distractions and free up bandwidth for teachers.

Here is the full news release from the Madison County School System:

As we transition into the 2024-2025 school year, we want to inform you about an important change that will take effect on July 1, 2024. The upcoming change will prohibit students from connecting a personal technology device (PTD) to MCSS wireless networks.

This move is designed to bolster the learning environment at MCSS by safeguarding our networks, reserving our limited bandwidth for educational purposes, and curbing distractions during instructional time. It mirrors a nationwide movement to limit student access to district-owned wireless networks, underscoring our unwavering dedication to a focused and productive learning atmosphere.

What if my child has a medical need and must have access to the wireless network? Medical exemptions are allowed under this transition. We understand that some students may have special circumstances that require network access. In such cases, a parent or guardian can provide a note from their healthcare provider to the campus administrator for district-level consideration.

Is this a ban on student-owned mobile devices on campus? No. This move only restricts students from connecting to the MCSS wireless networks.

What is the Madison County Board of Education's policy on personal technology devices (PTD)? The PTD policy is found in the MCSS Parent-Student Handbook on pages 87 and 88. Here is a  to the document on the MCSS website.

Our primary goal is to provide our students with a safe, secure, distraction-free learning environment. We believe that this change is a step towards achieving this goal. We understand that adapting to this change may require some time, and we sincerely appreciate your patience and understanding with its implementation.