My name is Quint Ulchar, and I'm an 11th grade student at East Mecklenburg High School in Charlotte, NC. I'm writing this petition on behalf of the students of East Meck and the students of CMS (and in a bigger way, the entirety of North Carolina due to HB959) to abolish or loosen the new personal technology device (PTD) and phone policy rules in the district. I believe this should be the case for three reasons. 

• Schools nowadays are not safe enough to not allow students to not have easy access to their devices. 
• The district's provided Chromebooks are not provided equally for all students, and students with a higher workload deserve better equipment.
• The majority of HB959 already applies to CMS, including parts about filtering/safety on the school network. 

In this petition, I will talk about all three points and why this should be changed.

The bottom part of this petition will include quotes and references to the 2024-25 CMS Student Handbook and HB959, with annotations showing how the bill relates to the handbook. 

Point 1:

Schools nowadays are not safe enough to not allow students to not have easy access to their devices.

CMS schools do not have enough safety to not allow students to not have easy access to their personal phone to contact parents in case of emergencies. I personally do not believe that if my parents need to contact me at school, they should have to contact the office. Schools have had events from the beginning of school to the end of school and even during the summer. East Mecklenburg students had this as a reality this past school year, as there were around 2-3 days where over 50% of the student population didn't come to school because of social media threats to the campus. Even though it was because of threats, CMS did not mark not being at school due to multiple days of threats as an excused absence, which I believe is unfair. Why should someone have to be at school due to threats? That makes schools an unsafe environment that students have to be a part of.

Now, I do believe that there should be phone policies should be in place. I agree that phones are an issue in classrooms and that there should be a policy in place for student phone usage, but this is a district-specific, even school-specific or class-specific issue. I don't think there's a need to make it a statewide mandate for a phone ban since the majority of districts already have policies in place.

Sources (threats/gun on self/lockdowns in the past 2 years):

https://www.wccbcharlotte.com/2025/03/06/parents-left-terrified-after-two-were-severely-injured-in-a-shooting-near-a-north-charlotte-middle-school​

https://www.wsoctv.com/news/local/guns-found-2-cms-schools-first-3-days-class-officials-say/YC5GTVSNHVA4JGMS3Q3ENAQI3A/​

https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/local/education/article285154372.html​

https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/local/education/article286123801.html​

https://www.wbtv.com/2025/02/21/man-accused-threatening-kill-students-staff-several-charlotte-schools/​

https://www.qcnews.com/news/u-s/north-carolina/mecklenburg-county/developing-hough-hs-in-modified-lockdown-pd/​

https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/crime/east-mecklenburg-high-school-social-media-threats-violence-investigation-charlotte-mecklenburg-schools/275-3c978739-df86-4670-9849-c7ee7cfb1307

Point 2:

The district's provided Chromebooks are not provided equally for all students, and students with a higher workload deserve better equipment.

The district does not provide sufficient equipment for all students in CMS to use productively. My personal experience with my Chromebooks in high school was this: 

When I open the lid, it takes about 45 seconds to get to the login screen. It takes me about another 45 seconds to log in through Launchpad (which heavily increases startup times, as CMS has turned off the setting to stay signed in)  and then it takes about another 2:30-3 minutes to log in as the default tabs log in and the extensions load.

Chromebooks are sufficient for those who may not be able to get a different computer (and I do agree they should be used for things like tests, but for activities like taking notes and classwork PTDs should be allowed), but those that have the choice to not use the school provided technology should be allowed the choice. Especially with high schoolers and upperclassmen, Chromebooks are not sufficient enough resource-wise to handle all the workload that upperclassmen take on, with college applications, multiple classes work at a time, and more activities.

 

Point 3:

The majority of HB959 already applies to CMS, including parts about filtering/safety on the school network. 

The points in HB959 about filtering and safety on the network already apply to CMS, and have been in place for multiple years. There is no need to have to use Chromebooks for network filtering, as in previous years when PTDs are allowed, filtering has worked fine. As someone who has used a MacBook at school in previous school years, I get hit by filtering whenever I try to access places like social media sites. 

 

Conclusion

I believe, as a CMS student, that the new phone and PTD policy needs to change. 

• Schools nowadays are not safe enough to not allow students to not have easy access to their devices.
• The district's provided Chromebooks are not provided equally for all students, and students with a higher workload deserve better equipment.
• The majority of HB959 already applies to CMS, including parts about filtering/safety on the school network. 

Now again, while I do agree there should be rules on personal devices and cell phone usage in schools, there have been policies in place for years. I do not think, from a safety perspective, that phones should have to be put away because, for example, if a student goes into the bathroom and doesn't have their device and an emergency happens, that's not good for the student and could potentially open up a can of worms for CMS. I just think that the new policies are not needed and should be reconsidered at a district level, and potentially, at a state-level as well.

Thank you for reading my petition and (hopefully) thank you for signing!

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Handbook and HB959 Annotations

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HB959 Notes and how it applies to CMS

 

previous handbook (archived 8/22/25): https://web.archive.org/web/20250822163527/https://www.cmsk12.org/families/handbooks-forms/parent-student-handbook/student-internet-use-and-network-access

Bill text used (archived 8/22/25): https://web.archive.org/web/20250822164428/https://www.ncleg.gov/Sessions/2025/Bills/House/PDF/H959v5.pdf

 

CMS 2024-25 Student Handbook quotes will be denoted in <handbook></handbook> tags.

 

SECTION 1.(a) Part 3A of Article 8 of Chapter 115C of the General Statutes is

amended by adding a new section to read:

"§ 115C-102.10. Internet safety policy.

Local boards of education shall adopt policies for student access to the internet on devices or

internet services provided by the local school administrative unit. The policies shall do at least

the following:

(1) Limit access by students to only age-appropriate subject matter and materials.

<handbook>

Filtering

CMS will maintain centralized software in order to provide Internet control and filtering. The filtering software is intended to allow valuable online Internet access while, to the extent possible, inhibiting access to content that is obscene, pornographic, harmful to minors, or whose purpose is to promote, encourage or provide the skills to commit illegal activities, including gambling, use of illegal drugs, hate speech, or criminal skills.

</handbook> (https://www.cmsk12.org/families/handbooks-forms/parent-student-handbook/student-internet-use-and-network-access#:~:text=Filtering%0ACMS%20will,or%20criminal%20skills

 

(2) Protect the safety and security of students when accessing email, chat rooms,

and other forms of electronic communication.

 

<handbook>

Email is not guaranteed to be private; system administrators have access to all email. Email messages relating to or in support of illegal activities will be reported to the authorities, and appropriate disciplinary action will follow

</handbook> (https://www.cmsk12.org/families/handbooks-forms/parent-student-handbook/student-internet-use-and-network-access#:~:text=Email%20is%20not%20guaranteed%20to%20be%20private%3B%20system%20administrators%20have%20access%20to%20all%20email.%20Email%20messages%20relating%20to%20or%20in%20support%20of%20illegal%20activities%20will%20be%20reported%20to%20the%20authorities%2C%20and%20appropriate%20disciplinary%20action%20will%20follow

 

(3) Prohibit unauthorized access by students to data or information maintained by

the local school administrative unit, including by "hacking" and other

unlawful online activities.

<handbook>

Unacceptable Uses
Transmission of material in violation of any federal or state law, regulation, or CMS policy or regulation is prohibited. Unacceptable uses include, but are not limited to, the following types of conduct:
Taking any actions that may disrupt the CMS network
Knowingly introducing or attempting to introduce viruses or other malware into the network
Unauthorized access (“hacking”) into computer systems or networks;
Logging into the network on a personal account and allowing others to access that account, unless permitted by an instructor for collaboration purposes
Accessing proxy avoidance sites
Encouraging or committing unlawful acts, violations of the CMS Code of Student Conduct, or using the CMS network to promote illegal activities
Accessing or using threatening or obscene material
Accessing pornography
Using discriminatory, defamatory, offensive, or harassing statements or language including disparagement of others based on their race, color, ancestry, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, academic status, gender identity or expression, age, disability, religious, or political beliefs through any means including phone, online, or other digital communications
Sending or soliciting abusive or sexually oriented messages or images
Accessing material that is harmful to minors
Violating copyright laws, including duplication of software or plagiarism
Utilizing the CMS network for commercial purposes
Providing political or campaign information or lobbying for a political cause or candidate unless directly connected to an instructional activity
Operating a business for personal gain, sending chain letters, or soliciting money for any reason
Posting photographs or school work of an individual student on student-created web pages without confirming that a Photo and Video Release form has been signed by the student’s parents
Posting personal information about students or staff without proper authorization
Forwarding personal communications without the author’s prior consent
Distributing material protected by trade secret
Accessing the Internet via personal Wi-Fi accounts, through individual PTD accounts, or by any manner other than connecting through the secure wireless connection provided by CMS
Downloading, installing, or otherwise using unauthorized games, music, public domain, shareware, or other unauthorized programs on any school computer or network
</handbook> (https://www.cmsk12.org/families/handbooks-forms/parent-student-handbook/student-internet-use-and-network-access#:~:text=Unacceptable%20Uses%0ATransmission,computer%20or%20network

(4) Prevent access to websites, web applications, or software that do not protect

against the disclosure, use, or dissemination of a student's personal

information.

 

<handbook>

See above reference to Filtering.

</handbook>

 

(5) Prohibit and prevent students from accessing social media platforms, except

when expressly directed by a teacher solely for educational purposes."

SECTION 1.(b) G.S. 115C-47 is amended by adding a new subdivision to read:

"(70) To Adopt an Internet Safety Policy. – Local boards of education shall adopt

policies for internet safety in accordance with G.S. 115C-102.10."

 

<handbook>

See above for filtering; CMS currently utilizes Dyknow software for filtering, along with Zscaler on-premises filtering and certificates for students and teachers regardless of the device used.

</handbook>

 

 

 

Section 3.(a):

SECTION 3.(a) Article 7B of Chapter 115C of the General Statutes is amended by

adding a new Part to read:

"Part 8. Miscellaneous Requirements.

"§ 115C-76.100. Regulation of wireless communication devices.

(a) The following definitions apply in this section:

(1) Wireless communication device. – Any portable wireless device that has the

capability to provide voice, messaging, or other data communication between

two or more parties, including the following:

a. Cellular telephones.

b. Tablet computers.

c. Laptop computers.

d. Paging devices.

e. Two-way radios.

f. Gaming devices.

(2) Wireless communication policy. – A policy governing the use of wireless communication devices by students.

 

<handbook> (Section IV and V of the Student Handbook - Acceptable/Unacceptable Uses, PDf download of 2024-25 Handbook, page 77-78 (archived 8/22/25: https://web.archive.org/web/20250822175039/https://resources.finalsite.net/images/v1751900752/cmsk12ncus/uukvtxzyro7bc57ypft5/CMS_2024-25_Parent-Student_Handbook_final_7242024.pdf )

USAGE

· I will follow the CMS Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) for use of the CMS devices and

network systems.

· I will not reformat the device, tamper with security settings, or change its operating

system.

· I will adhere to all applicable copyright and software license agreements that forbid

downloading of media and software that has not been legally acquired.

· I will not engage in any harassment or acts of intimidation (cyber-bullying) to harm

other people using my assigned device or any other electronic device (S-DISC/R).

</handbook>

 

(b) The governing body of a public school unit shall establish a wireless communication

policy. At a minimum, except as permitted in subsection (c) of this section, the policy shall

prohibit students from using, displaying, or having a wireless communication device turned on

during instructional time.

(c) A wireless communication policy shall allow student use of a wireless communication

device during instructional time as follows:

(1) If authorized by a teacher for educational purposes or for use in the event of

an emergency. The governing body may establish parameters to be followed

by a teacher in granting authorizations.

 

> (c.1) This section says that the policy shall allow student use of a device during instructional time if authorized by a taecher for educational purposes. This part of the bill leads me to believe that districts can allow teachers to make their own rules on personal technology devices (e.g. laptops, iPad laptops, etc.) and that they are not only subject to district rules.

 

(2) As required by the student's individualized education program or section 504

(29 U.S.C. § 794) plan.

(3) As required to manage a student's health care, in accordance with a

documented medical condition.

(d) The governing body shall establish the consequences for violations of the wireless

communication policy, which may include confiscation of the wireless....