Beyond Cell Phone Policy: Leading the Shift from Distraction to Engagement (AM Session)

Michigan’s new student device legislation creates more than a compliance requirement—it creates a leadership moment. Schools now have a rare opportunity to move beyond managing distraction and toward designing environments where students choose presence, connection, and engagement.

This session helps leadership teams shift from:

• Enforcement → Culture
• Control → Purpose
• Compliance → Design

What This Workshop Is (and Isn’t)

This is not a session about writing stricter rules or increasing enforcement.

This is a session about:

• Reframing device policies as a culture and learning design challenge
• Identifying what student attention should be redirected toward
• Equipping leaders with practical tools to lead implementation in their context

Who Should Attend

• Principals and Assistant Principals
• District Leadership Teams
• School Leadership Teams (recommended)
• Deans, Instructional Leaders, and Culture Leads

Best experienced as a team to support aligned implementation.

SCECHs

3 Hours Upon Approval from MDE

What Participants Will Gain

A Leadership Reframe
Understand how to position device restrictions as a catalyst for stronger learning environments, not just tighter control.

A Clear Implementation Path
Use a structured process aligned to implementation science (NIRN) to:

• Assess cultural readines
• Identify likely barriers
• Plan next steps

Practical Design Moves
Leave with concrete strategies for:

• Instructional engagement
• Student connection
• Staff alignment
• Consistent expectations

A Starting Point for Your School/District
Participants will begin building a customized action plan grounded in their current reality—not a generic model.