School Committee Adopts Cell Phone Ban, Protect Act

School Committee · Meeting of October 19, 2026

North Brookfield's School Committee adopted a bell-to-bell cell phone restriction and a new PROTECT Act policy at its October 19 meeting. Superintendent Timothy James McCormick said a $10,000 Attorney General's Office grant funded magnetic "Yondr" pouches that will lock student phones from the opening to closing bell at the middle and high school. The committee also approved $9,738.69 combined in budget transfers tied to a $50,000 federal manufacturing-pathway grant and approved McCormick's 2026-2027 goals.

A state accountability presentation showed North Brookfield Elementary's percentile doubling from 15 to 30 in a year, while the high school's grade 10 scores, based on cohorts as small as eight to 11 students, lagged state averages; McCormick said "we are not saying that we have beat the MCAS." A resident criticized the district's repeated comparisons to Quaboag Regional School District during public comment, calling them "an insult to our families that choose to be here."

In the full story:

• Public Participation: School Choice and the Quaboag Question
• Correspondence: Teacher Contract Negotiations
• Financial Reports: Grant Transfers and Budget Status
• Superintendent's Goals for 2026-2027
• Fall MAP Testing Results
• 2026 State Accountability Report
• Administrator's and Student Services Reports
• Facilities and Technology Updates
• Policy: PROTECT Act and Cell Phone Policy, Third Reading
• New Business: West Brookfield Charter School Talk
• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report: 3,679 words

Source: the School Committee meeting of October 19, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

Checked against the record: before publication this article was automatically compared with the meeting transcript.