January 2, 2025

Colleton County School District and the South Carolina State Board of Education will implement the “Free to Focus” project to meet the requirements of the General Appropriations Bill, H. 5100 of 2024, Proviso 1.103: (SDE: Anti-Bullying/School Safety) To receive state funds allocated for State Aid to Classrooms, a school district shall implement a policy adopted by the State Board of Education that prohibits access to personal electronic communication devices by students during the school day when we return to school on Tuesday, January 7, 2025. For purposes of this provision, a personal electronic communication device is considered to be a device not authorized for classroom use by a student, utilized to access the Internet, wi-fi, or cellular telephone signals.

The Colleton County School Board has reviewed, updated, and approved Policy JICJ Possession/Use of Electronic Communication Devices in School to ensure that our district policy is in compliance with the General Appropriations Bill & the Proviso 1.103 which can be found at: https://boardpolicyonline.com/?b=colleton. Also a copy of this letter and other important documents can be found on the district website & all school websites in the documents folder under the “Menu” tab.

Bells Elementary

BES Five Year Strategic Plan