Pella Christian Schools had cell phone free campuses during the 2024-2025 school year, and Head of Schools Dan Zylstra says that the first year of the new Smart Device Policy was successful.

As part of the policy, students turn in their phones at the beginning of the school day, and Zylstra says that it has helped allow students and faculty to flourish in academics, and also to build better communication and community within the school. Zylstra also said that students were asked about their thoughts on the program at the end of the school year, and that overall the feedback was positive.

“We rolled this out last July, and Mr. Herdegen and the high school staff did a great job planning and working on all the details, and it’s been a successful year. We did some student surveys to see how they felt about it, and overall generally, they appreciate the policy. We found that student interactions have improved, people are talking more and it’s been healthy. And people are seeing the value of this all across the country. Different states are enacting rules around this, and so you know we were happy to be doing it already because it’s really what’s best for kids.”

Hear more from Dan Zylstra on an upcoming Let’s Talk Pella.