 Dear Friend,
Last week, I signed two bipartisan bills that will limit the use of phones in the classroom so students can focus on what matters most — learning. We know that when students put their phones down, their grades go up. We also know higher screen times have a negative impact on our student’s mental health. That’s why in my State of the State Address last year I called for a change.
Starting next fall, this new bipartisan law will require every public school to create an action plan that keeps phones away during class time, with commonsense exceptions for emergencies or medical needs. It will help our students focus more on their lessons and break their dependency on screens. And it will help teachers from having to compete against social media for attention in class.
With this new law, Michigan joins more than half of U.S. states who have already taken action on phones in class. There are several districts in Michigan who have also already taken steps to reduce phone distractions during the school day and keep students focused in the classroom. In states and districts that have already limited phones in the classroom, educators are seeing positive results, including higher test scores, stronger social skills, and lower anxiety among students.
I was proud to sign these bipartisan bills into law to prioritize academic success and support youth mental health. But this isn’t just an issue for our kids. We could all benefit from looking up at the world instead of down at our screens. I am grateful to Senator Polehanki and Representative Tisdel for leading the charge on this critical issue.
Let’s keep working together to give Michigan students every chance to succeed.
Sincerely,
 Supporting MI Students
Since I took office, we have continued to work hard for Michigan’s students, securing record investments in education from preschool to postsecondary.
Our achievements include:
- Providing free breakfast and lunch to Michigan’s 1.4 million public school students, saving parents $1,000 a year, per kid and time every morning.
- Improving literacy by investing in proven science of reading curricula like phonics, expanding proven training for educators, and increasing before-, after-, and summer school programming.
- Expanding free Pre-K to every 4-year-old in Michigan, leading to record-breaking enrollment year after year.
- Recruiting and training new educators by lowering the cost of earning a teaching certificate and paying student teachers.
- Investing in on-campus student mental health and school safety.
- Increasing per-student funding to new, record highs every year, ensuring every student in every school has more resources.
- Making community college tuition-free for all high school graduates at their local community college.
- Lowering the cost of college for the majority of students by thousands of dollars with the Michigan Achievement Scholarship.
- Making an associate’s degree or skills certificate tuition-free for any Michigander 25 and older with the Michigan Reconnect program.
|
