SAN ANTONIO – The Texas Education Agency notified the North East Independent School District (NEISD) that it has until Jan. 31 to alter its cellphone policy or face intervention or sanctions from the state.
In June, a new law went into effect in Texas requiring school districts to create a written policy “prohibiting students from using personal wireless communication devices during instructional time.”
In August, the NEISD Board of Trustees approved a policy that states “students are prohibited from using a personal communication device while on school property during the school day, except under the circumstances described in this policy.” The policy required students to turn off and store all electronic devices during instructional time, but did allow students to use them during lunch periods and passing periods.
The TEA notified the district in September that it received a complaint about the policy and began conducting an investigation.
In a letter sent to the district last month, the TEA notified NEISD that its investigation found that the district’s policy did not comply with the new law and that the district is “not entitled to disregard legislative directives or to perform legislatively required actions in part.”
The state agency gave the NEISD until the end of December to develop a new board policy and hold a meeting to approve the new policy. The board must submit that new policy to the state by Jan. 9, 2026, and a description of the policy’s implementation of the new policy by Jan. 30, 2026.
Also in November, current NEISD Superintendent Dr. Sean Maika announced his plan to step down from the role in January 2026. The district named Anthony Jarrett as its interim superintendent on Tuesday.
In an email to KSAT, a TEA spokesperson said the agency could not comment since the case is a still “an open, outstanding matter.”
NEISD Board of Trustees President David Beyer told KSAT, TEA did not specify how the district’s policy is non-complaint but just reiterated the district had to comply.
Speaking for himself, Beyer said, “I see that our policy meets the spirit of the law and is in alignment with what they specifically told us we can and cannot do.”
He added, “I feel like we have a good policy that people respect it. It’s reasonable and folks have really coalesced and gotten behind it.”
Beyer said parents will be able to voice their opinion during an upcoming school board meeting in January.
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