MCPS limits phone use but offers high schoolers flexibility

Revised Personal Mobile Device Policy in Place for MCPS Students

... “Thank you to MCPS for involving multiple stakeholders, including students, cluster directors, parents and teachers,” said Lisa Cline, former chair of MCCPTA’s Safe Technology Committee. “The cellphone task force worked for years gathering feedback and studying the adverse effects phones in the class can have on academics and cyberbullying. The importance of removing cell phones and other devices that distract from the teacher and learning cannot be overstated.”..

Revised Personal Mobile Device Policy in Place for MCPS Students - Montgomery County Public Schools (montgomeryschoolsmd.org)

Opinion: Our children need a break from screens — even at school By Lisa Cline, Gaithersburg

The Maryland State Education Department’s digital best practices plan was created to stem the physical, academic and mental sinkholes associated with excessive screen time. It is the result of a 2018 bill, favored by the Montgomery County Board of Education, that recommended offline alternatives and screen breaks every 20 minutes.

There is no evidence that offline alternatives and screen breaks are available to Montgomery County Public School children, not pre-pandemic and not now — despite many parents requesting books and paper assignments to break up the screen time...

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/letters-to-the-editor/our-children-need-a-break-from-screens--even-at-school/2021/06/13/5c30c4d6-c958-11eb-8708-64991f2acf28_story.html

There are 11 macro cell towers on MCPS campuses. 81% of them are at schools where at least one-third of students receive free and reduced meals (FARMs).

 

Text of public comment by Lisa Cline on Montgomery County Public Schools Operating Budget April 2021.

 Hello. My name is Lisa Cline. I live in Gaithersburg, am an MCPS parent and child safety advocate. Thank you all for your incredible work keeping the County safe this past year. I for one am thankful for the hard decisions you’ve had to make. On that note, my testimony has to do with the safety of MCPS students and allocation of funds in the 2022 fiscal budget to test for an air quality issue that has gone largely ignored for 20 years. That is: radio frequency emissions. There are 11 macro cell towers on MCPS campuses. 81% of them are at schools where at least one-third of students receive free and reduced meals (FARMs). To put that in perspective, at a high school where 5% of students are in financial need, a cell tower was successful fought. So our poorer communities are disproportionately subject to the possible health risks of RF emissions. Does this bother anyone else? In 2004, it bothered the Montgomery County Planning Board. In 2004, a mandatory referral letter from the then-Planning Board Chair pertaining to a tower application (200411-04) at Northwood HS indicated approval of the tower with the condition that “a letter certifying [it] operates within FCC standards is provided on an annual basis to MCPS.” Last August, I began working with MCPS Real Estate lead Boyd Lawrence to obtain those annual certifications. Mr. Lawrence also serves as a member of the Montgomery County Tower Committee. He was unsuccessful getting any RF reports and directed me to file an MPIA request, which I did. The request yielded just three reports over a 20-year span. Not one tested aggregate emissions, one mis-named Wheaton as “Wharton,” one only tested the perimeter of the school, and none measured inside the schools…where it matters most. RF radiation is a possible carcinogen. So is radon and lead. So let’s talk about radon and lead. MCPS has been testing for radon since the late ‘80s on a five- year cycle; every two years at schools with a past problem. Regarding lead…all schools must be tested every three years for compliance with EPA recommended levels of 20 ppb. But that wasn’t good enough for many of you…who then passed legislation lowering the action level to 5 ppb. Let me underscore that there is NO RF testing in our schools. I hope you see the double standard here, appreciate the importance of this request and will allocate funding for annual RF testing at all of our cell tower-hosting schools.

Reactive vs. Proactive Parenting in the Digital World with Safe Tech Committee Member Lisa Cline

MentalHealthForum_2018 by on Scribd

NPR: "There are a growing number of parents that are concerned about selling out our school grounds to telecom companies," says Lisa Cline of Gaithersburg, Md.

...But decades of scientific research have not established a firm connection between cell towers and health issues. The study Cline participated in — 11 years ago — had no conclusive results.

Nevertheless, Cline is one of many parents who've organized in some communities to stop construction of cell towers on school grounds. Their motivation is not just driven by radiation — parents I spoke with have other concerns: the visual impact, worries about potential property devaluation and anxiety that kids might get hurt playing near them.

In June, Milestone backed out of plans for two cell towers in Prince George's County, following a contentious public forum. (Milestone's agreement with Prince George's County is one of more than 50 partnerships the company has in six states.)...

http://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2017/07/14/535403513/cell-towers-at-schools-godsend-or-god-awful?utm_campaign=storyshare&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=social

Gaithersburg Parent: "rolling out technology in our schools must be done with health and safety oversight" @DelegateKaiser @SenatorZucker @CherylKagan @JheanelleW @delsheilahixson @EricLuedtke

From: Lisa Cline
Date: Wed, Feb 15, 2017
Subject: HB866 is Overdue.
To: steven.arentz@house.state.md.us
Cc: anne.kaiser@house.state.md.us, frank.turner@house.state.md.us, kathy.afzali@house.state.md.us,
 bilal.ali@house.state.md.us, Darryl.Barnes@house.state.md.us, Jason.Buckel@house.state.md.us, 
 Eric.Ebersole@house.state.md.us, sheila.hixson@house.state.md.us, 
 Kevin.Hornberger@house.state.md.us, carolyn.howard@house.state.md.us,
 Bob.Long@house.state.md.us, eric.luedtke@house.state.md.us, 
 nick.mosby@house.state.md.us, Edith.Patterson@house.state.md.us, 
 Teresa.Reilly@house.state.md.us, April.Rose@house.state.md.us, 
 Haven.Shoemaker@house.state.md.us, Meagan.Simonaire@house.state.md.us, 
 Jimmy.Tarlau@house.state.md.us, jay.walker@house.state.md.us, 
 mary.washington@house.state.md.us, alonzo.washington@house.state.md.us, 
 jheanelle.wilkins@house.state.md.us


Dear Delegate Arentz,

Too many of us do not fully understand how legislation becomes law and what you do in Annapolis during each a session. I am no different, but I would hate for intimidation to get in the way of expressing my deep passion for passing HB866. 

As a parent and PTA president in Montgomery County and an active advocate for shielding children from a.) things they cannot see (like wifi radiation and blue light), and b.) things they should not have to understand at such a young age, HB866 will change everything for our children during the 6+ hours they "live" at school.

The beauty of HB866 is there is nothing objectionable in it. There is no downside. 

Computers are arguably very valuable 21st Century learning tools, particularly for those who need an extra push to engage in the learning process. But rolling out technology in our schools must be done with health and safety oversight. Montgomery County Public Schools, for one, lacks that overseeing body. 

I have met with Mr. Sherwin Collette, Chief Technology Officer at MCPS. I have spoken with Dr. Andy Zuckerman, Chief Operating Officer at MCPS. I have asked officials within County government.... "Who is making sure these computers aren't hurting the kids?" I have yet to find a person, or an admission, that our childrens' health is being protected from the ill effects of computer use. Meanwhile, radon is being measured and mitigated, and pesticide use is being fully disclosed and carefully deployed. 

The known dangers.

There are over 400 peer-reviewed studies that say RF radiation — the kind emitted from laptop computers and overhead routers — causes everything from nausea and headaches to DNA damage and cancer.

Our daughter died of cancer. After her death, I was asked to participate in a study out of the University of Minnesota that analyzed environmental factors surrounding pediatric leukemia cases. It was then that I realized just how many invisible pollutants swirl around our children and how much more vulnerable a population they are than adults. RF radiation is a definite culprit.

The effects of blue light on our childens' eye health is even more conclusive. Retinal damage is inevitable without proper protection. Blue light filters cost about $20. Why wouldn't we outfit all the Chromebooks with these safety mechanisms?

Digital addiction is an undeniable reality that is befalling the Computer Generation. Device use affects the brain much like cocaine. Any parent of teenagers will tell you how real this is. And the research is deep.

Now what?

I don't blame anyone for the severe lack of "tech health" being taught in our schools. It's all so new. But now is the time to complement the technology roll-out with safety measures to go with it. 

Please pass HB866 for the kids who are counting on us, and the parents who are counting on you.

Very kindly,

Lisa Cline

Gaithersburg, Maryland

Letter: Don’t let children take cellphones to school

I am outraged that Montgomery County Public Schools is even considering changing its cellphone policy to allow elementary school children to carry them to school and use them on the bus. Young students can’t bring stuffed animals or Pokémon trading cards, but they can bring cellphones, some worth hundreds of dollars?

I don’t think the superintendent understands the reality of children bringing phones to school. Middle school students are watching pornography on their phones. Children are cyberbullying each other via text. And some children have an application installed on their phones to get around a school’s “secure” server. The school board should do its homework.

How would allowing elementary school children to bring cellphones to school lower costs, close the achievement gap or help kids focus? The teachers would have one more distraction to deal with. Who asked for this?

I want proof that this is a good idea before it is implemented.
I have been serving my school as a PTA member, board member and volunteer for years. I am discouraged that MCPS does not get the message that devices at school are a social and potential health problem, not to mention a privilege that not all can afford.
I urge MCPS leadership to include parents in decisions that so plainly involve us.

Lisa Cline, Gaithersburg

 https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/dont-let-children-take-cellphones-to-school/2016/12/01/9b35e31e-b73d-11e6-939c-91749443c5e5_story.html?utm_term=.c433c6c0a0c3