Rising Sun Schools in southeast Indiana kicked off the new school year Monday with new programs and policy changes aimed at boosting student engagement and reducing screen time.One of the biggest changes this year is a new grant from the Ohio County Drug Free Foundation that gives every student free admission to home athletic events. District leaders hope the initiative encourages more students to get involved and build school spirit.High school students will also notice a significant shift under Indiana's new statewide cellphone law. Phones are no longer allowed during passing periods or lunch.WATCH: Superintendent Branden Roeder said the district is easing students into the new policy Rising Sun Schools welcome students back with free programs and rules"We've looked at our discipline on that, just because we know it's going to be new to the students," Roeder said. "We've kind of lessened it a little bit, just to be able to kind of get students used to the new policy but I think overall it's going to be great because instead of looking at their cell phones, they're going to be talking to each other at lunch, you know, so maybe they'll get to know each other a little bit better than happen to be on their cell phones."The district is also celebrating its Early College Program, where 27% of graduates earned an associate's degree before receiving their high school diploma.This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy. ...read more read less