Buses pick up students at the end of the day at the Westford School in Westford on Thursday, April 17, 2025. File photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger This story by Liberty Darr was first published in the News Citizen on Sept. 10, 2026. When Stowe parent Molly Triffin Gaines attended “meet the teacher night” for her daughter’s third grade class just ahead of the new school year, she was surprised and thrilled to find that cursive writing was back on the curriculum. Parents across the Lamoille South Supervisory Union — which oversees schools in Elmore, Morristown and Stowe — can likely expect a lot more pencil scribbles and eraser shavings this year thanks to a new technology policy and associated plan that scales back the use of devices across the schools and essentially prohibits the use of artificial intelligence. “We had one teacher the other day that came down to the office at the middle school and said they needed to purchase a bunch of pencil grips because the kids have been doing so much handwriting that they’re complaining about the cramps in their hands,” Lamoille South Superintendent Ryan Heraty said just days into the new school year. Those in the office at the time, he said, all but cheered. In a letter to families ahead of the school year, Heraty outlined just a few examples of the extensive plan regarding electronics: Kindergarten students will no longer have devices in the classroom — excluding assistive technology. Middle school students will no longer take devices from school home. Students will no longer have access to artificial intelligence tools. YouTube is blocked for student use. Apps and platforms need independent research to support their use. Exceptions will be made on a case-by-case basis. And, yes, homework at the middle school level is going analog. The intersectionality of technology and its use in the classroom has hit an inflection point across the country and in Vermont in recent years. This year, for the first year, new state legislation is in effect that prohibits students from using cellphones and other personal electronic devices during the school day. Lamoille South has arguably been ahead of the curve when it comes to studying the effects technology has on the cognitive and emotional well-being of its student body. Two years ago, the schools began limiting cellphone use. “Overwhelmingly, over 80% of families said get rid of the phones,” Heraty said. “Teachers were saying, ‘Let’s get rid of the phone.’ So, we did it, and it was pretty seamless.” That work essentially set the stage for a broader discussion around the overall usage of technology in the classroom — including Chromebooks and other tools. The use of such devices really ramped up during the Covid-19 pandemic, Heraty said, as the switch to digital learning took precedence. “There started to be this groundswell of public sentiment or discussions around technology and Chromebooks and screen time and mental health awareness,” he said. The supervisory union performed an audit of how many minutes a day — both in classrooms and at homes — students were looking at screens on their laptops. Although the numbers across all the schools weren’t particularly overwhelming, in some cases, they were still high, especially nighttime usage among older students. “One of the things we were finding at the middle school that pushed us in this direction was that students were doing a lot of gaming on their Chromebooks at home, and parents were feeling like they had another screen to monitor,” Heraty said. Earlier this year, the supervisory union formed a technology working committee composed of students, teachers, administrators and parents that ultimately proposed the new two-page policy, adopted by the combined Lamoille South board at a July 14 retreat. And the research that they found wasn’t really all that convincing that using computers is better than doing something on paper, he said. One of the policy’s main directives requires administrators to present a technology plan annually to the school boards for feedback and review. The working group met three times over the summer and created the first plan, a 12-page, detailed document that sections specific grade-level bands and developmental levels. The role of technology and the associated guidelines are clarified specific to that unique level. Heraty said it’s meant to be a living document, updated annually to meet the demands of the rapidly changing environment while balancing the need to prepare students for the world that exists. Triffin Gaines, a parent of three and a member of the committee, said the work is a step in the right direction, at least in her perspective. “My kids don’t have smartphones or iPads or anything, but then it was hard when they would go to school and they would be given a device of their own,” she said. The plan, Heraty said, won’t be perfect, but it is an attempt to strike the balance between responsible tech use and students’ health. “We’re going old school in some ways,” he said. “It’s just proven strategies and not wanting to get away from the things that we know work.” Read the story on VTDigger here: New tech policy takes shape at Lamoille South Supervisory Union. ...read more read less