Parents react to passage of House bill banning cell phone use in Alabama public schools
Representative Leigh Hulsey of Helena tells CBS 42 News that the teachers were asking for this. Hulsey said that when you look at the data, cell phone use is hurting academic performance and the students' well-being. A Pew Research Center survey conducted in November of 2023 indicated that 72% of U.S. high school teachers say students being distracted by cellphones is a major problem.
Busy mother of twins Tayroya Hawthorne is also a substitute teacher at Minor Middle School. She didn't mince words when asked how she feels about the passage of the bill in the house that would ban cell phone use in Alabama public schools during classroom hours.
'If you can just tell them like put your phone away or keep it in your pocket as long as it's not out,' she explained. 'But as far as you're talking about putting it in their locker turning it off, somebody run up in the school and my baby got to run to their locker to get they phone and risk being shot, I don't agree with it,' she said.
According to HB166 students would not be allowed to possess a wireless communication device in any public elementary or secondary school building during the instructional day 'unless the wireless communication device is turned off and stored in a locker, backpack, car, or similar storage location.'
Homewood Library Foundation hosting block party
'I feel it's necessary for some children and necessary for some cases, very needed, maybe the kids will learn more,' remarked Jameisha Watson.
She has a daughter in the 9th grade at Minor High School, and a 7- and 8-year-old at Midfield Elementary. While supportive of the measure in general, she believes there should be exceptions:
'Some kids actually need a cell phone for safety reasons, so I think for some reasons some kids may need to have it.'
While mother of three Tiffany Bennett of Roebuck plans to send her kids to private school, she's supportive of the measure:
'I think it's a great idea,' she said. 'Cell phones are very distracting, especially during classroom work, they just distract the kids, there's just so much going on online, and social media, I'm just excited about it actually.'
The bill now moves onto a state Senate committee. Right now, Alabama schools have local control, so school systems make their own rules and policies under their local school board and superintendent.
Jefferson County Public Schools policy states that the use of personal wireless communication devices such as cell phones, smartwatches or wearable technology, iPads, iPhones, or other electronic communication devices are prohibited during school hours or while being transported on a school bus without specific authorization by school officials.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Los Angeles Times
a day ago
- Los Angeles Times
Tech companies want to move fast. Trump's ‘AI Action Plan' aims to remove ‘red tape'
The Trump administration on Wednesday laid out a plan that aims to make it easier for companies to quickly develop and deploy artificial intelligence technology. The initiative shows how Silicon Valley tech executives who backed Trump during the election are shaping federal policy that will impact their businesses as they compete globally to dominate the AI race. 'Artificial intelligence is a revolutionary technology with the potential to transform the global economy and alter the balance of power in the world,' said David Sacks, the White House's AI and crypto advisor, in a statement. 'To remain the leading economic and military power, the United States must win the AI race.' Sacks is a co-founder and partner at Craft Ventures, a venture capital firm in San Francisco. Tech companies have forged stronger ties with the Trump administration by donating money, showing up at high profile events such as his inauguration and showcasing their U.S. investments. Shortly after Trump took office, OpenAI, Oracle and Softbank announced that they planned to invest a total of $500 billion in AI infrastructure over the next four years. Billionaire Elon Musk, who runs Tesla and SpaceX, donated more than $280 million to the 2024 election and was tasked with slashing government spending. Apple, which has faced criticism from Trump for building its iPhones overseas, said it would invest $500 billion in the United States. The AI plan underscores how Trump is taking a different approach to AI regulation than his predecessor, former President Biden, who focused on AI's benefits but also potential risks such as fueling disinformation and displacing jobs. Trump had revoked Biden's executive order in January that placed guardrails around AI development. Tech companies started investing in artificial intelligence long before the rise of the popularity of OpenAI's ChatGPT, a chatbot that can generate text and images. But the emergence of more rivals has sparked a fierce competition among companies that are trying to release new AI tools that could reshape industries from healthcare to education. The rapid pace of technological development has raised concerns about whether the government is doing enough to regulate tech companies and safeguard the public from AI's potential dangers. Some fact-checkers have noted that AI chatbots can spew out incorrect information. Parents are worried chatbots their children use could pose a threat to their mental health. But regulation has a tough time keeping pace with how fast technology moves. The government also has to balance concerns that too many rules can hinder how quickly companies can release new AI-powered products. As major tech giants from Google and Meta face OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT, they're also going head to head with rivals in other countries including Chinese AI company DeepSeek. The plan outlines removing 'bureaucratic red tape' and 'onerous federal regulation' that would make it tougher for companies to quickly build and develop AI technology. It also mentions revamping permits for data centers, infrastructure needed to power AI systems. Data centers house computing equipment such as servers used to process the trove of information needed to train and maintain AI systems. But the amount of water and electricity data centers consume concerns some environmentalists. Ahead of the plan's release, more than 80 civil rights, labor and environmental groups signed a 'people's AI action plan.' 'We can't let Big Tech and Big Oil lobbyists write the rules for AI and our economy at the expense of our freedom and equality, workers and families' well-being, even the air we breathe and the water we drink — all of which are affected by the unrestrained and unaccountable roll-out of AI,' the competing plan said. The White House's plan also tries to address one of the biggest concerns about the rapid deployment of AI: the potential that technology could replace humans in some jobs. The building of infrastructure to power AI systems, for example, will create high-paying jobs for Americans, the plan said. 'AI will improve the lives of Americans by complementing their work — not replacing it,' the plan said. It also said that AI systems must be free from bias. The plan recommends that the National Institute of Standards and Technology eliminate references to 'misinformation, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, and climate change' in its AI risk management framework. The plan emphasized the importance of national security. It mentioned that the U.S. should export its 'full AI technology stack' that includes hardware and software to its allies and partners but deny advanced AI to its foreign adversaries. Some tech executives on Wednesday quickly praised the AI plan. Box Chief Executive Aaron Levie said that the plan is 'quite strong.' 'It has a clear a mission to win the AI race and accelerate the development and use of AI by removing roadblocks or aiding adoption. Importantly, it focuses on the positive benefits of AI, which we're all seeing every day,' he wrote on X. Fred Humphries, Microsoft's corporate vice president of U.S. Government Affairs, also praised the plan. 'President Trump's plan will accelerate infrastructure readiness so AI can be built and used here, and help students and workers with skills needed to win in an AI-powered global economy,' he said on X.
Forbes
a day ago
- Forbes
Apple Issued A New Spyware Warning To Iranians—What To Know
Researcher believed Iran's government is behind the Apple spyware attacks. Apple has been issuing spyware warnings for some time, to alert those targeted by the dangerous malware so they can take action. Recently, one of these warnings was targeted at Iranian dissidents living in the country and overseas, according to a report in Bloomberg. The claims come from a report by Miaan Group, a digital rights organization that focuses on Iran, and Hamid Kashfi, an Iranian cybersecurity researcher who lives in Sweden. The pair told TechCrunch they had spoken to Iranian iPhone users who have received the Apple notifications over the last year. 'Two people in Iran come from a family with a long history of political activism against the Islamic Republic. Many members of their family have been executed, and they have no history of traveling abroad,' Amir Rashidi, Miaan Group's director of digital rights and security, told TechCrunch. 'I believe there have been three waves of attacks, and we have only seen the tip of the iceberg.' Iranian iPhone Users Targeted Ahead of Iran-Israel War The spyware victims' iPhones were hit ahead of the Iran-Isarel war, raising interesting questions about who could have been behind the attacks. More than a dozen Iranian iPhone users were identified as having been targeted by the government spyware, but human rights groups estimate that this is just a fraction of the total. The attacks could have been perpetrated by another nation state, such as Israel — or even in a joint initiative with the U.S. This has happened before, in 2010, when the two are alleged to have been behind a devastating attack on an Iranian nuclear facility using a worm called Stuxnet. However, Miaan Group's Rashidi told TechCrunch he believes Iran's government is behind the Apple spyware attacks. Further investigation is needed, but there is no reason for members of civil society to be targeted by anyone else, he said. It is unclear which spyware maker is behind the recent attacks on iPhones. However, the most recent reports have seen Paragon Graphite target devices. The news that Iranian dissidents were targeted comes as researchers at Lookout identified Iranian government affiliated threat group MuddyWater using DCHSpy spyware to attack Android users. DCHSpy collects WhatsApp data, accounts, contacts, SMS, files, location and call logs — and can record audio and take photos. I asked Apple to comment on this latest report and will update this article if the firm replies. Spyware Targeting iPhones — What To Do I have covered numerous reports of spyware targeting iPhone users, with variants including Pegasus and LightSpy which take advantage of unpatched software vulnerabilities. It's therefore integral that people who could be attacked keep their iPhones up to date. In addition, turning your iPhone on and off again can disrupt the malware, temporarily disabling it. Apple itself recommends Lockdown Mode, which reduces the functionality of your iPhone but also stops spyware from taking hold. If you do think you're a victim of spyware, or if Apple has sent you a notification, contact Access Now or Amnesty for help.
San Francisco Chronicle
15-07-2025
- San Francisco Chronicle
America's only rare earth producer gets a boost from Apple and Pentagon agreements
MP Materials, which runs the only American rare earths mine, announced a new $500 million agreement with tech giant Apple on Tuesday to produce more of the powerful magnets used in iPhones as well as other high-tech products like electric vehicles. This news comes on the heels of last week's announcement that the U.S. Defense Department agreed to invest $400 million in shares of the Las Vegas-based company. That will make the government the largest shareholder in MP Materials and help increase magnet production. Despite their name, the 17 rare earth elements aren't actually rare, but it's hard to find them in a high enough concentration to make a mine worth the investment. They are important ingredients in everything from smartphones and submarines to EVs and fighter jets, and it's those military applications that have made rare earths a key concern in ongoing U.S. trade talks. That's because China dominates the market and imposed new limits on exports after President Donald Trump announced his widespread tariffs. When shipments dried up, the two sides sat down in London. The agreement with Apple will allow MP Materials to further expand its new factory in Texas to use recycled materials to produce the magnets that make iPhones vibrate. The company expects to start producing magnets for GM's electric vehicles later this year and this agreement will let it start producing magnets for Apple in 2027. The Apple agreement represents a sliver of the company's pledge to invest $500 billion domestically during the Trump administration. And although the deal will provide a significant boost for MP Materials, the agreement with the Defense Department may be even more meaningful. Neha Mukherjee, a rare earths analyst with Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, said in a research note that the Pentagon's 10-year promise to guarantee a minimum price for the key elements of neodymium and praseodymium will guarantee stable revenue for MP Minerals and protect it from potential price cuts by Chinese producers that are subsidized by their government. Trump has made it a priority to try to reduce American reliance on China for rare earths. His administration is both helping MP Materials and trying to encourage the development of new mines that would take years to come to fruition. China has agreed to issue some permits for rare earth exports but not for military uses, and much uncertainty remains about their supply. The fear is that the trade war between the world's two biggest economies could lead to a critical shortage of rare earth elements that could disrupt production of a variety of products. MP Materials can't satisfy all of the U.S. demand from its Mountain Pass mine in California's Mojave Desert. The deals by MP Materials come as Beijing and Washington have agreed to walk back on their non-tariff measures: China is to grant export permits for rare earth magnets to the U.S., and the U.S. is easing export controls on chip design software and jet engines. The truce is intended to ease tensions and prevent any catastrophic fall-off in bilateral relations, but is unlikely to address fundamental differences as both governments take steps to reduce dependency on each other.
