Editorial: Is Yondr the Best Option for Salem-Keizer Schools?

Photo of a Yondr Phone Pouches intertwined with a pile of USB and charging cables. Photo taken by Charlie Squires, ’26.

Times Changes: Kotek’s Law and Adjusting to the New System

A 7 a.m. wake-up alarm followed by an 8 a.m. drive to school. With no energy, we park our cars, grab our bags and begrudgingly slide our phones into the vibrant green Yondr pouches. For the past month, we have settled into the new regimen. This school year, having a phone on your person is no longer a privilege. Now, phones are for those outside of Oregon’s K-12 institutions — but not inside. Oregon Governor Tina Kotek is the reason for this year’s change. Kotek effectively curtailed the electronic era in schools with Executive Order 25-09. 

Signed on July 2, 2025, Executive Order 25-09 is the law that prohibits the use of “personal electronic devices” from the start to end of the day. In her order, Kotek describes these devices as “any portable, electrically powered device that is capable of making and receiving calls and text messages and accessing the internet independently.” Kotek wrote that this does not include a device necessary for academic work, like a laptop.

Kotek is allowing Oregon school districts until October 31, 2025 to adopt a policy that complies with her order. And, these policies must be in effect by January 1, 2026.

But, with a display of sanity, Kotek implemented a few exceptions for student phone use in her order. Students with medical conditions that need a phone, a blood sugar tracking for diabetes, for example, or an individualized education plan (IEP)/504 plan could seek exemption from this stringent limitation.

In essence, the goal of the ban is to limit distractions for students and to foster a productive environment. Kotek hopes it will lower students’ screen time and in turn, increase test scores in math, reading and other subjects. 

How South Salem is Dealing with the Order

While Yondr pouches are not the designated policy in Kotek’s order, it is how Salem-Keizer is adapting. At South Salem High School, administrators have streamlined the process, making it as quick as they can for students. The way it works is that directly outside the high school, there is a cart with four Yondr pouch magnets. There students will unlock their pouch so they can put their phone in it for the day. After that, they confirm with an administrator that they have locked the pouch. Then, students just stow the pouch in their bag.

However, if a student is bringing their phone into the building but does not have their Yondr pouch, they surrender the phone to the student center and pick it up when they leave that day. While the process is efficient for separating teens and screens, it does create a substantial line out of the door. 

Like never before, lost and stressed out students consume the front courtyard and the main lobby. And, a lot of them end up late to class. Not because of their own tardiness, but because of the immense morning crowd.

I think that the Yondr pouches have made getting to class significantly harder because the line is long everyday and there are not enough magnets for everybody to get through efficiently. I have already been late twice this year because of how jam-packed it is in the morning. I seriously despise it. Everyone is trying to rush through while being bossed around and it is no good,

Leila Fajer, ‘26, said.

Sprague Principal Chad Barkes on Yondr Pouches

Across town stands Sprague High School; another Salem-Keizer school who has implemented the pouches. In fact, Sprague and McKay High Schools were a part of a pilot program for the pouches last year; this year’s return speaks to the success they personally found. Sprague runs a similar system as South, trying their best to maximize efficiency.

“Students are expected to have their phones in their pouches when they enter the school.  We operate on a trust system, although at the entry to the building we have staff checking for phones.  If a teacher or administrator finds a student with a phone, we ask them to turn them in and take them to the office for a parent to come and pick up,” Sprague Principal Chad Barkes said. 

Now, while rules are in place, kids are resistant and will not easily submit to change. As a staff, everyday we see students maneuvering around the pouches, attempting to keep their phone for as long as possible. Still, some students voluntarily adhere. 

Barkes is rather joyous with the success his school and administration has had with Yondr pouches, expressing minimal regret. If anything, he wishes he would have done more. 

“I think we would have started even stronger during our implementation last year and required parents to pick up phones that had been turned into the office,” Barkes said. 

Impacts Beyond The Student Level

As student journalists, our jobs rely on technology. Fortunately, our staff has access to secondary devices like handheld recorders and cameras. But, we do not have an unlimited amount. We do not have the funds to buy every single staff member their own utilities so they can do their own tasks when needed. Our staff should be passing audio recorders around like balloons to complete our jobs. Having access to a phone to get higher-quality interviews with live transcription is key to accurately relaying information. 

Furthermore, images and files are too large for email sometimes and cannot send on the laptop/desktop. But, without a way to use a media platform or our phone’s messaging app we have to wait until we are home. Or, if a staff member is absent and we need to immediately contact them, we cannot reach them through any means besides the school email. Which is a form of communication students rarely use. This can be catastrophic for the flow of articles and our publishing schedule. 

The scope of our jobs require us to go to out-of-school events often — sometimes on the fly with just a moment’s notice. Some of our staff cannot drive or afford to transport themselves so quickly; the only way it could happen is by communicating with parents about getting a ride. Or, they have to ask their families if they could even go to the event in the first place. But, with no phone there is zero communication — quite the barrier. 

Safety Concerns

As a school directly involved in a fatal shooting in 2024, it is reckless that we do not have an open form of communication and our loved ones at all times. Moreover, the excuse that police communication lines have to stay wide open during an event like that is absurd. That applies to phone calls and audio communication — not a text message. If in a life or death situation, a text message is the least we deserve. Earlier this month an assailant shot and killed two high schoolers on their school campus; the school it happened at — Evergreen High — is a campus that uses Yondr pouches. Just imagine the sheer panic in those parents’ hearts waiting for the call telling them if their child survived or if they were the victim. Limitations on phones are reaching an excessive level and they must stop. 

A Solution to Yondr

We agree with Governor Kotek and Principal Barkes that phones need regulation — it is true. No one is teaching students how to use a phone as a tool, and subsequently they exploit them. But, we can find a reasonable compromise. Yondr pouches could be options for students who consistently break the technology ban and need help. Schools can make this a personalized issue between admin, parents and students. A select group of student’s choices should not ruin something for thousands of others. Using an honor system with students is a preferable approach. It allows them to exercise autonomy and they learn to follow rules on their own. Before implementing adjustments this drastically it is imperative to take smaller steps and find easier solutions.