Reimagining Student Phone Use Without a Ban

K-12 STEAM education

County of Los Angeles (select only if your project has a countywide benefit)

Pilot or new project, program, or initiative (testing or implementing a new idea)

Phone addiction is derailing student well-being, mental health, and academic performance. In LAUSD and across the country, teens now spend 7-9 hours per day on their phones, often during school. Imagine handing scissors to a child with no instruction. Of course they might misuse them, not out of malice, but because no one taught them how to use them safely. That's why we teach students how to carry and use scissors responsibly. Yet with smartphones, a tool capable of far more value and far more harm, we've handed them to an entire generation without guidance, boundaries, or education.
This crisis of unmanaged phone use fuels anxiety, shortens attention spans, and weakens real-world connection. Reactionary bans fail to address the deeper issue: a lack of digital literacy. Phones aren't the enemy. The absence of education around them is. To solve phone addiction, we must stop fighting technology and start embracing it, beginning in our classrooms where students build healthy habits.

This grant will support the expansion of CLocked, a classroom software designed to help schools across LA County foster healthier digital habits in students. CLocked transforms student phones from distractions into educational tools by allowing teachers to select which apps are permitted during class, automatically restricting all non-approved apps until class ends. Students activate "school mode" on their devices by scanning a unique QR code for each class, making implementation simple and seamless. The platform also streamlines attendance with real-time check-ins and visual cues that confirm student participation.
Unlike physical phone bans that eliminate access entirely, CLocked preserves essential features like phone calls, location services, and communication, while removing the distractions that often fuel classroom distraction. In a world where phones are central to safety and connection, schools need solutions that reflect that reality. CLocked offers a smarter approach that helps students learn to engage with technology more intentionally.
Your support will help us become a certified vendor with LAUSD, and other districts in LA County to bring CLocked into every high school classroom, supporting schools, teachers, and families with a tool that protects focus without sacrificing safety. At a time when AI, screen addiction, and digital overload are rising, Los Angeles can lead the nation in building a model of digital literacy rooted in trust, balance, and education.

If our initiative is successful, Los Angeles County will set the standard in redefining how students interact with mobile device technology. In the short term, our organization is looking to become a certified vendor for districts across LA County, including LAUSD, and impact thousands of students by building healthier digital habits. By turning phones into tools for learning rather than a distraction, we will reduce in-class disruption, restore focus, and foster intentional tech use.
Long term, we aim to expand nation-wide, giving every high school student the foundation to manage their device responsibly, both in the classroom and beyond. Our vision is a future where phone bans are no longer necessary because individuals will be equipped with habits of digital discipline beyond their time in school. By starting with education, we are not just solving a classroom issue. Rather, we are preparing the next generation of Angelenos to thrive in this tech-driven world.