Your Local News, Sports & Information Online! Scan and Subscribe! Vol. 34, No. 37 -FREEwww.advocatenews.net Published Every Friday Malden School Committee wants local say in proposed statewide policy on cell phones in schools Malden state Sen. Lewis spearheaded formulation of new legislation that would govern use of cell phones in public schools By Steve Freker M alden students should be governed by protocols designed with local oversight, not by a universal policy determined by state legislators when it comes to the use of cell phones in the Malden Public Schools. That was the sentiment of the Malden School Committee at Monday night’s meeting, where the members voted unanimously to support a resolution stating that a “one size fits all” policy is not suitable here. “We want to inform state legislators that we know our Malden students best and we trust them to follow rules that we esJennifer Spadafora Vice Chair Malden School Committee tablish [on cell phone use],” said Malden School Committee Vice Chair Jennifer Spadafora. Vice Chair Spadafora authored a formal resolution that calls for local input into the final legislation, which will now be forwarded to state legislators. The Massachusetts Senate on July 31 overwhelmingly (38-2 vote) passed An Act to Promote Student Learning and Mental Health (S.2561), which is essentially a “bell to bell” ban on the use of cell phones in schools. According to information on the bill from Mass. Senate President Karen Spilka, “An Act to SCHOOL | SEE PAGE 17 Malden will hold Preliminary Elections in Wards 4 and 6 next week on Tuesday, September 16 Voting will be held for Ward 4 School Committee and Ward 6 City Councillor races; Top 2 vote getters advance to General Election November 4 By Steve Freker T he City of Malden has scheduled a Preliminary Election next week on Tuesday, September 16. Due to the number of candidates for School Committee in Ward 4 and City Council in Ward 6, the Malden City Clerk’s Office has officially scheduled a Preliminary Election to narrow the field of candidates for two contested municipal races. Voters in Ward 4 and Ward 6 will select from the following candidates vying for a place on the November ballot: School Committee — Ward 4 Dawn Macklin (incumbent) Abeer A. Annab Jeffrey Allen Donahue City Councillor — Ward 6 Stephen Patrick Winslow (incumbent) Jerry Leone William E. Muise Copies of the official ballots ELECTIONS | SEE PAGE 9 617-387-2200 Friday, September 12, 2025 Mass. Senate passes landmark legislation to ban cell phone use in public schools ‘bell-to-bell’ Malden state Sen. Jason Lewis led effort to establish cell phone-free schools in Mass. The Massachusetts Senate passed legislation banning the use of cell phones in public schools by an overwhelming bipartisan vote of 38-2. The bill is now under consideration in the Mass. House. (Courtesy/Sen. Jason Lewis) M alden State Senator Jason Lewis, D-5th Middlesex, led the effort in the Massachusetts Senate to pass legislation to establish cell phone-free public schools in the Commonwealth. The bill aims to improve student learning and academic achievement, boost mental health and foster healthier learning environments. Extensive research has shown that removing cell phones and other personal electronic devices from schools does the following: increases academic performance; encourages faceto-face interactions, which improves social skills and emotional intelligence; supports mental BAN | SEE PAGE 4
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