FAQ: Cell Phone Policy
Youth leaders are encouraged to decide upon and enforce a cell phone policy that works best for their particular youth groups. Keep in mind, however, that texting WILL be used as an element during Mainstage each evening.
Please leave a comment about your youth group’s cell phone policy.
This is what we’re going to try:
On one of our big road trips last year, the students repeatedly and flagrantly violated the prohibition of their use, and have lost the trust to police themselves. One of the purposes of retreats and trips like this is to remove oneself from the normal flow of life to spend some time focusing on God and to actually be present with others. Kids are addicted to texting and being connected, plain and simple. So first, I’d like to challenge them to leave their phones at home for the whole week as a spiritual discipline.
If for some reason this is not possible, then phones will be turned off by and held our counselors except for a set half hour of free time a day (and with this news, I suppose during Mainstage, but the curmudgeon in me wonders if even this is a good idea). Our leaders will have their phones if for some reason parents are so needy that they need to be in touch with their kids. We are a small enough group that we probably won’t be needing to find each other through phones.
We tried to be reasonable the first time around and let the kids be responsible for using them appropriate times, but that didn’t work, so unfortunately we’re stepping it up.
We will be travelling from Canada, and while our cell phones work in your great country, it is very expensive. We will likely be encouraging our students to leave their phones at home, or leave them turned off until we cross the border again. One of our leaders has been assigned as the emergency contact, and that is who parents will be contacting if it required. Texting for our kids will be out of the question, because of the cost associated.
Some of my kids actually do NOT have a cell phone. Will they be left out of the mainstsage texting activity?
From Paul Johnson, Mainstage Director:
Texting will be involved in some form each night at Mainstage, but won’t be central to any of the programming. If your student doesn’t have a cell phone, or if they’re from out of the country where costs are prohibitive, they are sure to still feel included and part of the overall worship experience.
We have a rule that student can not ever bring cell phone or other personal electronic devices on trips, so that stand for chic as well. It is always a fight with the newer students but we show point out that the main reason we are going is to connect with god and connect and build meaningful relationships with god and other Christians. Having cell phones and iPods and others makes this very hard, so we just leave them out. Living in International Falls, MN many of our trips are over 4 hours we make this an important expectation and place value on the group unity and kids love it. Once they get a feel for it they love the unity that it brings. They do even complain and they look forward to the travel time to spend it together.
I say awesome. Why put the students in a position where their cell phones are always a bad thing… great idea to use them and frankly, in an unfamiliar place, I’d like them to have them with them so they can call one of our leaders at any time they might need to. Sure, I’ll discourage them from texting their friends back home all the time, but that’s just another opportunity for them to have the freedom to practice healthy boundaries on their own… grace is everything.
I found out in 2006, that kids are sneaky about; or try to be sneaky about the use of cell phones when they know they are not supposed to. My group will have the use of them on the bus to and from Knoxville, but that is it. They become my possession for the week. In 2006, the problem was not necessarily in them texting their friends, but in their PARENTS calling all week long. We left home behind on purpose to connect with God, and with others….away from home. If we allow cell phones, we might as well just stay home and have retreat at the church….save a bunch of money.
I attended CHIC ’80 in Colorado, and had NO cell phones, and if u ask the people who know me, turned out okay!!!! Mankind survived for eons without cell phones, i think a week will not harm anyone….In conclusion, i think that texting should NOT be part of mainstage at CHIC.