“If a teenage Dick Tracy decides to enroll at South Whidbey High School in September, he will probably be the first student expelled this year.This week the South Whidbey school board approved a new policy banning student-owned cellular phones, pagers and laser devices from school grounds. The proposal came to the board as a safety measure at Tuesday night’s meeting, with the support of schools Superintendent Dr. Lisa Bjork.Bjork said the primary purpose of the policy is to keep laser pointers and similar devices off school district buses, where they can endanger students and drivers.“It’s a bus safety issue,” said Bjork.Laser pointers and similar devices are capable of temporarily blinding people, and can damage the retina of the eye if properly aimed. They have been at the center of controversy nationwide because they can also be used to simulate a laser site on a firearm, something that concerns law enforcement.Laser pointers have already made their way into South Whidbey schools. During the meeting, board member Steve Scoles recounted an incident two years ago in the high school career center, where he observed a boy play the beam of a laser pointer over a girl’s face to get her attention. Scoles said he took the pointer away from the boy, who did not seem to realize he could have injured the girl.“In an earlier time, I suppose he would have thrown a spitball to get her attention,” said Scoles.Although South Whidbey High School does have a policy banning cell phones, pagers and laser pointers from its campus, Bjork said having an official board board policy will make a ban easier to enforce.But even with the new policy in force, school officials still will not randomly search lockers, book bags, purses and other student property to find and seize the electronic devices. The devices may be seized only if a student is caught using one or is suspected of using one. School administrators and teachers may search a student’s belongings for the devices if they have probable cause to do so.Bjork said the district needs a policy banning cell phones and pagers because teachers find them to be a distraction in class.The three board members present at the meeting raised no objections to the policy and voted unanimously for it.“I have no problems with this policy,” said board member John Peticolas. “I kinda like it.”Scoles said he was particularly happy with the ban on communications devices.“I don’t think there’s any reason for students to have pagers and cell phones,” said Scoles.After the meeting, Bjork said the new policy will probably draw fire from parents who want to stay in contact with their children during the day.“I think it really will be an issue for some parents,” said Bjork.And it will be an issue for some students. Barlow Payne, a 1999 graduate of South Whidbey High School, said students still at the high school probably will not give up their pagers in the face of the ban. He said it is the only reliable way to get a message from a parent or in an emergency situation. Students cannot rely on the school office to deliver messages. In fact, it is generally school policy not to deliver messages to students.“If somebody needs to speak to you now, they need to speak to you now,” said Payne.Payne said pagers kept in their vibrate mode are not distracting in class. The only times he has seen students using their pagers or cellular phones is during passing times. Even then, he said, he rarely sees the phones.Payne said he does support the ban on laser devices.There are exceptions to the policy. Students volunteering with Fire Protection District 3 or the Langley Fire Department will be allowed to carry emergency paging devices. Students with personal medical reasons to carry cell phones or pagers will also be allowed to carry the devices in school. These students will, however, be required to identify themselves to building principals before carrying the devices on campus.”