At least one Kansas district is projecting $150,000 to $180,000 just to equip secondary students with individual phone lockers, according to the Wichita Eagle. The state provided zero dedicated funding. Every dollar comes from local budgets.
Districts choosing fabric locking pouches — think Yondr, the magnetic-lock system concert venues use to keep audiences present — face an estimated $30 per unit. Statewide, the Kansas Division of the Budget put that figure at roughly $13.4 million if every student received one, according to the Lawrence KS Times. Lockers require a steeper upfront investment. Neither option came with a state check attached.
Legislators passed the policy. The price tag was someone else’s problem.
Cardboard boxes are $2 each (go price them at the local home depot). Figure 20 teachers per school (this seems low), and 10 schools per district (this is low), and we are already at $400. Cardboard boxes will not last very long, so we are also replacing them 5 times a year: $2000/year. I expect this lockers are higher quality and will last for a few decades.
…Or they just take an empty box of bananas from the lunchroom that was going to be thrown away anyway and never replace it because it’s a cardboard box ffs not a grocery bag. This is an actual example.