Instagram before the bell. TikTok at lunch. YouTube at 2 a.m.

The scene is all too familiar. The constant cycle of consuming digital content, endlessly scrolling through feeds.

We try charging our phones in another room, setting app timers and turning on “Do Not Disturb.”

But does it work?

You tell me—odds are, you’re on your phone right now.

The struggle to keep phones out of our hands, has gotten out of hand.

While most agree on the problem, the solution remains less clear—spurring unsuccessful attempts to mitigate phone usage across the country.

In Florida, legislators tried passing a bill in February which would prohibit social media use for those 16 and under. But Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoed the bill on March 1 over concerns it did not preserve parents’ rights.

The Senate Judiciary Committee called the CEOs of Discord, Meta, Snap, TikTok and X (formerly Twitter) to Washington in January to testify on the companies’ failure to police themselves at the expense of adolescent health and safety. But none of those companies have stopped making millions.

And with threats of a TikTok ban loom, the question remains: When will we find a solution that effectively combats the phone craze?

With the entire internet at the tips of our fingers and the constant lure of social media, classrooms have become battlegrounds between academic engagement and digital distraction. Community staff members are on the frontlines, sharing the repercussions they see in students—and call for regulation.