Roanoke County Public Schools will hold three community meetings over the next three months exploring the impact of mobile devices on elementary, middle and high school students.
The first meeting is Wednesday at William Byrd High School. The other two are Oct. 13 at Northside High School and Nov. 18 at Cave Spring High School. All start at 6 p.m.
A fourth meeting, Sept. 22 at 6 p.m. at Northside High, will talk about suicide prevention.
The meetings will provide information for students and parents about digital threats, the school division said in a release. They include social media addiction, cyberbullying, online predators and apps disguised as harmless games.
Parents will learn what to look for and how to act with expert-backed strategies to reclaim control over their child’s digital life and guard their mental and emotional health, the release said.
”Excessive device use is rewiring young brains, disrupting sleep, fueling anxiety, and lowering academic success. The damage is happening now — and it’s deeper than most parents realize,” the release continued.
The school division recommends parents wait until at least eighth grade or later before allowing children to have a smartphone and access to social media, Roanoke County Superintendent Ken Nicely said in the release.
At the Sept. 22 meeting about suicide prevention, parents will learn how to recognize mental health struggles in children, how to help and what support services are available through schools and the community.
That meeting will come about six months after the March death by suicide of Autumn Bushman, a 10-year-old student at Mountain View Elementary. Her death received national attention.
Her family said she was being bullied, and they have since raised awareness about bullying and suicide among children.
Bushman’s death also led to community criticism of Roanoke County Public Schools’ bullying policies.
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