Episcopal enacts “Simpler Times” Campaign

Daniel Adibdbdb ’26

In a period of time dominated by “doom-scrolling,” “brain rot,” and “screenagers,” calls have risen to turn back to times before the advent of social media, and EA is no exception to this trend. After having a lengthy discussion about the school’s phone policy, EA’s administration has launched the broader “Simpler Times” initiative in an effort to restore its campus to a pre-digital status. The sweeping reforms, which have completely removed modern technology from campus, have faced significant backlash from students and teachers. 

The first stages of the initiative began with changes to EA’s phone policy after new research highlighted the potentially detrimental effects of prolonged social media use. Head of Upper School Mike Letts comments, “The first stage of the Simpler Times initiative really began with our stricter cell phone policy enforcement within the first few months of school. At the time, we didn’t consider it to be part of a larger campaign, but we wanted to ensure that our students would be able to focus in class and wouldn’t have excessive social media use.” What began as stricter enforcement of protocol, however, soon turned into new reforms to EA policy. Letts continues, “We didn’t feel this was enough. We always found students on their phones or looking at their computers during their free time—in lounges, in the library. And we realized the problem was deeper than just in class—we needed to fundamentally change the way our students operate.” 

The first major change from the Simpler Times initiative was to ban all phones during the day, which produced mixed reactions from students. Jacob Kim ’25 recounts, “I wasn’t happy with the decision because of how inconvenient it is to stop in the hallway to take out my laptop from my book bag just to send a GroupMe message reminder for a Vestry meeting. But for the underclassmen, it seems like a more reasonable policy.” However, the Simpler Times initiative quickly escalated into sweeping anti-technology reforms. An unknown committee of teachers, collectively known as the Committee of Student Safety from Technology (CSST), was charged with leading Simpler Times. CSST quickly issued a series of policy changes to restrict modern technology’s influence on campus, but the intensity of the reforms shocked many students and teachers. Ishaan Singh ’26 comments, “I was okay with the stricter enforcement of the phone policy, and I even tolerated the phone ban. But once EA confiscated our computers and phones, burnt them in the Honor Hall fireplace, and used the heat to power our school, I drew the line.” 

The computer ban, however, was just one part of CSST’s larger agenda. After the computer fire in mid-January, students resorted to writing written letters to teachers, receiving assignments on rolled-up sheets of paper, and using manual calendars to mark assignments. However, within a week of the computer fire, CSST pushed for further reform. Singh recounts, “First, CSST sent an email to all of us that we couldn’t write with pencils anymore, saying something about it corrupting our minds. Then, when we all started to use quills and ink, CSST banned to use of paper as well, only allowing us to use papyrus scrolls. But it didn’t stop there. Even that was too advanced, so now we all have to chisel on stone slabs. It was hard enough to finish my history and English tests on time before, but now I can’t even get a single word down before time is up.” Kim adds, “EA also adopted two dozen pigeons to deliver papyrus messages—which they only allowed because the pigeons couldn’t carry stone slabs—instead of digital messages, naming them all Hedwig. But after a few days, we realized the Hedwigs were horribly trained and rarely actually delivered our messages. A lot of us have resorted to chiseling messages into rocks that students have been throwing at each other. Only six windows have been broken so far, which I see as a big win though.” 

Many teachers have mixed opinions on the new CSST reforms. Upper School History Teacher Kris Aldridge says, “I was happy about the Simpler Times initiative at its start, but now it’s starting to interfere with my teaching. Hand-copying 30 tests and two textbooks onto stone slabs is tedious, and it was bad enough having to read students’ handwriting on paper tests. Now I have to read it chiseled into stone—it’s illegible.” Upper School English Teacher Tony Herman shares a similar mixed opinion, saying, “I was initially happy about the computer and phone ban—I don’t ever have to worry about students using SparkNotes or ChatGPT again. However, it’s really hard to communicate with students when I have to give all my messages to a carrier pigeon. Worse, the pigeons aren’t even trained well—I think only 50 percent of messages actually make it to the recipient, and I have even sometimes seen the pigeons making a pit stop at Wawa while still carrying their messages.” 

For many classes, the technology ban has brought learning to a standstill. Computer Science and Engineering Department Chair Matthew Memmo comments, “The CS department has had some trouble with the new policies. It’s hard to teach Computer Science without a computer. So far, what we’ve had to do is handwrite our code on blackboards and take a guess what the output would be. Without a computer to actually run our code, it’s hard to teach.” Singh, who is currently taking Honors Artificial Intelligence with Memmo, shares his concerns on the issue, saying, “It’s definitely been a challenge to learn effectively without a computer. It’s a big pain to handwrite code on paper, but for our homework and projects, we have to chisel it into stone. Unfortunately, the stone doesn’t have any intelligence whatsoever.” 

In addition, CSST also banned the use of calculators in class. Instead, students must now use abacuses to perform calculations in their math and science classes. Mathematics Department Chair CJ Yespelkis comments, “In some of my classes, I have to show a graph or use a calculator to demonstrate an important concept. Unfortunately, abacuses don’t have the same ability. I can understand the original concern of Simpler Times—that we’ve become too reliant on technology—but it’s gone too far.” Lilian Wang ’26, who takes Honors Linear Algebra with Yespelkis, expresses her concerns over the abacus policy, “With any test or practice question, most of my time is spent just trying to write it down on stone. Without a calculator, some questions truly become impossible—the abacus just doesn’t cut it. I don’t even feel like I’m learning anything anymore.” 

In addition to the educational restrictions, CSST also implemented heating and transportation restrictions. No cars or buses are now allowed on campus, and all golf carts used for landscaping and security on campus have now been replaced by horse and buggy systems. Regarding this policy, Singh says, “It’s pretty surreal to walk down campus and see horses trotting across. But on the other hand, the entire campus green is covered in horse manure. Walking to the Campus Center and back is a whole journey in and of itself.” In addition, all modern heating has been cut off from EA buildings, with the only source of heat coming from wood fires. Due to the lack of sufficient fireplaces and chimneys to adequately warm the school, temperatures inside have plummeted. 

Amid these conditions, however, a small minority of the EA community remains in favor of the Simpler Times policies. The most outspoken proponent of CSST’s reforms is Upper School Math Teacher Thomas Goebeler. Goebeler states, “I don’t mind the cold. I certainly don’t mind the lack of technology—I can turn on my computer on a good day. We don’t have cars and golf carts speeding around campus. Students come into class focused and ready to learn. What more can I ask for? This—this is the peak of education. I don’t see students absorbed in their devices, and I can still walk in, grab my Hagoromo chalk, and write on my blackboard—that’s all I need.” 

The Simpler Times campaign has overall made extreme changes to daily life on EA’s campus. While some realize the campaign’s benefits, the policy changes have mostly elicited negative responses. While CSST shows no signs of reverting back to normalcy, the overwhelming discontent raises the question of how future technology policy will play out.