When schools started pushing hard to keep cellphones out, Vernon Alcoser saw an opportunity reports the NY Daily News. For just a dollar per day students can leave their cellphone at Vernon’s van and pick it up once school is out.
“It’s better than trying to sneak your phone in,” said Tatyana James, a freshman at Herbert H. Lehman High School who pays Alcoser’s company, Pure Loyalty Electronic Device Storage, to baby-sit her BlackBerry during class.
As far as Alcoser knows, his phone storage trucks are the city’s first. Parked across from Lehman on E. Tremont Ave. and DeWitt Clinton High School on Mosholu Parkway, they serve more than 700 students each day.
“It makes the students and parents feel better to know their phones are safe,” said Alcoser, 38, a correction officer who lives on Webb Ave. in the Bronx.
Alcoser hit on the idea of a mobile phone-mobile two months ago, after hearing Lehman parent Jeanette Millan complain about the ban. Her son calls to check in after football practice.
Cell phones disrupt learning, said Feinberg. But students use their phones to stay safe and have fun after school, Alcoser said.
“I need my phone in case someone tries to hold me up or stab me,” said Lehman sophomore Justin Ginorio. “I can call for help.”
Photo by Paul Keller