Fossil Ridge High School students now have a place to charge their most essential accessory – their cell phones.

Nine months ago, the Media Center acquired 32 charging slots for Android and Apple phones.

Before the phone charger box was around, many phone chargers were given out and never returned. Technology Support Manager Mike Nichols and the rest of the Media Center staff spoke with Principal Mark Barry and decided it would be a good idea to make some changes.

“Before we had it we would have people asking if we had chargers,” said Nichols. “The person would walk away with it and they would say they would bring it back at the end of the day, but they never did.”

The media center staff looked forward to the new system, but they had some reservations.

“We thought that there might be an issue with people playing a prank on their friend and locking their phone up, but so far everything has gone really well,” Nichols said.

To charge a phone, students pick an available slot, type in a code of their choice, and then lock it. Once it is time to unlock the compartment, they type in the code again. Inside each slot there is an iPhone and Android charger.

“I felt very secure leaving my phone there,” freshman Findlay West said. “I knew that nothing could happen to it since you know you have your own personal password, so it’s only you who is able to get into it.”

The phone charger box has made a huge difference for students when their phones are dead.

“It’s important for me to have my phone charged since I might need to text someone or do something important on my phone,” freshman Mckenzie Gerard said.

Nichols hopes that the phone charger box continues to be utilized by students at Fossil.

“We would love to get the word out about it so students know that it is here and so they can use it,” Nichols said.