LCO No. 4055 1 of 8
General Assembly Raised Bill No. 7110
January Session, 2019
LCO No. 4055
Referred to Committee on EDUCATION
Introduced by:
(ED)
AN ACT CONCERNING EN HANCED CLASSROOM SAFETY AND
SCHOOL CLIMATE.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2019) (a) Not later than July 1, 1
2020, each local and regional board of education shall revise its safe 2
school climate plan, developed pursuant to section 10-222d of the 3
general statutes, to include provisions addressing classroom safety in 4
the schools under the jurisdiction of such board. Each board shall 5
implement such revised plan for the school year commencing July 1, 6
2020, and each school year thereafter. Such revised plan shall include: 7
(1) Protocols and supports for enhancing classroom safety, and 8
addressing disruptive or injurious incidents that (A) require 9
temporarily clearing the classroom and removing a majority of the 10
students to reduce the likelihood of injury, (B) result in an injury that 11
requires medical attention beyond basic first aid and that may include 12
emergency room or doctor visits, or (C) result in an injury that (i) has 13
been caused by the same person on more than one occasion, such as by 14
means of kicking, biting or punching, (ii) has been verified by the 15 Raised Bill No. 7110
LCO No. 4055 2 of 8
school nurse or other medical personnel, (iii) may not result in an 16
emergency room or doctor visit, and (iv) disrupts the classroom and is 17
a danger to students or staff. Such protocols and supports shall 18
include: 19
(I) The identity of the administrator who is to be notified by a 20
teacher of any such disruptive or injurious incident, and the identity of 21
any other school personnel who may be contacted if such 22
administrator is unavailable, 23
(II) The process by which such administrator is to investigate and 24
assess the facts, severity and intentionality of such disruptive or 25
injurious incident, 26
(III) The location or locations where a student who is responsible for 27
or involved in such disruptive or injurious incident is sent when such 28
student is temporarily removed from the classroom, in accordance 29
with section 10-233b of the general statutes, in order to ensure that 30
such student and the other students and staff in the classroom are safe, 31
which may include, but need not be limited to, access to appropriate 32
professional staff, therapeutic resources, instructional materials and 33
technology, and any other resources conducive to addressing the 34
temporary needs of such student, 35
(IV) A plan to generally and proactively lessen negative behaviors, 36
enhance resiliency, increase the use of deescalation strategies, and 37
improve social and peer relations skills, which shall include training 38
and may include, but need not be limited to, therapeutic supports, 39
restorative practices, protocols and support provided by the 40
Department of Education pursuant to section 3 of this act, trauma-41
informed instruction, or strategies to improve the school climate, and 42
(V) A process for ensuring that such plan, protocols and procedures 43
described in this subdivision comply with all state and federal laws 44
and regulations for students who receive special education services or 45
an accommodation for a disability, and that any recommendations for 46
such students are consistent with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act 47 Raised Bill No. 7110
LCO No. 4055 3 of 8
of 1973, as amended from time to time, and section 10-76d of the 48
general statutes, and are consistent with the individualized education 49
program for such student developed by such student's planning and 50
placement team or revised with the advice and consent of such 51
planning and placement team; 52
(2) A notification process concerning disruptive or injurious 53
incidents that occur within a classroom that requires the principal of 54
the school to (A) notify the parents or guardians of the student or 55
students who engaged in or were injured during such disruptive or 56
injurious incident, provided such notification complies with the 57
provisions of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, 58
20 USC 1232g, as amended from time to time, and (B) invite the 59
parents or guardians of the student or students who engaged in such 60
disruptive or injurious incident to a meeting at the school to discuss 61
specific steps, supports or interventions undertaken by the school to 62
address the incident; 63
(3) A procedure for each school to document and maintain records 64
relating to all reports and investigations of disruptive or injurious 65
incidents that occur at the school, including the number of such 66
incidents and grade level of the students involved in such incidents; 67
(4) A requirement that the superintendent of schools provide 68
information to the local or regional board of education at one board 69
meeting convened per month (A) the number of disruptive or injurious 70
incidents that occurred at schools in the school district during the past 71
month and the grade levels of such incidents, and (B) the steps, 72
supports or interventions taken to address the needs of students and 73
educators involved in such disruptive or injurious incidents, provided 74
such information is presented in a manner that complies with the 75
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, 20 USC 1232g, and 76
does not reveal the name of any student or any other specific details of 77
such incidents that would constitute a violation of the Family 78
Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974; 79 Raised Bill No. 7110
LCO No. 4055 4 of 8
(5) A prohibition against discrimination or retaliation against any 80
individual who reports or assists in the investigation of a disruptive or 81
injurious incident; 82
(6) A requirement that an administrator conduct a meeting with the 83
teacher who witnesses a disruptive or injurious incident, not later than 84
two school days following such incident, to discuss and determine the 85
steps, supports and interventions necessary to support the students 86
and teacher; and 87
(7) A requirement that notice of a disruptive or injurious incident be 88
sent, not later than two school days following such incident, to the 89
planning and placement team, if any, of a student who was involved in 90
such incident for the purpose of determining any steps, supports and 91
interventions for such student. 92
(b) Whenever, following a disruptive or injurious incident described 93
in subdivision (1) of subsection (a) of this section, a teacher has 94
continued concerns with the steps, supports or interventions, or lack 95
thereof, to address such incident, the teacher may request an 96
emergency meeting of the scientific research based intervention team 97
or crisis intervention team, as appropriate, to review the response to 98
such incident. Such emergency meeting shall occur not later than three 99
school days following such request. The committee shall review the 100
steps, supports or interventions determined pursuant to subdivision 101
(6) or (7) of subsection (a) of this section, and may amend or revise 102
such steps, supports or interventions to address the concerns of the 103
teacher, except that for any student involved in such incident whose 104
individualized education program is determined by a planning and 105
placement team, pursuant to section 10-76d of the general statutes, 106
such amendments or revisions shall serve as a suggestion for 107
consideration by such student's planning and placement team. There 108
shall be no discrimination or retaliation against any teacher who 109
requests a meeting pursuant to this subsection. 110
(c) Any steps, supports or interventions provided under this section 111 Raised Bill No. 7110
LCO No. 4055 5 of 8
to any student who receives special education or related services or an 112
accommodation for a disability shall be determined in accordance with 113
and comply with all applicable state and federal laws and regulations, 114
and shall be consistent with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 115
1973, as amended from time to time, the Individuals with Disabilities 116
Education Act, 20 USC 1400 et seq., as amended from time to time, 117
section 10-76d of the general statutes, and the individualized education 118
program for such student developed by such student's planning and 119
placement team. 120
(d) Each local and regional board of education shall submit an 121
annual report to the Department of Education concerning all 122
disruptive or injurious incidents described in subdivision (1) of 123
subsection (a) of this section that occurred in the classrooms of schools 124
under the jurisdiction of such board. Such report shall include the total 125
number of such incidents, the grade levels of students involved in such 126
incidents, and the race and category of disability of students involved 127
in such incidents. 128
Sec. 2. Section 10-222h of the general statutes is repealed and the 129
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2019): 130
(a) The Department of Education shall, within available 131
appropriations, (1) document school districts' articulated needs for 132
technical assistance and training related to safe learning and bullying, 133
(2) collect information on the prevention and intervention strategies 134
used by schools to reduce the incidence of bullying, improve school 135
climate and improve reporting outcomes, (3) develop or recommend 136
model safe school climate plans for grades kindergarten to twelve, 137
inclusive, and (4) in collaboration with the Connecticut Association of 138
Schools, disseminate to all public schools grade-level appropriate 139
school climate assessment instruments, approved by the department, 140
to be used by local and regional boards of education for the purposes 141
of collecting information described in subdivision (2) of this subsection 142
so that the department can monitor bullying prevention efforts over 143
time and compare each district's progress to state trends. Such school 144 Raised Bill No. 7110
LCO No. 4055 6 of 8
climate assessment instruments shall (A) include surveys that contain 145
uniform grade-level appropriate questions that collect information 146
about students' perspectives and opinions about the school climate at 147
the school, and (B) allow students to complete and submit such 148
assessment and survey anonymously. 149
(b) On or before [February 1, 2014] July 1, 2021, and annually 150
thereafter, the department shall, in accordance with the provisions of 151
section 11-4a, submit a report on the status of its efforts pursuant to 152
this section including, but not limited to, the number of verified acts of 153
bullying and disruptive or injurious incidents as described in 154
subdivision (1) of subsection (a) of section 1 of this act in the state, an 155
analysis of the responsive action taken by school districts, an analysis 156
of student responses on the uniform grade-level appropriate questions 157
described in subparagraph (A) of subdivision (4) of subsection (a) of 158
this section and any recommendations it may have regarding 159
additional activities or funding to prevent bullying and disruptive or 160
injurious incidents in schools and improve school climate and safety to 161
the joint standing committees of the General Assembly having 162
cognizance of matters relating to education and children and to the 163
speaker of the House of Representatives, the president pro tempore of 164
the Senate and the majority and minority leaders of the House of 165
Representatives and the Senate. 166
(c) Not later than January 1, 2020, the department shall procure or 167
otherwise invite requests for proposals to develop and implement a 168
biennial state-wide school climate survey, and thereafter enter into a 169
contract to carry out the provisions of this section and subsection (d) of 170
section 10-222d. The state-wide school climate survey shall at 171
minimum: 172
(1) Seek confidential responses from school employees, including 173
principals, assistant principals, teachers, school social workers, school 174
psychologists, school nurses, school counselors and school 175
paraprofessionals, and, in a separate survey, seek confidential 176
responses from parents, and 177 Raised Bill No. 7110
LCO No. 4055 7 of 8
(2) Solicit information from school employees and parents, as 178
deemed appropriate and relevant for such respondent, on (A) the 179
learning environment for students, including academic supports and 180
resources, school safety and security and outreach to parents, (B) the 181
teaching environment, including resources, supports and professional 182
development for teachers, administrators and other educators, teacher 183
leadership and collaborative planning time, (C) the establishment of a 184
positive and welcoming environment for students, parents of students, 185
teachers and administrators of all races, ethnicities and cultural 186
backgrounds, and (D) supports and strategies for the development and 187
retention of new teachers, minority teachers and administrators, school 188
psychologists and school counselors. 189
(d) The department shall solicit input from organizations invited to 190
participate in the classroom safety working group convened by the 191
commissioner commencing July 19, 2018, regarding the biennial state-192
wide school climate survey described in subsection (c) of this section. 193
[(c)] (e) The department may accept private donations for the 194
purposes of this section. 195
Sec. 3. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2019) The Department of Education 196
shall, within available appropriations, (1) develop and disseminate 197
strategies to assist local and regional boards of education in enhancing 198
their safe school climate plans, developed pursuant to section 10-222d 199
of the general statutes, reducing incidents of school violence and 200
promoting trauma sensitivity in schools, and (2) make available to 201
school districts designated as alliance districts pursuant to section 10-202
262u of the general statutes, resources to promote systemic 203
improvement of school climate through training, strategies for 204
connecting youth to appropriate services and fostering trauma-205
sensitive school communities. 206
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 July 1, 2019 New section Raised Bill No. 7110
LCO No. 4055 8 of 8
Sec. 2 July 1, 2019 10-222h
Sec. 3 July 1, 2019 New section
Statement of Purpose:
To require boards of education to revise their safe school climate plans
to include provisions relating to disruptive or injurious incidents that
occur in classrooms, to develop and implement a state-wide school
climate survey, and to require the Department of Education to provide
assistance to school districts relating to school climate.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline,
except that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is
not underlined.]