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General Assembly Substitute Bill No. 7215
January Session, 2019
AN ACT CONCERNING SC HOOL CLIMATES.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. (NEW) (Effective from passage) (a) There is established a 1
social and emotional learning and school climate advisory council. The 2
council shall (1) monitor school climate improvement efforts in the 3
state, (2) identify best practices for promoting positive school climates, 4
(3) identify and pursue resources to educate local and regional boards 5
of education on issues relating to fostering positive school climates and 6
social and emotional learning in schools, and (4) perform any other 7
research concerning social and emotional learning and fostering 8
positive school climates that the council deems appropriate. 9
(b) The council shall consist of the following members: (1) The 10
Commissioner of Education, or the commissioner's designee, (2) the 11
executive director of the Commission on Women, Children and 12
Seniors, or the executive director's designee, (3) a representative 13
designated by the Connecticut Association of Boards of Education, (4) 14
a representative designated by the Connecticut Association of Public 15
School Superintendents, (5) a representative designated by the 16
Connecticut Association of Schools, (6) a representative designated by 17
the American Federation of Teachers-Connecticut, (7) a representative 18
designated by the Connecticut Education Association, and (8) a 19
representative designated by the Connecticut Association of School 20 Substitute Bill No. 7215
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Administrators. 21
(c) All appointments to the council shall be made not later than 22
thirty days after the effective date of this section. Any vacancy shall be 23
filled by the appointing authority. 24
(d) The chairperson of the council shall be elected from among the 25
members. The first meeting of the council shall be held not later than 26
sixty days after the effective date of this section. 27
(e) The administrative staff of the Commission on Women, Children 28
and Seniors shall serve as administrative staff of the council. 29
(f) Not later than January 1, 2020, and annually thereafter, the 30
council shall submit a report on its findings and any recommendations 31
to the joint standing committees of the General Assembly having 32
cognizance of matters relating to children and education, in accordance 33
with the provisions of section 11-4a of the general statutes. 34
Sec. 2. Section 10-222d of the general statutes is repealed and the 35
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2019): 36
(a) As used in this section [,] and sections [10-222g to] 10-222h, as 37
amended by this act, 10-222i, [inclusive, and section] 10-222k, as 38
amended by this act, and section 1 of this act: 39
(1) "Aggressive behavior or intentional harm-doing" means an act 40
that (A) causes physical or emotional harm to an individual or damage 41
to such individual's property, (B) places an individual in reasonable 42
fear of harm to self or damage to such individual's property, (C) 43
creates a hostile environment at school for an individual, or (D) 44
infringes on the rights and opportunities of an individual at school; 45
[(1)] (2) "Bullying" means [(A) the repeated use by one or more 46
students of a written, oral or electronic communication, such as 47
cyberbullying, directed at or referring to another student attending 48
school in the same school district, or (B) a physical act or gesture by 49 Substitute Bill No. 7215
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one or more students repeatedly directed at another student attending 50
school in the same school district, that: (i) Causes physical or emotional 51
harm to such student or damage to such student's property, (ii) places 52
such student in reasonable fear of harm to himself or herself, or of 53
damage to his or her property, (iii) creates a hostile environment at 54
school for such student, (iv) infringes on the rights of such student at 55
school, or (v) substantially disrupts the education process or the 56
orderly operation of a school] a determination that aggressive behavior 57
or intentional harm-doing was (A) direct or indirect, (B) severe, 58
persistent or pervasive, and (C) characterized by an imbalance of 59
power. "Bullying" shall include, but need not be limited to, [a written, 60
oral or electronic communication or physical act or gesture] aggressive 61
behavior or intentional harm-doing based on any actual or perceived 62
differentiating characteristic, such as race, color, religion, ancestry, 63
national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or 64
expression, socioeconomic status, academic status, physical 65
appearance, or mental, physical, developmental or sensory disability, 66
or by association with an individual or group who has or is perceived 67
to have one or more of such characteristics [;] 68
(3) "Imbalance of power" means a disparity (A) between individuals 69
with respect to social status or relative physical size, or (B) created 70
because aggressive behavior or intentional harm-doing was directed at 71
an individual by a group; 72
[(2)] (4) "Cyberbullying" means [any act of] bullying through the use 73
of the Internet, interactive and digital technologies, cellular mobile 74
telephone or other mobile electronic devices or any electronic 75
communications; 76
[(3)] (5) "Teen dating violence" means any act of physical, emotional 77
or sexual abuse, including stalking, harassing and threatening, that 78
occurs between two students who are currently in or who have 79
recently been in a dating relationship; 80
[(4)] (6) "Mobile electronic device" means any hand-held or other 81 Substitute Bill No. 7215
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portable electronic equipment capable of providing data 82
communication between two or more individuals, including, but not 83
limited to, a text messaging device, a paging device, a personal digital 84
assistant, a laptop computer, equipment that is capable of playing a 85
video game or a digital video disk, or equipment on which digital 86
images are taken or transmitted; 87
[(5)] (7) "Electronic communication" means any transfer of signs, 88
signals, writing, images, sounds, data or intelligence of any nature 89
transmitted in whole or in part by a wire, radio, electromagnetic, 90
photoelectronic or photo-optical system; 91
[(6) "Hostile environment" means a situation in which bullying 92
among students is sufficiently severe or pervasive to alter the 93
conditions of the school climate;] 94
[(7)] (8) "Outside of the school setting" means at a location, activity 95
or program that is not school related, or through the use of an 96
electronic device or a mobile electronic device that is not owned, 97
leased or used by a local or regional board of education; 98
[(8)] (9) "School employee" means (A) a teacher, substitute teacher, 99
school administrator, school superintendent, guidance counselor, 100
school counselor, psychologist, social worker, nurse, physician, school 101
paraprofessional or coach employed by a local or regional board of 102
education or working in a public elementary, middle or high school, [; 103
or] (B) any other individual who, in the performance of his or her 104
duties, has regular contact with students and who provides services to 105
or on behalf of students enrolled in a public elementary, middle or 106
high school, pursuant to a contract with the local or regional board of 107
education, [; and] or (C) a volunteer who, in the performance of such 108
volunteer's duties, has regular contact with students and provides 109
services to or on behalf of students enrolled in a public elementary, 110
middle or high school; 111
[(9)] (10) "School climate" means the quality and character of school 112 Substitute Bill No. 7215
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life [with a particular focus on the quality of the relationships within 113
the school community between and among students and adults.] based 114
on patterns of students', parents' and school employees' experiences of 115
school life, including, but not limited to, norms, goals, values, 116
interpersonal relationships, teaching and learning practices and 117
organizational structures; 118
(11) "Positive school climate" means a school climate that (A) 119
promotes norms, values, expectations and beliefs that support feelings 120
of social, emotional and physical safety, (B) causes students, families of 121
students and school employees to feel engaged and respected and to 122
work together to develop and contribute to a shared school vision, (C) 123
encourages educators to model and nurture attitudes that emphasize 124
the benefits and satisfaction gained from learning, and (D) allows for 125
each person to contribute to the operation of the school and care of the 126
physical environment of the school; 127
(12) "Emotional intelligence" means the ability to (A) perceive or 128
recognize emotions in oneself or others, (B) use emotions to facilitate 129
cognitive activities, including, but not limited to, reasoning, problem 130
solving and interpersonal communication, (C) understand and label 131
emotions, and (D) manage emotions in oneself and others; and 132
(13) "Social and emotional learning" means the process through 133
which children and adults achieve emotional intelligence through 134
competencies, such as self-awareness, self-management, social 135
awareness, relationship skills and reasonable decision-making. 136
(b) Each local and regional board of education shall develop and 137
implement a safe school climate [plan to address the existence of 138
bullying and teen dating violence in its schools] policy. Such [plan] 139
policy shall: 140
(1) [Enable] Promote prevention of and intervention in aggressive 141
behavior or intentional harm-doing and the fostering of a positive 142
school climate through the utilization of model school climate 143 Substitute Bill No. 7215
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standards, such as the National School Climate Standards published 144
by the National School Climate Center; 145
(2) Include prevention strategies for bullying and teen dating 146
violence in schools, which may include, but need not be limited to, (A) 147
adoption of evidence-based, data-driven systems for assessing, 148
implementing and continuously improving culturally competent, 149
restorative, social and emotional learning in consultation with or on 150
the recommendation of the Department of Education, (B) school rules 151
and policies that prohibit bullying and teen dating violence and that 152
establish appropriate interventions for those involved in such acts, (C) 153
adequate school employee supervision of outdoor areas, hallways, 154
lunchrooms, bathrooms, school buses and other areas where bullying 155
or teen dating violence is likely to occur, (D) culturally competent 156
school-wide training that focuses on restorative practices and social 157
and emotional learning competencies and evidence-based tools to 158
develop such competencies, (E) student and peer-led training, 159
education and support, and (F) promotion of parent or guardian 160
partnership and engagement in fostering a positive school climate 161
through individual or team participation in meetings and trainings; 162
(3) Include intervention protocols to address bullying and teen 163
dating violence in schools by (A) enabling students to anonymously 164
report [acts of bullying] aggressive behavior or intentional harm-doing 165
to school employees and require students and the parents or guardians 166
of students to be notified at the beginning of each school year of the 167
process by which students may make such reports, [(2) enable] (B) 168
enabling the parents or guardians of students to file written reports of 169
[suspected bullying, (3) require] aggressive behavior or intentional 170
harm-doing, (C) requiring school employees who witness [acts of 171
bullying] aggressive behavior or intentional harm-doing or receive 172
reports of [bullying] aggressive behavior or intentional harm-doing to 173
orally notify the safe school climate specialist, described in section 10-174
222k, as amended by this act, or another school administrator if the 175
safe school climate specialist is unavailable, not later than one school 176 Substitute Bill No. 7215
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day after such school employee witnesses or receives a report of 177
[bullying] aggressive behavior or intentional harm-doing, and to file a 178
written report not later than two school days after making such oral 179
report, [(4) require] (D) requiring the safe school climate specialist to 180
investigate or supervise the investigation of all reports of [bullying] 181
aggressive behavior or intentional harm-doing and ensure that such 182
investigation is completed promptly after receipt of any written 183
reports made under this section and that the parents or guardians of 184
[the] a student alleged to have [committed an act or acts of bullying] 185
engaged in aggressive behavior or intentional harm-doing and the 186
parents or guardians of the student against whom such [alleged act or 187
acts were] aggressive behavior or intentional harm-doing was directed 188
receive prompt notice that such investigation has commenced, [(5) 189
require] (E) requiring the safe school climate specialist or such 190
specialist's designee to review any anonymous reports, except that no 191
disciplinary action shall be taken solely on the basis of an anonymous 192
report, [(6) include a prevention and intervention strategy, as defined 193
by section 10-222g, for school employees to deal with bullying and 194
teen dating violence, (7) provide for the inclusion of language in 195
student codes of conduct concerning bullying, (8) require each school] 196
(F) requiring the safe school climate specialist or such specialist's 197
designee, in consultation with the school employee who witnessed or 198
received a report of aggressive behavior or intentional harm-doing by 199
a student, to notify the parents or guardians of [students who commit 200
any verified acts of bullying and the parents or guardians of students 201
against whom such acts were directed not later than forty-eight hours 202
after the completion of the investigation described in subdivision (4) of 203
this subsection, (9) require each school to invite the parents or 204
guardians of a student against whom such act was directed to a 205
meeting to communicate to such parents or guardians the measures 206
being taken by the school to ensure the safety of the student against 207
whom such act was directed and policies and procedures in place to 208
prevent further acts of bullying, (10) require each school to invite the 209
parents or guardians of a student who commits any verified act of 210
bullying to a meeting, separate and distinct from the meeting required 211 Substitute Bill No. 7215
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in subdivision (9) of this subsection, to discuss specific interventions 212
undertaken by the school to prevent further acts of bullying, (11) 213
establish] such student upon a finding that such student committed an 214
act of bullying, not later than forty-eight hours after the completion of 215
an investigation described in subparagraph (D) of this subdivision, of 216
the specific interventions in progress or undertaken by the school to 217
prevent further acts of bullying by such student, (G) requiring the safe 218
school climate specialist or such specialist's designee to notify the 219
parents or guardians of a student against whom an act of bullying was 220
directed, not later than forty-eight hours after the completion of an 221
investigation described in subparagraph (D) of this subdivision, of the 222
measures being taken by the school to ensure the safety of such 223
student and the policies and procedures in place at the school to 224
prevent further acts of bullying, (H) establishing a procedure for each 225
school to document and maintain records relating to reports and 226
investigations of suspected bullying in such school and to maintain a 227
list of the number of verified acts of bullying in such school and make 228
such list available for public inspection, and annually report such 229
number to the Department of Education, and in such manner as 230
prescribed by the Commissioner of Education, [(12) direct] (I) directing 231
the development of case-by-case interventions for addressing 232
[repeated incidents of] bullying against a single individual, [or 233
recurrently perpetrated] bullying incidents by the same individual 234
[that may include both counseling and discipline, (13) prohibit] and, at 235
the discretion of the safe school climate specialist, aggressive behavior 236
or intentional harm-doing by the same individual that may not rise to 237
the level of bullying, such as restorative, equity-based, bias-informed, 238
culturally competent, trauma-informed interventions for (i) students 239
found to have engaged in bullying, (ii) students against whom acts of 240
bullying have been committed, (iii) parents and guardians, and (iv) 241
school employees. Interventions may include, but not be limited to, 242
referrals to a school counselor, psychologist or other appropriate social 243
or mental health service, plans that address safety measures the school 244
will take to protect students against further acts of aggressive behavior 245
or intentional harm-doing and periodic follow-ups by the safe school 246 Substitute Bill No. 7215
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climate specialist, and (J) prohibiting discrimination and retaliation 247
against an individual who reports or assists in the investigation of an 248
act of [bullying, (14) direct the development of student safety support 249
plans for students against whom an act of bullying was directed that 250
address safety measures the school will take to protect such students 251
against further acts of bullying, (15) require] aggressive behavior or 252
intentional harm-doing. 253
(c) Nothing in this section shall prevent the principal of a school, or 254
the principal's designee, [to notify] from notifying the appropriate 255
local law enforcement agency when such principal, or the principal's 256
designee, believes that any acts of bullying or aggressive behavior or 257
intentional harm-doing constitute criminal conduct. [, (16) prohibit 258
bullying (A) on school grounds, at a school-sponsored or school-259
related activity, function or program whether on or off school grounds, 260
at a school bus stop, on a school bus or other vehicle owned, leased or 261
used by a local or regional board of education, or through the use of an 262
electronic device or an electronic mobile device owned, leased or used 263
by the local or regional board of education, and (B) outside of the 264
school setting if such bullying (I) creates a hostile environment at 265
school for the student against whom such bullying was directed, or (ii) 266
infringes on the rights of the student against whom such bullying was 267
directed at school, or (iii) substantially disrupts the education process 268
or the orderly operation of a school, (17) require, at the beginning of 269
each school year, each school to provide all school employees with a 270
written or electronic copy of the school district's safe school climate 271
plan, and (18) require that all school employees annually complete the 272
training described in section 10-220a or section 10-222j. The notification 273
required pursuant to subdivision (8) of this subsection and the 274
invitation required pursuant to subdivision (9) of this subsection shall 275
include a description of the response of school employees to such acts 276
and any consequences that may result from the commission of further 277
acts of bullying.] 278
[(c)] (d) Not later than [September 1, 2014] January 1, 2020, each 279 Substitute Bill No. 7215
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local and regional board of education that has not had a safe school 280
climate [plan] policy, developed pursuant to this section, previously 281
reviewed [and approved] by the Department of Education shall submit 282
a safe school climate [plan] policy to the department for review [and 283
approval] in accordance with the provisions of section 10-222p, as 284
amended by this act. [Not later than thirty calendar days after 285
approval by the department of such safe school climate plan, the] Each 286
board shall make such [plan] policy available on the board's [and each 287
individual school in the school district's] Internet web site and ensure 288
that such [plan] policy is included in the [school district's] board's 289
publication of the rules, procedures and standards of conduct for 290
schools and in all student handbooks and employee manuals. 291
[(d)] (e) On and after July 1, [2012] 2020, and not less than biennially 292
thereafter, each local and regional board of education shall require 293
each school in the district to [complete an assessment using the school 294
climate assessment instruments, including surveys, approved and 295
disseminated by the Department of Education pursuant to section 10-296
222h. Each local and regional board of education shall collect the 297
school climate assessments for each school in the district and submit 298
such school climate assessments to the department] assess school 299
climate using a school climate assessment instrument. Such school 300
climate assessment instrument shall (1) be an empirically validated 301
survey that provides an in-depth profile of a school community's 302
strengths and areas that need improvement, such as the 303
Comprehensive School Climate Inventory published by the National 304
School Climate Center, (2) present grade-level appropriate questions 305
that permit the collection of information on students' perspectives and 306
opinions about the school climate, and (3) protect the anonymity of 307
respondents. 308
(f) A local or regional board of education may accept private 309
donations for the purposes of this section. 310
Sec. 3. Section 10-222h of the general statutes is repealed and the 311
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2020): 312 Substitute Bill No. 7215
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(a) The Department of Educati on shall, within available 313
appropriations, (1) document school districts' [articulated needs for 314
technical assistance and training related to safe learning and bullying, 315
(2) collect information on the prevention and intervention strategies 316
used by schools to reduce the incidence of bullying, improve school 317
climate and improve reporting outcomes, (3) develop or recommend 318
model safe school climate plans for grades kindergarten to twelve, 319
inclusive, and (4) in collaboration with the Connecticut Association of 320
Schools, disseminate to all public schools grade-level appropriate 321
school climate assessment instruments, approved by the department, 322
to be used by local and regional boards of education for the purposes 323
of collecting information described in subdivision (2) of this subsection 324
so that the department can monitor bullying prevention efforts over 325
time and compare each district's progress to state trends. Such school 326
climate assessment instruments shall (A) include surveys that contain 327
uniform grade-level appropriate questions that collect information 328
about students' perspectives and opinions about the school climate at 329
the school, and (B) allow students to complete and submit such 330
assessment and survey anonymously] best practices for fostering a 331
positive school climate and any needs articulated by such districts for 332
technical assistance and training related to fostering a positive school 333
climate, and (2) recommend model safe and positive school climate 334
policies for school districts. 335
(b) [On or before February 1, 2014, and annually thereafter, the 336
department shall, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a, 337
submit a report on the status of its efforts pursuant to this section 338
including, but not limited to, the number of verified acts of bullying in 339
the state, an analysis of the responsive action taken by school districts, 340
an analysis of student responses on the uniform grade -level 341
appropriate questions described in subparagraph (A) of subdivision 342
(4) of subsection (a) of this section and any recommendations it may 343
have regarding additional activities or funding to prevent bullying in 344
schools and improve school climate to the joint standing committees of 345
the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to 346 Substitute Bill No. 7215
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education and children and to the speaker of the House of 347
Representatives, the president pro tempore of the Senate and the 348
majority and minority leaders of the House of Representatives and the 349
Senate.] The Department of Education, in consultation with local, state 350
and national experts on social and emotional skills assessment and 351
development, shall, within available appropriations, develop a social 352
and emotional learning assessment instrument to measure individual 353
student attainment of the social and emotional learning competencies. 354
Such instrument shall (1) measure intrapersonal and interpersonal 355
competencies, (2) be age and grade level appropriate for children in 356
preschool and grades kindergarten to twelve, inclusive, (3) include 357
measures to ensure feasibility of implementation in schools and 358
districts, and (4) assess what children know and are able to do. Such 359
instrument shall not be used to evaluate problem behaviors or screen 360
students for behavioral or emotional problems. 361
(c) The department may accept private donations for the purposes 362
of this section. 363
Sec. 4. Section 10-222j of the general statutes is repealed and the 364
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2020): 365
The Department of Education shall provide, within available 366
appropriations, annual training to school employees, as defined in 367
section 10-222d, as amended by this act, except those school employees 368
who hold professional certification pursuant to section 10-145b unless 369
such school employee who holds professional certification is the 370
district safe school climate coordinator [,] or the safe school climate 371
specialist, [or a member of the safe school climate committee, as 372
described in section 10-222k,] on the prevention, identification and 373
response to school bullying and teen dating violence, as defined in 374
section 10-222d, as amended by this act, and the prevention of and 375
response to youth suicide. Such training shall be culturally competent 376
and bias-informed and focus on restorative practices and the social and 377
emotional learning competencies, including, but not limited to, self-378
awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills and 379 Substitute Bill No. 7215
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responsible decision-making and evidence-based tools to develop 380
those competencies. Such training may include, but not be limited to, 381
(1) developmentally appropriate strategies to prevent [bullying] 382
aggressive behavior or intentional harm-doing and teen dating 383
violence, [among students in school and outside of the school setting,] 384
(2) developmentally appropriate strategies for immediate and effective 385
interventions to stop [bullying] aggressive behavior or intentional 386
harm-doing and teen dating violence, (3) [information regarding the 387
interaction and relationship between students committing acts of 388
bullying and teen dating violence, students against whom such acts of 389
bullying and teen dating violence are directed and witnesses of such 390
acts of bullying and teen dating violence, (4)] research findings on 391
[bullying] aggressive behavior or intentional harm-doing and teen 392
dating violence, such as information about the types of students who 393
have been shown to be at-risk for [bullying] aggressive behavior or 394
intentional harm-doing and teen dating violence in the school setting, 395
[(5)] (4) information on the incidence and nature of cyberbullying, as 396
defined in section 10-222d, as amended by this act, [(6)] (5) Internet 397
safety issues as they relate to cyberbullying, or [(7)] (6) information on 398
the incidence of youth suicide, methods of identifying youths at risk of 399
suicide and developmentally appropriate strategies for effective 400
interventions to prevent youth suicide. Such training may be 401
conducted in a training-of-trainers model and presented in person by 402
mentors, offered in state-wide workshops or through on-line courses. 403
Sec. 5. Section 10-222k of the general statutes is repealed and the 404
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2020): 405
(a) For the school year commencing July 1, [2012] 2020, and each 406
school year thereafter, the superintendent of each local or regional 407
board of education shall appoint, from among existing school district 408
staff, a district safe school climate coordinator. The district safe school 409
climate coordinator shall: (1) Be responsible for implementing the 410
district's safe school climate [plan] policy, developed pursuant to 411
section 10-222d, as amended by this act, (2) collaborate with the safe 412 Substitute Bill No. 7215
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school climate specialists, described in subsection (b) of this section, 413
the board of education for the district and the superintendent of 414
schools of the school district to foster a positive school climate and 415
prevent, identify and respond to suspected bullying in the schools of 416
the district, and (3) [provide data and information, in collaboration 417
with the superintendent of schools of the district, to the Department of 418
Education regarding bullying, in accordance with the provisions of 419
subsection (b) of section 10-222d and subsection (a) of section 10-222h, 420
and (4) meet with the safe school climate specialists at least twice 421
during the school year to discuss issues relating to bullying in the 422
school district and] collaborate with the social and emotional learning 423
and school climate council, if any, established pursuant to subsection 424
(c) of this section to make recommendations concerning amendments 425
to the district's safe school climate [plan] policy. 426
(b) For the school year commencing July 1, [2012] 2020, and each 427
school year thereafter, the principal of each school, or the principal's 428
designee, shall serve as the safe school climate [specialist] coordinator 429
and shall (1) [investigate or supervise the investigation of reported acts 430
of bullying in the school in accordance with the district's safe school 431
climate plan, (2) collect and maintain records of reports and 432
investigations of bullying in the school, and (3) act as the primary 433
school official responsible for preventing, identifying and responding 434
to reports of bullying in the school] lead the school's efforts to establish 435
a positive school climate, (2) investigate or supervise the investigation 436
of suspected bullying in the school in accordance with the district's 437
safe school climate policy, and (3) collect and maintain records of 438
investigations of aggressive behavior or intentional harm-doing and 439
findings of bullying in the school. 440
(c) [(1)] For the school year commencing July 1, [2012] 2020, and 441
each school year thereafter, [the principal of each school shall establish 442
a committee or designate at least one existing committee in the school 443
to be responsible for developing and fostering a safe school climate 444
and addressing issues relating to bullying in the school. Such 445 Substitute Bill No. 7215
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committee shall include at least one parent or guardian of a student 446
enrolled in the school appointed by the school principal] each local and 447
regional board of education may establish a social and emotional 448
learning and school climate council. The members of such council shall 449
be individuals who work in, attend or are otherwise affiliated with a 450
school under the jurisdiction of the local or regional board of 451
education, and shall include, but not be limited to, a school 452
administrator, parent or guardian, teacher, student and member of the 453
community. The council shall, in consultation with the district safe 454
school climate coordinator, (1) monitor school climate improvement 455
efforts, (2) identify patterns of aggressive behavior or intentional harm-456
doing among students in the schools, (3) identify best practices for 457
promoting a positive school climate, (4) identify and pursue resources 458
to educate students, parents and guardians of students, school 459
employees and the community on issues relating to fostering a positive 460
school climate and social and emotional learning in schools, and (5) 461
perform any other duties as determined by the local or regional board 462
of education that are related to the prevention of and intervention in 463
aggressive behavior or intentional harm-doing and fostering a positive 464
school climate in the school district. 465
[(2) Any such committee shall: (A) Receive copies of completed 466
reports following investigations of bullying, (B) identify and address 467
patterns of bullying among students in the school, (C) implement the 468
provisions of the school security and safety plan, developed pursuant 469
to section 10-222m, regarding the collection, evaluation and reporting 470
of information relating to instances of disturbing or threatening 471
behavior that may not meet the definition of bullying, (D) review and 472
amend school policies relating to bullying, (E) review and make 473
recommendations to the district safe school climate coordinator 474
regarding the district's safe school climate plan based on issues and 475
experiences specific to the school, (F) educate students, school 476
employees and parents and guardians of students on issues relating to 477
bullying, (G) collaborate with the district safe school climate 478
coordinator in the collection of data regarding bullying, in accordance 479 Substitute Bill No. 7215
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with the provisions of subsection (b) of section 10-222d and subsection 480
(a) of section 10-222h, and (H) perform any other duties as determined 481
by the school principal that are related to the prevention, identification 482
and response to school bullying for the school. 483
(3) Any parent or guardian serving as a member of any such 484
committee shall not participate in the activities described in 485
subparagraphs (A) to (C), inclusive, of subdivision (2) of this 486
subsection or any other activity that may compr omise the 487
confidentiality of a student.] 488
Sec. 6. Section 10-222p of the general statutes is repealed and the 489
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2020): 490
[(a) The Department of Education shall receive each safe school 491
climate plan submitted pursuant to subsection (c) of section 10-222d 492
and review each such plan for compliance with the provisions of 493
subsection (b) of section 10-222d. Not later than thirty calendar days 494
after receiving such plan, the department shall approve or reject such 495
plan. If the department rejects a safe school climate plan, the 496
department shall provide notice of such rejection and the reasons for 497
such rejection to the local or regional board of education that 498
submitted such plan. Such local or regional board of education shall 499
redevelop and resubmit a safe school climate plan to the department 500
for approval not later than thirty calendar days after receipt of notice 501
of such rejection. Not later than thirty calendar days after receiving 502
such resubmitted plan, the department shall approve or reject such 503
plan. If the department rejects a resubmitted safe school climate plan, 504
the department shall provide notice of such rejection to the local or 505
regional board of education that resubmitted such plan. Not later than 506
thirty calendar days after receiving notice of such rejection and the 507
reasons for such rejection, such local or regional board of education 508
shall adopt an appropriate model safe school climate plan, developed 509
or recommended by the department pursuant to subdivision (3) of 510
subsection (a) of section 10-222h.] 511 Substitute Bill No. 7215
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[(b)] The Department of Education shall, in consultation with local 512
and regional boards of education, make available on the department's 513
Internet web site [(1) each safe school climate plan that has been 514
approved by the department, (2) a list of the school districts that have 515
an approved safe school climate plan, and (3) a list of the school 516
districts whose safe school climate plans have been rejected and that 517
are in the process of resubmitting their safe school climate plans for 518
approval by the department] a model safe school climate policy. 519
Sec. 7. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2019) Each local and regional board of 520
education, in consultation with the Department of Education, shall 521
provide to school administrators training materials regarding the 522
prevention of and intervention in discrimination against and targeted 523
harassment of students based on such students' (1) actual or perceived 524
differentiating characteristics, such as race, color, religion, ancestry, 525
national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or 526
expression, socioeconomic status, academic status, physical 527
appearance or mental, physical, developmental or sensory disability, 528
or (2) association with individuals or groups who have or are 529
perceived to have one or more of such characteristics. Such training 530
materials may be delivered in collaboration with one or more 531
organizations offering training on identifying, preventing and 532
intervening in discrimination including, but not limited to, the 533
Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities. 534
Sec. 8. Subsection (a) of section 10-220a of the general statutes is 535
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 536
1, 2019): 537
(a) Each local or regional board of education shall provide an in-538
service training program for its teachers, administrators and pupil 539
personnel who hold the initial educator, provisional educator or 540
professional educator certificate. Such program shall provide such 541
teachers, administrators and pupil personnel with information on (1) 542
the nature and the relationship of alcohol and drugs, as defined in 543
subdivision (17) of section 21a-240, to health and personality 544 Substitute Bill No. 7215
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development, and procedures for discouraging their abuse, (2) health 545
and mental health risk reduction education that includes, but need not 546
be limited to, the prevention of risk-taking behavior by children and 547
the relationship of such behavior to substance abuse, pregnancy, 548
sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV-infection and AIDS, as 549
defined in section 19a-581, violence, teen dating violence, domestic 550
violence and child abuse, (3) school violence prevention, conflict 551
resolution, the prevention of and response to youth suicide and the 552
identification and prevention of and response to bullying, as defined in 553
subsection (a) of section 10-222d, as amended by this act, except that 554
those boards of education that implement any evidence-based model 555
approach that is approved by the Department of Education and is 556
consistent with subsection (c) of section 10-145a, sections 10-222d, as 557
amended by this act, [10-222g] and 10-222h, as amended by this act, 558
subsection (g) of section 10-233c and sections 1 and 3 of public act 08-559
160, shall not be required to provide in-service training on the 560
identification and prevention of and response to bullying, (4) 561
cardiopulmonary resuscitation and other emergency life saving 562
procedures, (5) the requirements and obligations of a mandated 563
reporter, and (6) the detection and recognition of, and evidence-based 564
structured literacy interventions for, students with dyslexia, as defined 565
in section 10-3d. Each local or regional board of education may allow 566
any paraprofessional or noncertified employee to participate, on a 567
voluntary basis, in any in-service training program provided pursuant 568
to this section. 569
Sec. 9. Section 10-222l of the general statutes is repealed and the 570
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2019): 571
(a) No claim for damages shall be made against a school employee, 572
as defined in section 10-222d, as amended by this act, who reports, 573
investigates and responds to bullying or teen dating violence, as 574
defined in section 10-222d, as amended by this act, in accordance with 575
the provisions of the safe school climate [plan] policy, described in 576
section 10-222d, as amended by this act, if such school employee was 577 Substitute Bill No. 7215
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acting in good faith in the discharge of his or her duties or within the 578
scope of his or her employment. The immunity provided in this 579
subsection does not apply to acts or omissions constituting gross, 580
reckless, wilful or wanton misconduct. 581
(b) No claim for damages shall be made against a student, parent or 582
guardian of a student or any other individual who reports an act of 583
bullying or teen dating violence to a school employee, in accordance 584
with the provisions of the safe school climate [plan] policy described in 585
section 10-222d, as amended by this act, if such individual was acting 586
in good faith. The immunity provided in this subsection does not 587
apply to acts or omissions constituting gross, reckless, wilful or 588
wanton misconduct. 589
(c) No claim for damages shall be made against a local or regional 590
board of education that implements the safe school climate [plan] 591
policy, described in section 10-222d, as amended by this act, and 592
reports, investigates and responds to bullying or teen dating violence, 593
as defined in section 10-222d, as amended by this act, if such local or 594
regional board of education was acting in good faith in the discharge 595
of its duties. The immunity provided in this subsection does not apply 596
to acts or omissions constituting gross, reckless, wilful or wanton 597
misconduct. 598
Sec. 10. Subsection (a) of section 10-222n of the general statutes is 599
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 600
1, 2019): 601
(a) Not later than January 1, 2014, the Department of Emergency 602
Services and Public Protection, in consultation with the Department of 603
Education, shall develop school security and safety plan standards. 604
The school security and safety plan standards shall be an all-hazards 605
approach to emergencies at public schools and shall include, but not be 606
limited to, (1) involvement of local officials, including the chief 607
executive officer of the municipality, the superintendent of schools, 608
law enforcement, fire, public health, emergency management and 609 Substitute Bill No. 7215
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emergency medical services, in the development of school security and 610
safety plans, (2) a command center organization structure based on the 611
federal National Incident Management System and a description of the 612
responsibilities of such command center organization, (3) a 613
requirement that a school security and safety committee be established 614
at each school, in accordance with the provisions of section 10-222m, 615
(4) crisis management procedures, (5) a requirement that local law 616
enforcement and other local public safety officials evaluate, score and 617
provide feedback on fire drills and crisis response drills, conducted 618
pursuant to section 10-231, (6) a requirement that local and regional 619
boards of education annually submit reports to the Department of 620
Emergency Services and Public Protection regarding such fire drills 621
and crisis response drills, (7) procedures for managing various types of 622
emergencies, (8) a requirement that each local and regional board of 623
education conduct a security and vulnerability assessment for each 624
school under the jurisdiction of such board every two years and 625
develop a school security and safety plan for each such school, in 626
accordance with the provisions of section 10-222m, based on the results 627
of such assessment, (9) a requirement that the [safe school climate 628
committee] social and emotional learning and school climate council 629
for each school, established pursuant to section 10-222k, as amended 630
by this act, collect and evaluate information relating to instances of 631
disturbing or threatening behavior that may not meet the definition of 632
bullying, as defined in section 10-222d, as amended by this act, and 633
report such information, as necessary, to the district safe school climate 634
coordinator, described in section 10-222k, as amended by this act, and 635
the school security and safety committee for the school, established 636
pursuant to section 10-222m, and (10) a requirement that the school 637
security and safety plan for each school provide an orientation on such 638
school security and safety plan to each school employee, as defined in 639
section 10-222d, as amended by this act, at such school and provide 640
violence prevention training in a manner prescribed in such school 641
security and safety plan. The Department of Emergency Services and 642
Public Protection shall make such standards available to local officials, 643
including local and regional boards of education. 644 Substitute Bill No. 7215
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Sec. 11. Section 10-222g of the general statutes is repealed. (Effective 645
July 1, 2019) 646
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 from passage New section
Sec. 2 July 1, 2019 10-222d
Sec. 3 July 1, 2020 10-222h
Sec. 4 July 1, 2020 10-222j
Sec. 5 July 1, 2020 10-222k
Sec. 6 July 1, 2020 10-222p
Sec. 7 July 1, 2019 New section
Sec. 8 July 1, 2019 10-220a(a)
Sec. 9 July 1, 2019 10-222l
Sec. 10 July 1, 2019 10-222n(a)
Sec. 11 July 1, 2019 Repealer section
Statement of Legislative Commissioners:
In Section 1(d), "working group" was changed to "council" for
accuracy, in Section 2(a), "and section 1 of this act" was inserted for
clarity, in Section 2(b), "policy" was inserted after "climate" for clarity,
in Section 2(b)(3), "that will" was changed to "to" for clarity and "under
the jurisdiction of the local or regional board of education" was deleted
to eliminate redundant language, in Section 2(b)(3)(F), "a school
employee" was changed to "the school employee", "if such student is
found to have committed" was changed to "upon a finding that such
student committed" and "by such student" was added for clarity, in
Section 2(b)(3)(J), "bullying" was bracketed, and after the closing
bracket "aggressive behavior or intentional harm-doing" was inserted
for consistency, in Section 2(d), "The board" was changed to "Each
board" for clarity, in Section 5(c), "local or regional" was changed to
"local and regional" for accuracy and in Section 7 "or information" was
struck for consistency.
KID Joint Favorable Subst.