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OLR Bill Analysis
sHB 5416
AN ACT CONCERNING VARIOUS REVISIONS TO THE EDUCATION
STATUTES.
SUMMARY
This bill makes various changes to the education statutes. The bill:
1. allows Goodwin University magnet school teachers to be
considered continuously employed for tenure and sick leave
purposes when they are hired by Goodwin from another board
of education;
2. specifies that the training for nonmedical staff to administer
emergency epinephrine must apply to students who do not have
a prior written allergy treatment order from a medical
professional and written permission from their parent or
guardian;
3. bans a school board from requiring a student’s parent or
guardian to participate in school activities, such as volunteering,
as a condition for the student to enroll in one of the board’s
schools;
4. requires each regional community-technical college to consult
with the public high school counselors and administrators within
the college’s region to establish collaborative partnerships;
5. authorizes unlicensed child care providers to administer
epinephrine for emergency first aid to a child in their care who
experiences an allergic reaction and does not have a prior written
parent or guardian authorization or a prior written qualified
medical professional order;
6. requires that by December 31, 2024, and each following 2024HB-05416-R000591-BA.DOCX
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December 31, the State Department of Education (SDE) calculate
the estimated education cost sharing (ECS) grant that each town
is entitled to receive for the next fiscal year;
7. requires school boards to notify a parent or guardian of a student
who is placed in physical restraint or seclusion on the day the
student was physically restrained or secluded; and
8. requires a school principal or other administrator to notify a
parent or guardian of a student whose behavior has caused (a) a
serious disruption to the instruction of other students, (b) self-
harm, or (c) physical harm to another student or a teacher, or
other school employee on the same day the behavior occurs.
EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2024, except the section requiring SDE to
calculate ECS grant estimates is effective upon passage.
§ 1 — CONTINUOUS EMPLOYME NT AND TEACHER TENUR E
The bill permits teachers employed by Goodwin University Magnet
Schools, Inc. or Goodwin University Educational Services, Inc. to be
considered continuously employed when they previously worked for a
local or regional board of education during the school year immediately
prior to employment with Goodwin. It applies to teacher tenure and
paid sick leave accumulation and accrual from year to year. By treating
the employment as continuous, a teacher does not lose tenure rights or
accumulated sick leave earned before gaining employment with
Goodwin.
Goodwin University Educational Services, Inc. (GUES) and Goodwin
University Magnet Schools, Inc. (GUMS) currently operate two magnet
schools adjacent to Goodwin University in East Hartford. GUES is the
parent organization and GUMS has the day to day responsibility to run
the magnet schools.
By law, a similar provision exists for teachers who are either being
hired by a newly formed regional school district or are no longer
employed by a regional district due to its dissolution. 2024HB-05416-R000591-BA.DOCX
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§ 2 — TRAINING FOR EMERGE NCY ALLERGIC REACTIO NS OF
STUDENTS
Under current law, public schools are required to designate and train
nonmedical staff to administer emergency epinephrine in cartridge
injectors (“epipens”) to students having allergic reactions who were not
previously known to have serious allergies. It authorizes emergency use
of epipens by nonmedical staff only if the school nurse is not available
and certain conditions are met, including training of the designated
staff.
A related law requires SDE to annually make training available for
the emergency epinephrine administration and related first aid
including (1) cardiopulmonary resuscitation, (2) food allergies, and (3)
the signs and symptoms of anaphylaxis. The bill specifies the training
for this must specifically apply to students who do not have a prior
written allergy treatment order from a medical professional and written
permission from their parent or guardian. The prior written order must
be from a licensed physician, dentist, optometrist, advanced practice
registered nurse, or physician’s assistant.
§ 3 — BANS REQUIRING A PARENT TO PARTICIPATE IN SCHOOL
ACTIVITIES AS A CONDITION OF THE CHILD’S ENROLLMENT
The bill bans a local or regional board of education from requiring a
student’s parent or guardian to participate in school activities, such as
volunteering, as a condition for the student to enroll in one of the
board’s schools. Current law does not authorize such a requirement and
the state constitution requires the state to provide free public school
education (see BACKGROUND).
§ 4 — PARTNERSHIPS BETWEE N HIGH SCHOOLS AND
COMMUNITY-TECHNICAL COLLEGES
The bill requires each regional community-technical college to
consult with the public high school counselors and administrators
within the college’s region to establish collaborative partnerships
between the schools and the college. The partnerships may include
collaborative counseling programs for (1) students interested in specific
careers, (2) evaluation and alignment of curricula, and (3) offering 2024HB-05416-R000591-BA.DOCX
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support or programs to improve student outcomes.
§ 5 — EXEMPT CHILD CARE P ROVIDERS AND EMERGEN CY
EPINEPHRINE ADMINISTRATION
By law, Office of Early Childhood (OEC)-licensed child care
providers are authorized to administer epinephrine for emergency first
aid to a child in their care who experiences an allergic reaction and does
not have a prior written parent or guardian authorization or prior
written qualified medical professional order for the provider to
administer epinephrine. The bill broadens this authorization to include
child care providers that are exempt from licensing. Under the law and
the bill, the person administering epinephrine must be trained
according to statutory requirements.
The child care service providers exempt from OEC licensure include
public school systems, municipalities, nationally chartered boys’ and
girls’ clubs that for school-age children, and a number of organizations
or arrangements specified in statute.
§ 6 — ECS GRANT ESTIMATES FOR TOWNS
The bill requires that by December 31, 2024, and each following
December 31, SDE calculate the estimated education cost sharing (ECS)
grant that each town is entitled to receive for the next fiscal year using
data collected during the current fiscal year. The department must
notify each town of the estimated amount.
§ 7 — PARENTAL NOTIFICATION OF RESTRAINT AND SECLUSION
The bill requires school boards to notify a parent or guardian of a
student who is placed in physical restraint or seclusion on the day the
student was physically restrained or secluded. Under current law the
notice must take place within 24 hours, which can mean notice is the
following day, and the school must make a reasonable effort to provide
the notification immediately after the restraint or seclusion starts.
The bill also requires the notice be provided by electronic means,
including email or mobile phone, if possible.
By law, school employees are prohibited from using physical 2024HB-05416-R000591-BA.DOCX
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restraint or seclusion on a student except in an emergency to prevent
immediate or imminent injury to the student or to others. The restraint
or seclusion cannot be used for discipline or in place of a less severe or
restrictive alternative.
§ 8 — PARENTAL NOTIFICATIO N OF STUDENT BEHAVIO R
CAUSING DISRUPTION O R HARM AND BEHAVIOR IN TERVENTION
MEETING
The bill creates two new parental notifications related to student
behavior.
The bill requires a school principal or other administrator to notify a
parent or guardian of a student whose behavior has caused (1) a serious
disruption to the instruction of other students, (2) self-harm, or (3)
physical harm to another student or a teacher or other school employee
on the same day the behavior occurs. The notice must inform the parent
or guardian that the teacher in the classroom where the behavior
occurred may request a behavior intervention meeting with the school’s
crisis intervention team as permitted by law.
In these cases, existing law allows a teacher to request a behavioral
intervention meeting with a crisis intervention team that includes
certain school employees designated by the principal. The bill requires
the crisis intervention team, after it receives the teacher’s request, to
notify the student’s parents or guardians of the teacher’s request before
holding the meeting.
The bill requires the crisis intervention team to submit a summary of
the meeting, including any resources and supports identified, to the
student’s parents or guardian by seven days after the meeting. By law,
the meeting participants must identify resources and supports to
address the student’s social, emotional, and instructional needs.
BACKGROUND
Related Bill
sHB 5212 (§ 2), favorably reported by the Appropriations and
Education committees, also requires SDE to calculate ECS grant
estimates for each town. 2024HB-05416-R000591-BA.DOCX
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Constitutional Right to Free Public Education
The Connecticut State Constitution, Article Eighth, Section 1, states:
“There shall always be free public elementary and secondary schools
in the state. The general assembly shall implement this principle by
appropriate legislation.”
COMMITTEE ACTION
Education Committee
Joint Favorable Substitute Change of Reference - APP
Yea 44 Nay 0 (03/18/2024)
Appropriations Committee
Joint Favorable Substitute
Yea 52 Nay 0 (04/04/2024)