SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 2741
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
_______________
In the One Hundred and Ninety-Third General Court
(2023-2024)
_______________
SENATE, April 22, 2024.
The committee on Education, to whom was referred the petitions (accompanied by bill,
Senate, No. 240) of Nick Collins for legislation relative to mental health education;
(accompanied by bill, Senate, No. 247) of Cynthia Stone Creem and Susannah M. Whipps for
legislation relative to remodel public school athletics through social-emotional learning;
(accompanied by bill, Senate, No. 248) of Cynthia Stone Creem and Vanna Howard for
legislation to promote social-emotional learning; (accompanied by bill, Senate, No. 276) of
Barry R. Finegold and Vanna Howard for legislation relative to safety and violence education for
students (the SAVE Students Act); (accompanied by bill, Senate, No. 333) of Jacob R. Oliveira
and Sal N. DiDomenico for legislation relative to prescription opioid abuse prevention
education; (accompanied by bill, Senate, No. 342) of Pavel M. Payano for legislation relative to
substance use education in public schools; (accompanied by bill, Senate, No. 346) of Rebecca L.
Rausch, Lydia Edwards and James B. Eldridge for legislation to ensuring access to mental health
supports in K-12 schools; and (accompanied by bill, Senate, No. 350) of Michael F. Rush and
Paul McMurtry for legislation relative to physical and social recess in schools, report the
accompanying bill (Senate, No. 2741).
For the committee,
Jason M. Lewis 1 of 5
FILED ON: 4/20/2024
SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 2741
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
_______________
In the One Hundred and Ninety-Third General Court
(2023-2024)
_______________
An Act to promote social emotional learning and the mental and behavioral health of students.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
of the same, as follows:
1 SECTION 1. (a) There shall be a task force established to study and provide
2recommendations on a statewide birth through higher education framework for social emotional
3learning and mental and behavioral health.
4 The task force shall consist of 23 members: 1 of whom shall be the secretary of education
5or a designee who shall serve as co-chair; 1 of whom shall be the secretary of health and human
6services or a designee who shall serve as co-chair; 2 of whom shall be the chairs of the joint
7committee on education or their designees; 2 of whom shall be the chairs of the joint committee
8on higher education or their designees, 1 of whom shall be a member of the safe and supportive
9schools commission appointed by the safe and supportive schools commission; 1 of whom shall
10be a school superintendent appointed by the Massachusetts Association of School
11Superintendents; 1 of whom shall be a school psychologist appointed by the Massachusetts
12School Psychologists Association; 1 of whom shall be a school adjustment counselor or guidance
13counselor appointed by the Massachusetts School Counselors Association; 1 of whom shall be a
14member of the American College Counseling Association appointed by the American College 2 of 5
15Counseling Association; 1 of whom shall be an advocate with experience in education,
16behavioral health, and the impact of trauma on learning appointed by Massachusetts Advocates
17for Children; 1 of whom shall be appointed by the Massachusetts League of Community Health
18Centers; 1 of whom shall be appointed by the Massachusetts Coalition for Suicide Prevention; 1
19of whom shall be appointed by Strategies for Children; 1 of whom shall be a school nurse
20,appointed by the Massachusetts School Nurse Organization, Inc.; 1 of whom shall be appointed
21by the Massachusetts Center on Child Wellbeing & Trauma; 1 of whom shall be a social worker
22appointed by the Massachusetts Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers; 1 of
23whom shall be a appointed by the Children’s Mental Health Campaign; 1 of whom shall be
24appointed by the Behavioral Health Integrated Resources for Children Project Advisory Council;
251 of whom shall be a parent of a current student appointed by the Parent/Professional Advocacy
26League; 1 of whom shall be a student member of the state student advisory council appointed by
27the state student advisory council; and 1 of whom shall be appointed by the Federation for
28Children with Special Needs.
29 The task force shall study and provide recommendations on the following: (i) the
30development of a framework for integrating equitable, accessible, and culturally and
31linguistically sustaining social emotional learning in educational settings from birth through
32higher education into curriculum; (ii) guiding principles and strategies related to providing social
33emotional supports for students in schools; (iii) implementing targeted and evidenced-based
34supports for students to meet social and behavioral expectations aligned with social emotional
35learning competencies; (iv) developing and promoting professional development for school and
36district staff to recognize and respond to mental and behavioral health challenges that may arise
37during in-person learning; (v) implementing strategies related to youth suicide prevention; (vi) 3 of 5
38identifying and developing partnerships between school districts and charter schools and
39agencies and community organizations for referring students who require additional support to
40health, behavioral health, substance use, and social support services; and (vii) how online
41advertising and social media affect students’ short- and long-term physical, emotional, and
42cognitive development.
43 (b) The task force shall convene beginning not later than 90 days after the effective date
44of this act and meet not fewer than 4 times within the first year prior to submitting its findings
45and recommendations; provided, that after the first year, the commission shall meet at a
46frequency determined by the co-chairs of the commission until the submission of the findings
47and recommendations or two years from the initial convening, whichever comes first. The task
48force shall submit its findings and recommendations, including development of shared language,
49identification of best practices, and mechanisms to monitor progress, to the executive office of
50education, the executive office of health and human services, the clerks of the house of
51representatives and the senate, the joint committee on mental health, substance use and recovery,
52and the joint committee on education not later than 2 years after the effective date of this act.
53 SECTION 2. Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, not later than
54December 1, 2026, the department of elementary and secondary education shall, in collaboration
55with the executive office of health and human services, the department of mental health, and in
56consultation with the task force established to study a statewide birth through higher education
57framework for social emotional learning and mental and behavioral health, experts in childhood
58mental health, and educators from public elementary and secondary schools, develop and publish
59guidance for supporting the social emotional development and mental health of students in
60kindergarten through twelfth grade. The guidance shall include, but not be limited to, the 4 of 5
61following: (i) guiding principles and strategies related to student social and emotional health and
62wellbeing; (ii) integrating equitable, accessible, and culturally and linguistically sustaining social
63emotional learning skills into student learning experiences; (iii) strategies related to suicide
64prevention; (iv) strategies to develop students’ social emotional learning competencies, including
65self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision
66making; and (v) how online advertising and social media affect students’ short- and long-term
67physical, emotional, and cognitive development. The guidance shall be able to be integrated into
68the general academic curricula, including the promotion of mental and behavioral health during
69school time and in extracurricular activities. A school district shall consider the guidance if it
70elects to integrate social emotional learning and mental and behavioral health into academic
71curricula.
72 SECTION 3. Section 1P of chapter 69 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2022
73Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the phrase, “inclusion of students with
74disabilities,” in lines 11-12, the following words: - “the influence of technology on the short- and
75long-term physical, emotional, and cognitive development of students.”
76 SECTION 4. Subsection (g) of section 1P of chapter 69 of General Laws, as appearing in
77the 2022 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out, in lines 128-132, the words, "1 of
78whom shall be a former member of the behavioral health and public schools task force who
79participated in the development and statewide evaluation of the self-assessment tool; 1 of whom
80shall be a former member of the behavioral health and public schools task force with experience
81implementing the framework;" and inserting in place the following words:- “1 of whom shall
82have experience in implementing the self-assessment tool; 1 of whom shall have experience
83implementing the framework.” 5 of 5
84 SECTION 5. Subsection (b) of section 37Q of chapter 71 of the General Laws is hereby
85amended by inserting after the first sentence the following sentence: - Each plan shall include, to
86the extent possible, a policy to identify and develop partnerships with community organizations
87and local and regional boards of public health to refer students to health, behavioral health,
88substance use, and social support services.
89 SECTION 6. Section 38G of chapter 71 of the General Laws is hereby amended by
90inserting after the word “styles,” in line 251, the following words: - “strategies to develop
91students’ social emotional learning competencies, including self-awareness, self-management,
92social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making,”
93 SECTION 7. Section 38G of chapter 71 of the General Laws is hereby amended by
94inserting after the word “styles,” in line 287, the following words: - “strategies to develop
95 students’ social emotional learning competencies, including self-awareness, self-
96management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making.”