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| 9 | 9 | | S TATE OF RHODE IS LAND |
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| 10 | 10 | | IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 11 | 11 | | JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2023 |
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| 12 | 12 | | ____________ |
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| 13 | 13 | | |
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| 14 | 14 | | A N A C T |
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| 15 | 15 | | RELATING TO EDUCATION -- THE NATHAN BRUNO AND JASON FLATT ACT |
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| 16 | 16 | | Introduced By: Representatives Casimiro, Donovan, Noret, Vella-Wilkinson, Fellela, |
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| 17 | 17 | | Lima, Knight, Serpa, Boylan, and Shanley |
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| 18 | 18 | | Date Introduced: January 25, 2023 |
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| 19 | 19 | | Referred To: House Education |
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| 20 | 20 | | |
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| 21 | 21 | | |
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| 22 | 22 | | It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows: |
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| 23 | 23 | | SECTION 1. The title of Chapter 16-21.7 of the General Laws entitled "The Nathan Bruno 1 |
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| 24 | 24 | | and Jason Flatt Act" is hereby amended to read as follows: 2 |
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| 25 | 25 | | CHAPTER 16-21.7 3 |
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| 26 | 26 | | The Nathan Bruno and Jason Flatt Act 4 |
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| 27 | 27 | | CHAPTER 16-21.7 5 |
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| 28 | 28 | | THE NATHAN BRUNO, JASON FLATT, AND ALICIA BIROS BE REAVEMENT ACT 6 |
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| 29 | 29 | | SECTION 2. Chapter 16-21.7 of the General Laws entitled "The Nathan Bruno and Jason 7 |
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| 30 | 30 | | Flatt Act" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following section: 8 |
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| 31 | | - | 16-21.7-5. Suggested protocols to be developed. 9 |
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| 32 | | - | (a) The department of elementary and secondary education shall develop suggested 10 |
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| 33 | | - | protocols for local school committees and boards to adopt and follow relating to and in response to 11 |
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| 34 | | - | the death of a student, teacher, and other staff member of a school. These protocols shall include 12 |
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| 35 | | - | but need not be limited to the following: 13 |
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| 36 | | - | (1) Procedures to be followed for students, teachers, administrators, and other staff that are 14 |
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| 37 | | - | responsive to the school environment and the situation; 15 |
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| 38 | | - | (2) The availability of grief counseling that is developmentally appropriate for the student 16 |
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| 39 | | - | population; 17 |
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| 40 | | - | (3) The availability of grief counseling for teachers, administrators and other staff; and 18 |
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| 41 | | - | (4) Procedures for teachers, administrators, and other staff to respond in developmentally 19 |
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| 31 | + | 16-21.7-5. Flexible schools schedule to be implemented upon death of student or 9 |
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| 32 | + | educator. 10 |
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| 33 | + | In the event of a tragic death of an educator or a student within a local educational agency 11 |
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| 34 | + | (LEA), the LEAs shall be given up to five (5) days after the death to implement a flexible school 12 |
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| 35 | + | schedule for teachers and students. Within that time, an LEA crisis team shall determine the proper 13 |
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| 36 | + | need of those days, which may include, but is not limited to, attending funerals, training staff to 14 |
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| 37 | + | support grieving students, days of mourning, and staff working directly with the students that have 15 |
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| 38 | + | been affected by the death. Schools shall not be required to make up the grief days at the end of the 16 |
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| 39 | + | school year. 17 |
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| 60 | | - | This act would direct the department of elementary and secondary education to 1 |
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| 61 | | - | develop suggested protocols for local school committees and boards to adopt and follow 2 |
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| 62 | | - | relating to and in response to the death of a student, teacher, or other staff member at a 3 |
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| 63 | | - | school. These protocols would include procedures to be followed for students, teachers, 4 |
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| 64 | | - | administrators, and other staff that are responsive to the school environment and the 5 |
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| 65 | | - | situation. 6 |
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| 66 | | - | This act would take effect upon passage. 7 |
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| 56 | + | This act would provide that in the event of the death of an educator or a student, a local 1 |
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| 57 | + | educational agency would be given up to five (5) days after the death to implement a flexible school 2 |
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| 58 | + | schedule for teachers and students. This act would also amend the title of chapter 16-21.7 to "The 3 |
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| 59 | + | Nathan Bruno, Jason Flatt, and Alicia Biros Bereavement Act." 4 |
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| 60 | + | This act would take effect upon passage. 5 |
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