2008 -- H 7214

=======

LC00224

=======

STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2008

____________

A N A C T

RELATING TO EDUCATION -- EMERGENCY RESPONSE PLANS

     Introduced By: Representatives McNamara, Smith, Lewiss, Segal, and McCauley

     Date Introduced: January 23, 2008

     Referred To: House Health, Education & Welfare

It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

1-1

     SECTION 1. Section 16-21-24 of the General Laws in Chapter 16-21 entitled "Health

1-2

and Safety of Pupils" is hereby amended to read as follows:

1-3

     16-21-24. Requirements of school safety plans, school emergency response plans,

1-4

and school crisis response plans. -- (a) School safety plans, as required by this chapter, shall

1-5

include and address, but not to be limited to, the following policies and procedures:

1-6

      (1) Policies and procedures for responding to violence by students, teachers, other school

1-7

personnel as well as visitors to the school;

1-8

      (2) Policies and procedures for responding to acts of violence by students, teachers, other

1-9

school personnel and visitors to the school;

1-10

      (3) Appropriate prevention and intervention strategies which are based on data to target

1-11

priority needs and which make use of effective actions based on currently accepted best practice;

1-12

      (4) Collaborative arrangements with state and local law enforcement officials, designed

1-13

to ensure that school safety officers and other security personnel are adequately trained, including

1-14

being trained to de-escalate potentially violent situations, and are effectively and fairly recruited;

1-15

      (5) Policies and procedures for contacting appropriate law enforcement officials and

1-16

EMS/Fire, in the event of a violent incident;

1-17

      (6) Policies and procedures for notification and activation of the school crisis response

1-18

team;

1-19

      (7) Policies and procedures for contacting parents, guardians, or persons in parental

2-1

relation to the students of the city, town, or region in the event of a violent incident;

2-2

      (8) Policies and procedures relating to school building security, including where

2-3

appropriate the use of school safety officers and/or security devices or procedures;

2-4

      (9) Policies and procedures for the dissemination of informative materials regarding the

2-5

early detection of potentially violent behaviors, including but not limited to, the identification of

2-6

family, community, and environmental factors, to teachers, administrators, school personnel,

2-7

persons in parental relation to students of the city, town, or region students and other persons

2-8

deemed appropriate to receive that information;

2-9

      (10) Policies and procedures for annual school safety training and a review of the school

2-10

crisis response plan for staff and students;

2-11

      (11) Protocols for responding to bomb threats, hostage-takings, intrusions, and

2-12

kidnappings;

2-13

      (12) Strategies for improving communication among students and between students and

2-14

staff and reporting of potentially violent incidents, such as the establishment of youth-run

2-15

programs, peer mediation, conflict resolution, creating a forum or designating a mentor for

2-16

students concerned with bullying or violence, and establishing anonymous reporting mechanisms

2-17

for school violence;

2-18

      (13) A description of the duties of hall monitors and any other school safety personnel,

2-19

including the school crisis response team, and the training requirements of all personnel acting in

2-20

a school security capacity;

2-21

      (14) Policies and procedures for providing notice of threats of violence or harm to the

2-22

student or school employee who is the subject of the threat. The policy shall define "threats of

2-23

violence or harm" to include violent actions and threats of violent actions either individually or by

2-24

groups, but shall not include conduct or comments that a reasonable person would not seriously

2-25

consider to be a legitimate threat;

2-26

      (15) Policies and procedures for disclosing information that is provided to the school

2-27

administrators about a student's conduct, including, but not limited to, the student's prior

2-28

disciplinary records, and history of violence, to classroom teachers, school staff, and school

2-29

security, if they have been determined by the principal to have a legitimate need for the

2-30

information in order to fulfill their professional responsibilities and for protecting such

2-31

information from any further disclosure; and

2-32

      (16) Procedures for determining whether or not any threats or conduct established in the

2-33

policy may be grounds for discipline of the student. School districts, school committees, school

2-34

officials, and school employees providing notice in good faith as required and consistent with the

3-1

committee's policies adopted under this section are immune from any liability arising out of such

3-2

notification.

3-3

     (17) Policies and procedures for weather-related school evacuations that shall include: a

3-4

method for notifying families and guardians of early school dismissals, facilitation of

3-5

communication between transportation companies, school departments, buses and local

3-6

transportation departments concerning local road conditions, and sufficient administrative staffing

3-7

available to communicate with parents until every student is transported to a safe location.

3-8

      (b) School safety plans, as required by this chapter, shall further include school

3-9

emergency response plans specific to each school building contained within each city, town, or

3-10

regional school district. School emergency response plans shall include, and address, but not be

3-11

limited to, the following elements:

3-12

      (1) Policies and procedures for the safe evacuation of students, teachers, and other school

3-13

personnel as well as visitors to the school in the event of a serious violent incident or other

3-14

emergency, which shall include evacuation routes and shelter sites and procedures for addressing

3-15

medical needs, transportation, and emergency notification to persons in parental relation to a

3-16

student. For purposes of this subdivision, "serious violent incident" means an incident of violent

3-17

criminal conduct that is, or appears to be, life threatening and warrants the evacuation of students

3-18

and/or staff;

3-19

      (2) Designation of an emergency response team comprised of school personnel, local law

3-20

enforcement officials, and representatives from local regional and/or state emergency response

3-21

agencies, other appropriate incident response teams including a school crisis response team, and a

3-22

post-incident response team that includes appropriate school personnel, medical personnel,

3-23

mental health counselors, and others who can assist the school community in coping with the

3-24

aftermath of a violent incident;

3-25

      (3) Procedures for assuring that crisis response and law enforcement officials have

3-26

access to floor plans, blueprints, schematics, or other maps of the school interior and school

3-27

grounds, and road maps of the immediate surrounding area;

3-28

      (4) Establishment of internal and external communication systems in emergencies;

3-29

      (5) Definition of the chain of command in a manner consistent with the national

3-30

interagency incident management system/incident command system;

3-31

      (6) Procedures for review and the conduct of drills and other exercises to test

3-32

components of the emergency response plan; and

3-33

      (7) Policies and procedures for securing and restricting access to the crime scene in order

3-34

to preserve evidence in cases of violent crimes on school property.

4-1

     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

=======

LC00224

=======

EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N A C T

RELATING TO EDUCATION -- EMERGENCY RESPONSE PLANS

***

5-1

     This act would require school districts to adopt emergency response plans for weather-

5-2

related evacuations.

5-3

     This act would take effect upon passage.

=======

LC00224

=======