S-1815

AN ACT Relating to school safety; adding new sections to chapter 28A.300 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 28A.320 RCW; and creating a new section.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. A new section is added to chapter 28A.300 RCW to read as follows:

The legislature finds that establishing a school safety center will provide school districts with: The assistance necessary to create a consistent, comprehensive approach to school safety for every school and every school district; the means to share safety information among school districts; and a process for schools to effectively integrate safe school planning with emergency preparedness personnel, the criminal justice training commission, and local, county, and state law enforcement officers.

The safety center shall disseminate successful models of school safety plans and cooperative efforts; provide assistance to schools to establish a comprehensive safe school plan; select models of cooperative efforts that have been proven successful; act as an information dissemination and resource center when an incident occurs in a school district either in Washington or in another state; coordinate activities relating to school safety; review and approve manuals and curricula used for school safety models and training; and develop and maintain a school safety information web site.

The school safety center shall be established in the office of the superintendent of public instruction. The superintendent of public instruction shall participate in a school safety center advisory committee that includes representatives of educators, classified staff, principals, superintendents, administrators, the American society for industrial security, the state criminal justice training commission, and others deemed appropriate and approved by the school safety center advisory committee. Members of the committee shall be chosen by the groups they represent. In addition, the Washington association of sheriffs and police chiefs shall appoint representatives of law enforcement to participate on the school safety center advisory committee. The advisory committee shall select a chair.

The school safety center advisory committee shall develop a training program, using the best practices in school safety, for all school safety personnel. The criminal justice training commission with assistance of the advisory committee shall develop manuals and curricula for a training program for all school safety personnel. The Washington state criminal justice training commission, in collaboration with the advisory committee, shall provide the school safety training for all school administrators and school safety personnel, including school safety personnel hired after the effective date of this section.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. A new section is added to chapter 28A.320 RCW to read as follows:

A consistent comprehensive approach to school safety includes a comprehensive safe school plan and implementation of the plan. Each school district shall direct schools in its district to develop, by September 1, 2003, a comprehensive safe school plan. The plan shall cover prevention, intervention, all hazards and crisis response, and postcrisis recovery. Staff, students, parents, the community, law enforcement, and emergency preparedness shall be involved in the development and implementation of the plan. Each school shall annually review its comprehensive safe school plan.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. A new section is added to chapter 28A.300 RCW to read as follows:

The office of the superintendent of public instruction shall contract with an independent vendor to establish the school safety hotline. The office of the superintendent of public instruction, with the recommendations of the school safety center advisory committee, shall develop the request for proposal to obtain hotline services. The hotline shall include the maintenance and operation of a toll-free, confidential hotline available for students, parents, school personnel, and community members to report information, including anonymous tips, on any activity threatening a school, students, visitors, or personnel, including suicide.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. If specific funding for the purposes of this act, referencing this act by bill or chapter number, is not provided by June 30, 2001, in the omnibus appropriations act, this act is null and void.