Brief Summary of Engrossed Bill

(As Amended by House)

Requires the Washington State Institute for Public Policy to complete an evaluation of how Washington and other states have addressed the funding of school safety and security programs, and to submit a report to the Legislature, the Governor, and the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) by December 1, 2017.
Requires the OSPI and the School Safety Advisory Committee to hold annual school safety summits with appointed legislators and other participants, subject to the availability of funds appropriated for that purpose.
Requires the OSPI to develop an online social and emotional training module for educators.
Allows, subject to the availability of funding, educational service districts to implement a regional school safety and security program that is modeled after a regional school safety and security center developed by an educational service district.

Background:

Washington State Institute for Public Policy.

Created by the Legislature in 1983, the Washington State Institute for Public Policy (WSIPP) conducts nonpartisan research at the direction of the Legislature or the WSIPP Board of Directors.

Safe School Plans.

Current law requires that schools have a safe school plan. Safe school plans must:

include required school safety policies and procedures;
address emergency mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery; and
include provisions for assisting and communicating with students and staff, including those with special needs or disabilities.

To the extent funds are available, school districts must annually review and update safe school plans in collaboration with local emergency response agencies, conduct an inventory of all hazardous materials, and update information on the school mapping information system to reflect current staffing and updated plans. School districts must also work collaboratively with local law enforcement agencies and school security personnel to develop an emergency response system that expedites the response and arrival of law enforcement in the event of a threat or emergency.

School Safety Center Advisory Committee.

Located in the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI), the School Safety Center provides resources to districts and schools in order to help develop high-quality emergency operations and safety plans. The School Safety Center Advisory Committee advises the Superintendent of Public Instruction on issues related to the School Safety Center, including:

disseminating successful models of school safety plans and cooperative efforts;
providing assistance to schools to establish a comprehensive safe schools plan;
selecting models of cooperative efforts;
acting as an information dissemination and resource center when an incident occurs;
coordinating activities relating to school safety; and
reviewing and approving manuals and curricula used for school safety models and training.

Social and Emotional Learning.

In 2010 the Department of Early Learning, the OSPI, and Thrive by Five Washington reviewed and revised the early learning and development benchmarks, which they published as the Washington State Early Learning and Development Guidelines. These guidelines include information about social and emotional learning (SEL) and development for parents, teachers, and other adults who support children in grades K–3.

The 2015 operating budget (Chapter 4, Laws of 2015, 3rd sp.s [ESSB 6052]) directed the OSPI to convene a work group to recommend comprehensive benchmarks for developmentally appropriate interpersonal and decision-making knowledge and skills of SEL for grades kindergarten through high school (Benchmarks Report). The benchmarks must build upon what is being done in early learning. The work group is required to report on its recommendations by October 1, 2016.

School Safety and Security Center.

Washington's nine educational service districts (ESDs) provide cooperative and informational services to local school districts, and assist the OSPI and the State Board of Education in the performance of their duties. The ESD 105 serves school districts in South Central Washington. The ESD 105 School Safety and Security program supports school districts in developing comprehensive approaches to safe and secure learning environments. The program helps schools develop plans that address prevention, protection, mitigation, response, and recovery.

Summary of Amended Bill:

Washington State Institute for Public Policy.

The WSIPP is required to complete an evaluation of how Washington and other states have addressed the funding of school safety and security programs, and to submit a report to the Legislature, the Governor, and the OSPI by December 1, 2017.

Annual Safety Summits.

The OSPI and the School Safety Advisory Committee are required to hold annual school safety summits, subject to the availability of funds appropriated for that purpose. Each annual summit must focus on establishing and monitoring the progress of a statewide plan for funding cost-effective methods for school safety that meet local needs. The summits may also focus on the planning and implementation of school safety planning efforts, training school safety professionals, and integrating health and security measures.

Summit participants must be appointed no later than August 1, 2016, and include two members from each of the relevant caucuses of the Senate, two members from each of the two largest caucuses of the House of Representatives, and a representative appointed by the Governor. Other participants may include representatives from the OSPI, the Department of Health, the ESDs, educational associations, emergency management, law enforcement, fire departments, parent organizations, and student organizations.

Training on Social and Emotional Learning.

The OSPI must create and maintain an online social and emotional training module for educators, administrators, and other school district staff. The training module must be based on the recommendations of the OSPI's 2016 Benchmarks Report and promote students' self-awareness, self-management, social-awareness, relationships, and responsible decision-making. The module must be available by September 1, 2017.

Regional School Safety and Security Programs.

Subject to the availability of specific funding, ESDs are permitted to implement a regional school safety and security program that is modeled after the ESD that has developed a regional school safety and security center. Program components should include:

the establishment of a network of school safety coordinators for the ESDs;
collaboration with the ESD that developed the model for a regional school safety and security center;
the creation of technology-based systems that enable more efficient and effective communication between schools and emergency response entities;
ongoing prevention and response training for school personnel and emergency responders; and
building collaborative relationships between other ESDs, the OSPI, and the School Safety Advisory Committee.

Staff Summary of Public Testimony:

(In support) School districts need the guidance, support, and expertise that could be provided by school safety and security centers. Investing in a regional model is going to be the most effective and cost efficient way to do this. School districts are not able to invest in this on their own. School districts need pilots to find the best experts and work through issues.

Eighteen percent of our youth contemplate suicide at some point in time. The work of regional school safety and security programs would allow experts to work with at-risk kids much earlier. Schools would be made safer through physical and technology improvements and attention to mental health.

School personnel are the first ones to arrive in an emergency or threat of an emergency incident. It can take five to 30 minutes for emergency personnel to get to events. This bill would provide training for teachers to intervene immediately. The safety summit would be an opportunity to hear from students, families, and personnel in our schools.

The OSPI has responsibilities in 55 areas. This bill helps the OSPI put a focus on school safety. The bill can be scaled up or down, depending on how many ESDs create a regional plan.

(Opposed) None.