H-3920.1

HOUSE BILL 2643

ByRepresentatives Callan, Ybarra, Ortiz-Self, Rude, Orwall, Davis, Thai, Steele, Fey, Gildon, Doglio, Leavitt, Harris, and Pollet

AN ACT Relating to educator recertification requirements regarding youth suicide screening, referral, and safety planning; and amending RCW 28A.410.226.

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

Sec. 1. RCW 28A.410.226 and 2013 c 197 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:

(1)(a) As provided under subsections (2) ((and (3)))through (4) of this section, specified individuals certified by the professional educator standards board ((as a school nurse, school social worker, school psychologist, or school counselor)) must complete a training program on youth suicide screening and referral as a condition of certification. The training program must be at least three hours in length. The professional educator standards board must adopt standards for the minimum content of the training in consultation with the office of the superintendent of public instruction and the department of health and in consideration of best practices on youth suicide screening and prevention. ((In developing the standards, the board must consider training programs listed on the best practices registry of the American foundation for suicide prevention and the suicide prevention resource center.))

(2) This section applies to the following certificates if the certificate is first issued or is renewed on or after July 1, 2015:

(a) Continuing certificates for school nurses;

(b) Continuing certificates for school social workers;

(c) Continuing and professional certificates for school psychologists; and

(d) Continuing and professional certificates for school counselors.

(3) A school counselor who holds or submits a school counseling certificate from the national board for professional teaching standards or a school psychologist who holds or submits a school psychologist certificate from the national association of school psychologists in lieu of a professional certificate must complete the training program under subsection (1) of this section by July 1, 2015, or within the five-year period before the certificate is first submitted to the professional educator standards board, whichever is later, and at least once every five years thereafter in order to be considered certified by the professional educator standards board.

(4) Beginning September 1, 2021, this section applies to: (a) Renewal of initial principal certificates; (b) renewal of professional principal certificates; (c) issuance and renewal of continuing principal certificates; and (d) issuance and renewal of professional principal certificates.

(5) The professional educator standards board shall ((consider the training program under subsection (1) of this section as approved continuing education under RCW 28A.415.020 and shall)) count the training program under subsection (1) of this section toward meeting continuing education requirements for certification as a school nurse, school social worker, school psychologist, or school counselor.

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