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LEGISLATURE OF NEBRASKA
ONE HUNDRED SIXTH LEGISLATURE
FIRST SESSION
LEGISLATIVE BILL 120
Introduced by Crawford, 45.
Read first time January 10, 2019
Committee: Education
1 A BILL FOR AN ACT relating to schools; to amend section 79-2,146, Reissue
2 Revised Statutes of Nebraska, and section 79-2,144, Revised Statutes
3 Cumulative Supplement, 2018; to require training on mental health as
4 prescribed; to harmonize provisions; to repeal the original
5 sections; and to declare an emergency.
6 Be it enacted by the people of the State of Nebraska,
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1 Section 1. Section 79-2,144, Revised Statutes Cumulative Supplement,
2 2018, is amended to read:
3 79-2,144 The state school security director appointed pursuant to
4 section 79-2,143 shall be responsible for providing leadership and
5 support for safety and security for the public schools. Duties of the
6 director include, but are not limited to:
7 (1) Collecting safety and security plans, required pursuant to rules
8 and regulations of the State Department of Education relating to
9 accreditation of schools, and other school security information from each
10 school system in Nebraska. School districts shall provide the state
11 school security director with the safety and security plans of the school
12 district and any other security information requested by the director,
13 but any plans or information submitted by a school district may be
14 withheld by the department pursuant to subdivision (8) of section
15 84-712.05;
16 (2) Recommending minimum standards for school security on or before
17 January 1, 2016, to the State Board of Education;
18 (3) Conducting an assessment of the security of each public school
19 building, which assessment shall be completed by August 31, 2019;
20 (4) Identifying deficiencies in school security based on the minimum
21 standards adopted by the State Board of Education and making
22 recommendations to school boards for remedying such deficiencies;
23 (5) Establishing security awareness and preparedness tools and
24 training programs for public school staff;
25 (6) Establishing research-based model instructional programs for
26 staff, students, and parents to address the underlying causes for violent
27 attacks on schools;
28 (7) Overseeing behavioral and mental health suicide awareness and
29 prevention training in public schools pursuant to section 79-2,146;
30 (8) Establishing tornado preparedness standards which shall include,
31 but not be limited to, ensuring that every school conducts at least two
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1 tornado drills per year;
2 (9) Responding to inquiries and requests for assistance relating to
3 school security from private, denominational, and parochial schools; and
4 (10) Recommending curricular and extracurricular materials to assist
5 school districts in preventing and responding to cyberbullying and
6 digital citizenship issues.
7 Sec. 2. Section 79-2,146, Reissue Revised Statutes of Nebraska, is
8 amended to read:
9 79-2,146 (1) Beginning in school year 2019-20 2015-16, all public
10 school nurses, teachers, counselors, school psychologists,
11 administrators, school social workers, and any other appropriate
12 personnel shall receive at least one hour of behavioral and mental health
13 suicide awareness and prevention training each year during contract
14 hours. Such training shall include suicide awareness and prevention
15 training. Such training may also include, but not be limited to, topics
16 such as identification of early warning signs and symptoms of behavioral
17 and mental health issues in students, appropriate and effective responses
18 for educators, trauma-informed care, and procedures for making students
19 and parents or guardians aware of services and supports. This training
20 shall be provided within the framework of existing inservice training
21 programs offered by the State Department of Education or as part of
22 required professional development activities.
23 (2) The department, in consultation with organizations including,
24 but not limited to, the Nebraska State Suicide Prevention Coalition, the
25 Nebraska chapter of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, the
26 Behavioral Health Education Center of Nebraska, the National Alliance on
27 Mental Illness Nebraska, and other organizations and professionals with
28 expertise in suicide prevention and behavioral and mental health, shall
29 develop a list of approved training materials to fulfill the requirements
30 of subsection (1) of this section. Such materials shall include training
31 on how to identify appropriate mental health services, both within the
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1 school and also within the larger community, and when and how to refer
2 youth and their families to those services. Such materials may include
3 programs that can be completed through self-review of suitable suicide
4 prevention and behavioral and mental health materials.
5 (3) The department may adopt and promulgate rules and regulations to
6 carry out this section.
7 Sec. 3. Original section 79-2,146, Reissue Revised Statutes of
8 Nebraska, and section 79-2,144, Revised Statutes Cumulative Supplement,
9 2018, are repealed.
10 Sec. 4. Since an emergency exists, this act takes effect when
11 passed and approved according to law.
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