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2019 SESSION

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SB 1130 School resource officers; compulsory minimum training standards.

Introduced by: Mamie E. Locke | all patrons    ...    notes | add to my profiles | history

SUMMARY AS PASSED:

Department of Criminal Justice Services; school resource officers; school administrators; training. Requires the Department of Criminal Justice Services (Department) to establish, and every full-time or part-time law-enforcement officer employed as a school resource officer after July 1, 2020, to comply with, compulsory minimum training standards for law-enforcement officers serving as school resource officers. The bill requires the training provided by the Department pursuant to such standards to be specific to the role and responsibility of a law-enforcement officer working with students in a school environment and to be available throughout the Commonwealth. The bill requires each school board to ensure that every public school it supervises employs at least one school administrator who has completed, either in-person or online, school safety training for public school personnel conducted by the Virginia Center for School and Campus Safety, unless such training is not available online. This bill is identical to HB 2609.

SUMMARY AS PASSED SENATE:

Department of Criminal Justice Services; school resource officers; school administrators; training. Directs the Department of Criminal Justice Services (Department) to establish compulsory minimum training standards for law-enforcement officers serving as school resource officers that may include (i) relevant state and federal laws; (ii) school and personal liability issues; (iii) security awareness in the school environment; (iv) mediation and conflict resolution, including de-escalation techniques; (v) disaster and emergency response; (vi) awareness of cultural diversity and implicit bias; (vii) working with students with disabilities, behavioral health or substance abuse disorders, or trauma experiences; and (viii) student behavioral dynamics, including child and adolescent development. The bill also directs the Department, in consultation with the Department of Education and the Virginia State Crime Commission, to include such similar minimum training standards for school security officers. The bill requires each school board to ensure that every public school employs at least one school administrator who has attended school safety training conducted by the Virginia Center for School and Campus Safety in school safety, anti-bullying tactics, and effective identification of students who may be at risk for violent behavior and are in need of special services or assistance. The provisions of the bill are contingent on funding in a general appropriation act.

SUMMARY AS INTRODUCED:

School resource officers; training and certification; memoranda of understanding. Requires each school resource officer to be trained and certified by the Virginia Center for School and Campus Safety. The bill expands the topics on which school security officers are required to be trained. The bill also requires any school board that agrees to place school resource officers in any school in the school division and the relevant local law-enforcement agency to establish and annually review and update a memorandum of understanding (MOU) governing the use and duties of school resource officers, and ensure that all relevant parties receive initial and ongoing training on the contents of such MOU.