Florida education officials eye school safety, mental health
Palm Beach PostAug 13, 2019
Addressing mental health issues and hardening schools have been two high-profile education issues in the wake of last year's mass shooting at
The issues were included in sweeping legislation aimed at making schools safer and improve student access to mental health services following the
But many schools have struggled to comply with some of the measures included in the law, and state and local education officials have expressed concern about a shrinking pool of mental health professionals in the state.
With that in mind,
One of the proposals would revise the language in contracts the state has with charter schools to include a line that says they must comply with "all applicable provisions of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas Public Safety Act." The language would emphasize what is already mandated in state law, and potentially give state education officials authority to penalize charter schools that violate the policy.
"It's appalling that anybody would not be in compliance with the law by now and that the
The proposal comes about a month after Gualtieri's commission learned that nearly 200 schools --- including many charter schools --- did not have armed security guards, as required by state law.
"Those charter students are human beings, and they are funded through the school board,"
Judd has recommended publicly identifying the non-compliant schools, in an effort to force them to follow the state law.
Adding more teeth to charter schools' contracts is another way to keep them accountable, Judd suggested.
"At the end of the day, it doesn't hurt to put it in the contract language. It is another way to ensure they comply with state law," Judd said in an interview Thursday.
Judd said he has been told the state is conducting another survey of all of
While the results of the survey are not yet available, the
Lawmakers this year tweaked the program to allow classroom teachers to participate in the program.
Currently, 36 school districts are participating in the guardian program, according to the state agency website.
But it remains unclear how many of those districts are allowing classroom teachers to volunteer for the program, because state officials only recently began tracking that information.
State education leaders also want to make policy changes aimed at boosting the pool of mental health professionals that can work in schools.
Under the proposed rule, the state would offer three options for professionals to become school counselors. All of the options would require a master's degree or higher, but only two of the three options would require counselors to fulfill a 600-hour supervised internship serving school-aged students.
Judd applauded the move to expand access to mental health treatment for students.
"You don't know who is making irrational statements because they are preparing to be a mass shooter from the other who is making the irrational statements just to get attention. That's why we need the mental health counselors," Judd said.
As
First Lady
The portals are expected to connect about 35,000 students in the area with counselors who are working remotely.
"This is an advantage, whether you are a rural county or you live in a big city. Our problem is there are not enough professionals to deal with all our needs right now,"
This story originally published to the News Service of
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