BILL NUMBER: AB 1025 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 6, 2015
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Thurmond
FEBRUARY 26, 2015
An act to add Section 124174.7 to the Health and Safety Code,
relating to pupil health.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1025, as amended, Thurmond. Pupil health: multitiered and
integrated interventions pilot program.
Existing law establishes a system of public elementary and
secondary schools in this state, and provides for the establishment
of school districts and other local educational agencies to operate
these schools and provide instruction to pupils. Existing law
requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction, among his or her
other duties, to serve as the chief executive officer of the State
Department of Education.
This bill would require the State Department of Education to
develop and implement federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health
Services Administration "Now is The Time" funded pilot projects and
to establish a 3-year pilot program
additional pilot programs to encourage inclusive practices that
integrate mental health, special education, and school climate
interventions following a multitiered framework in 3 schools
in 10 school districts, school districts
that apply to participate, as specified. The bill would require
the State Department of Education to select schools where at least
60% of the student body is eligible for a free or reduced-price meal
program and whose applications provide an estimate for the amount of
funding being requested for start up and evaluation and detail a
model approach that targets the behavioral, emotional, and academic
needs of pupils with multitiered and integrated mental health,
special education, and school climate interventions. The bill,
contingent on the enactment of an appropriation for this purpose,
would require the department to provide startup and evaluation
funding to each school participating in the pilot program, and would
require the schools to provide certain information to the State
Department of Education in accordance with a comprehensive evaluation
plan developed by the State Department of Health Care Services
, the Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability
Commission, and the State Department of Education to assess the
impact of the pilot program and disseminate best practices. The bill
would require the State Department of Education to submit a report
to the Legislature evaluating the success of the pilot program at the
end of the 3-year period. The bill would require the
Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission to
revise its guidelines and regulations regarding prevention and early
intervention programs in K- 12 schools, as specified.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. (a) The Legislature finds and declares that pupils from
all backgrounds and circumstances in California deserve adequate
behavioral and academic support to achieve their full potential. The
Legislature further finds and declares all of the following:
(1) Pupils in California face relational and environmental
stressors that diminish their ability to achieve their full
potential. Among these complex challenges may be poverty, frequent
exposure to violence, placement in the foster care system, and other
negative experiences that result in chronic stress and trauma. Nearly
700,000 pupils in California receive special education services, and
nearly one-in-four youth are living in poverty. Nearly 60,000 youth
are currently placed in foster care, and as many as 20 percent of
youth are in need of mental health interventions.
(2) Pupils with these stressors are frequently failed by the
current policies and systems in place, as measured by indicators for
academic outcomes, social inclusion, emotional development, mental
health support, and general pupil well-being.
(A) In California, more than 20 percent of special education
pupils spend less than 40 percent of their day within their regular
classroom, an indicator of inclusion, compared to 14 percent of
special education pupils nationally and a federal target of less than
9 percent.
(B) Only 59 percent of special education pupils graduated from
high school within four years in the 2010-11 fiscal year compared to
76 percent of all pupils.
(C) Statewide, a recent study found only 58 percent of foster
youth in grade 12 graduated compared to 85 percent of all youth, with
nearly 14 percent of foster youth in grade 12 dropping out of
school.
(D) Far too often, youth with mental health challenges do not
receive the services they need. For instance, one study found that
nearly two-thirds of adolescents who experienced a major depressive
disorder in the last year did not receive treatment.
(E) Even by grade 3, low-income pupils perform substantially below
their higher income peers in areas of social and emotional skill,
social and emotional development, engagement in school, and physical
well-being.
(3) Current funding practices fail to adequately incentivize
schools to invest in front-end preventative measures that would
reduce overall cost of special education.
(4) Delivery of comprehensive community-based support and
resources requires a high level of collaboration among schools,
school districts, and county mental health agencies.
(5) Inclusive multitiered systems of behavioral and academic
supports are essential to providing high-quality, cost-effective
special education programs that benefit all pupils.
(6) The State Department of Education has recently received a
grant from the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Administration to develop these special education programs and has
selected the City of Santa Rosa, the City of Garden Grove, and San
Diego County for pilot programs.
(7) Similar pilot programs are already established in the City of
Oakland and in San Bernardino County.
(8) The programs in the City of Oakland and San Bernardino County
are demonstrating that these programs generate savings that more than
offset their costs.
(b) It is the intent of the Legislature that, upon demonstrated
success of the pilot program established pursuant to Section 124174.7
of the Health and Safety Code, the evaluated models can be adopted
by a large number of schools to increase the efficient and effective
utilization of available community resources in order to promote the
success of all pupils.
SEC. 2. Section 124174.7 is added to the Health and Safety Code,
to read:
124174.7. (a) (1) The State Department of Education shall
develop and implement federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health
Services Administration "Now is The Time" funded pilot projects in
accordance with this section and shall establish a
three-year pilot program additional pilot programs
in accordance with this section to encourage inclusive
practices that integrate mental health, special education, and school
climate interventions following a multitiered framework.
(2) For purposes of this section, "department" means the State
Department of Education.
(b) The To the extent that funds are
appropriated in the annual Budget Act, th e
department shall establish the pilot program in three
additional schools in each of 10 five
additional school districts that apply to participate through
the submission of detailed applications providing estimates for the
amount of funding being requested for start up
startup and evaluation of the program and specifying their
intended models. The department shall select schools where at least
60 percent of the student body is eligible for a free or
reduced-price meal program and whose applications detail a model
approach that targets the behavioral, emotional, and academic needs
of pupils with multitiered and integrated mental health, special
education, and school climate interventions. In addition to
reflecting the school's specific culture and needs, a school's model
shall include all of the following:
(1) Formalized collaboration with local mental health agencies to
provide school-based mental health services that are integrated
within a multitiered system of support.
(2) Leverage of school and community resources to offer
comprehensive multitiered interventions on a sustainable basis.
(3) An initial school climate assessment that includes information
from multiple stakeholders, including school staff, pupils, and
families, that is used to inform the selection of strategies and
interventions that reflect the culture and goals of the school.
(4) A coordination of services team that considers referrals for
services, oversees schoolwide efforts, and utilizes data-informed
processes to identify struggling pupils who require early
interventions.
(5) Whole school strategies that address school climate and
universal pupil well-being, such as positive behavioral interventions
and supports or the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, as well as
comprehensive professional development opportunities, that build the
capacity of the entire school community to recognize and respond to
the unique social-emotional, behavioral, and academic needs of
pupils.
(6) Targeted interventions for pupils with identified
social-emotional, behavioral, and academic needs, such as therapeutic
group interventions, functional behavioral analysis and plan
development, and targeted skill groups.
(7) Intensive services, such as wraparound, behavioral
intervention, or one-on-one support, that can reduce the need for a
pupil's referral to special education or placement in more
restrictive, isolated settings.
(8) Specific strategies and practices that ensure parent
engagement with the school, and provide parents with access to
resources that support their children's educational success.
(c) Contingent on the enactment of an appropriation in the annual
Budget Act for the purpose of implementing this section, the
department shall provide startup and evaluation funding to each
school participating in the pilot program in the following amounts:
(1) Two hundred fifty thousand dollars ($250,000) in year one.
(2) Two hundred thousand dollars ($200,000) in year two.
(3) One hundred fifty thousand dollars ($150,000) in year three.
(d) (1) The State Department of Health Care Services , the
Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability
Commission, and the department shall develop a comprehensive
evaluation plan to assess the impact of the pilot program and
disseminate best practices.
(2) Outcomes and indicators to be reported pursuant to this
subdivision by schools participating in the pilot program shall
include, but need not be limited to, those already being collected by
schools, as well as designated measures of pupil well-being,
academic achievement, and school engagement and attendance.
(3) (A) The department, in compliance with Section 9795 of the
Government Code, shall submit a report to the Legislature at the end
of the three-year period evaluating the success of the program and
making further recommendations. The department shall make the report
available to the public, and shall post it on the department's
Internet Web site.
(B) The requirement to submit a report to the Legislature imposed
under subparagraph (A) is inoperative, pursuant to Section 10231.5 of
the Government Code, four years after the report is due.
(e) The Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability
Commission shall revise its guidelines and regulations for Prevention
and Early Intervention Programs of the Mental Health Services Act,
pursuant to Section 5840 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, to
require that these prevention and early intervention programs in K-12
schools are designed to support the implementation or expansion of
model programs in accordance with the criteria set forth in this
section.