20-2-779.1. Training in youth violence and suicide awareness and prevention.

As used in this Code section, the term “evidence based” means a program or practice that:#

1. (1)

   Demonstrates a statistically significant effect on relevant outcomes based on:#

   1. (A)

      Strong evidence from at least one well-designed and well-implemented experimental study;#

   2. (B)

      Moderate evidence from at least one well-designed and well-implemented quasi-experimental study; or#

   3. (C)

      Promising evidence from at least one well-designed and well-implemented correlational study with statistical controls for selection bias; or#

2. (2)

   Demonstrates a rationale based on high-quality research findings or positive evaluation that such program or practice is likely to improve relevant outcomes, and includes ongoing efforts to examine the effects of such program or practice.#

The State Board of Education shall adopt rules to require that:#

1. (1)

   All certificated public school personnel receive annual training in youth violence and suicide awareness and prevention. Such training shall be provided within the framework of existing in-service training programs offered or facilitated by the Department of Education, the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities, or as part of required professional development offered by a local school system or public school; and#

2. (2)

   1. (A)

      Beginning in the 2026-2027 school year, and continuing each school year thereafter, all public schools serving students in any one of grades six through 12 which receive funds in any manner from the state shall provide to students:#

      1. (i)

         At least one hour of evidence based suicide awareness and prevention training each school year; and#

      2. (ii)

         At least one hour of evidence based youth violence prevention training each school year.#

   2. (B)

      Such training may be delivered in person, remotely, or digitally and may be included as part of the health and physical education course of study provided for in subsection (c) of Code Section 20-2-142.#

1. (1)

   By January 1, 2026, the Department of Education shall, in consultation with the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities, the Suicide Prevention Program established pursuant to Code Section 37-1-27, student violence and suicide prevention experts, other youth mental health experts, and elementary and secondary school counselors, social workers, and teachers, develop a list of approved evidence based training programs and materials to fulfill the requirements of this Code section which may include training programs and materials currently being used by a local school system or public school if such training programs and materials meet the criteria established by the department.#

2. (2)

   Approved training programs and materials:#

   1. (A)

      Shall include information on how to identify appropriate mental health interventions and services, both within the school and also within the larger community, and when and how to facilitate such interventions and services for youth and their families; and#

   2. (B)

      May include programs and materials that can be completed through self-review of suitable student violence and suicide awareness and prevention materials approved by the department upon the recommendation of the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities.#

3. (3)

   Approved training programs and materials for students shall, at a minimum, teach students:#

   1. (A)

      How to recognize the observable signs and signals of depression, suicide, and self-injury in themselves and their peers;#

   2. (B)

      How to recognize the observable warning signs and signals of persons who may be at risk of harming themselves or others;#

   3. (C)

      The importance of seeking help for themselves and their peers and the process for seeking help; and#

   4. (D)

      The steps that can be taken to report dangerous, violent, threatening, harmful, or potentially harmful behavior.#

4. (4)

   The Department of Education shall make the list of approved training programs and materials, including no-cost programming, if any, publicly available on its website and shall keep it timely updated by reviewing such list, at a minimum, every 36 months.#

1. (1)

   Each local board of education or public school governing body shall:#

   1. (A)

      Adopt policies, rules, and regulations on student suicide awareness and prevention. Such policies, rules, and regulations shall be developed in consultation with school and community stakeholders, school employed mental health professionals, and suicide prevention experts, and shall, at a minimum, address procedures relating to suicide prevention, intervention, and postvention;#

   2. (B)

      Adopt policies, rules, and regulations for providing relevant and current information to students and their families and to school personnel regarding publicly available resources for the anonymous reporting of a dangerous, violent, threatening, harmful, or potentially harmful activity which occurs on, or is threatened to occur on, school property or which relates to a student or school personnel; and#

   3. (C)

      Implement an evidence based youth violence prevention training program to instruct students how to recognize the observable warning signs and signals of someone who may be at risk of harming himself, herself, or others; the importance of taking threats seriously and seeking help; and how to report someone who is at risk, including by using the state-wide anonymous reporting program.#

2. (2)

   To assist public schools and local school systems in developing their own policies for student violence and suicide awareness and prevention, the Department of Education, in consultation with the Suicide Prevention Program within the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities, shall establish a model policy for use by public schools and local school systems in accordance with this Code section.#

Each local board of education or public school governing body shall require each public school that sponsors or otherwise permits student organizations or clubs to designate a student-led youth violence prevention club to sustain awareness activities related to suicide prevention and violence prevention. Such student violence prevention club, including existing clubs, shall:#

1. (1)

   Be open to all members of the student body;#

2. (2)

   Engage in awareness activities related to youth suicide prevention, youth violence prevention, and social inclusion;#

3. (3)

   Foster opportunities for student leadership development; and#

4. (4)

   Have at least one administrator, teacher, or other school personnel serve as a faculty advisor.#

1. (1)

   By July 1, 2026, each local board of education or public school governing body shall develop and operate, or contract with a provider to develop and operate, and make available an anonymous reporting program.#

2. (2)

   Such anonymous reporting program shall, at a minimum:#

   1. (A)

      Be accessible by any person to report anonymously a dangerous, violent, threatening, harmful, or potentially harmful activity which occurs on, or is threatened to occur on, school property or which relates to a student or school personnel;#

   2. (B)

      Provide support 24 hours per day, seven days per week for anonymous reporting through, at a minimum, a mobile telephone application and a multilingual crisis center, which shall be staffed by individuals with evidence based counseling and crisis intervention training;#

   3. (C)

      Promptly forward reported information to the appropriate school based team;#

   4. (D)

      Support a coordinated response to an identified crisis by schools, local emergency 9-1-1 public safety answering points, and local law enforcement agencies when response by schools and law enforcement is to be reasonably expected;#

   5. (E)

      Require and certify the training of school based teams in each school to receive notice of any report submitted to the state-wide anonymous reporting program concerning the school, a student, or school personnel;#

   6. (F)

      Require and certify the training of local emergency 9-1-1 public safety answering point personnel to receive notice of any report submitted to the state-wide anonymous reporting program that requires response from a local law enforcement agency;#

   7. (G)

      Promote public awareness and education about the state-wide anonymous reporting program and its reporting methods, prior to its launch; and#

   8. (H)

      Comply with all federal and state laws.#

3. (3)

   The provisions of this subsection shall not apply to any local school system or public school that, as of July 1, 2025, has an operating anonymous reporting program that substantially complies with the requirements of paragraph (2) of this subsection.#

4. (4)

   This subsection shall not be construed to interfere with or impede any existing contract any local school system or public school has with a provider to operate an anonymous reporting program; provided, however, that, to the extent that the terms of such contract do not require such provider to operate an anonymous reporting program in substantial compliance with the requirements of paragraph (2) of this subsection, such contract terms shall not be renewed beyond such contract’s current expiration or termination date.#

Each local school system and public school shall update its school safety plan required by Code Section 20-2-1185 by including a behavioral threat assessment management plan as provided for in Code Section 20-2-1185.1.#

No person shall have a cause of action for any loss or damage caused by any act or omission resulting from the implementation of the provisions of this Code section or resulting from any training, or lack thereof, required by this Code section.#

The training, or lack thereof, required by the provisions of this Code section shall not be construed to impose any specific duty of care.#