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* Implement mental health programs inside schools
* Support students dealing with mental health challenges
* Districts provide a program to track students behaviors in order to prevent issues
* Make sure to follow legal and ethical procedures in order to keep all students safe
* All stakeholders need to work together to ensure students get the help they need.
* Refer students to outside sources when needed.
* Providing schools with a successful comprehensive counseling program will provide students with a safe school environment which leads to academic and social success.
* Districts need to provide mental health awareness training to all staff.

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Slide 12-Personal Connection to the Legal and Ethical Principles

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Slide 12-Personal Connection to the Legal and Ethical Principles

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As a future school counselor, it is important to know the legal and ethical principles regarding school safety. A school counselor's main role is to ensure students are developing academically, socially, and emotionally to the best of their ability. This is an impossible task when our students and staff do not feel safe inside our schools. The laws that protect our students pave a way for school counselors to successfully do their jobs. Studying the different types of laws that pertain to school safety helped me understand the importance of preventative mental health care in school. It also helped me to see the need for laws protecting our students while they are on campus.

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The American School Counselor Association. (2016). ASCA Ethical standards for school counselors. https://www.schoolcounselor.org/getmedia/44f30280-ffe8-4b41-9ad8-f15909c3d164/EthicalStandards.pdf

The ASCA Ethical Standards for School Counselors section A.6.a states that school counselors are required to "Collaborate with all relevant stakeholders, including
students, school faculty/staff and parents/guardians, when
students need assistance, including when early warning signs of student distress are identified" (2016).

The school counselor must collaborate with all stakeholders in the students life when he/she first identifies warning signs of distress. Following this standard could prevent future mental health issues and get help for the student before the problem progresses.

(ASCA, 2016)

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School Resource Officers
Royse City ISD will provide each campus with a police officer specifically trained to work in schools. "The purpose of the SRO program is to provide extra security at each of our campuses to create the safest environment for our students and staff. SROs build positive relationships and trust among our students. In addition, when students develop positive relationships with police officers, it oftentimes bridges the community's trust with law enforcement" (Royse City ISD, 2022).

https://www.rcisd.org/site/Default.aspx?PageID=889

(Royse City ISD, 2022)

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Slide 8-Original Source of Law-Judicial Law 

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Slide 8-Original Source of Law-Judicial Law 

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Federal Level:

Vernonia School District 47J v. Acton, 515 U.S. 646
* The U.S. Supreme Court stated that schools may conduct random drug testing on student athletes.
*These drug test lead to a safer school environment.

Link To Law:
http://users.soc.umn.edu/~samaha/cases/vernonia_sch_dist_v_acton.htm

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Slide 9-Original Source of Constitutional Law

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Slide 9-Original Source of Constitutional Law

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Federal Level:

U.S. Const. Amend. XIV
* The 14th amendment protects the privileges of citizens of the U.S.
* A person cannot be deprived of their life, freedom, or possessions.
* Creates a foundation for educational equality which leads to more positive environments for students.

Link To Law:
https://www.aclu.org/other/bill-rights-us-constitution

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Slide 7-Original Source of Law-Administrative Law

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Slide 7-Original Source of Law-Administrative Law

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Federal Level:

Every Student Succeeds Act, 2015
* upholds protections for disadvantaged students
* provides data that supports evidenced based  interventions
* Will effect positive change in lower performing schools through accountability and action plans.

Link To Law:
https://www.ed.gov/essa?src=ft

State Level:

19 TAC § 103.1207
* School districts have the right to refuse or eject a person who might be a potential harm.
* Districts are required to keep records on all incidents that occur.
* Person has the right to appeal this refusal of entry to the board of trustees and their decision is final and may only be appealed further through Texas Education Code, §7.057.

Link To Law:
https://texreg.sos.state.tx.us/public/readtac$ext.TacPage?sl=R&app=9&p_dir=&p_rloc=&p_tloc=&p_ploc=&pg=1&p_tac=&ti=19&pt=2&ch=103&rl=1207

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Slide 6-Original Source of Law-Statutory Law

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Slide 6-Original Source of Law-Statutory Law

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Federal Level:

20 U.S. Code § 5961
* Will help provide schools with tools needed in order to have drug and violence free schools throughout America.
* Will provide students with safe learning environments.
* May be cited as "Safe School Act of 1994".

Link To Law:
https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?path=/prelim@title20/chapter68/subchapter7&edition=prelim

State Level:

Texas Educ. Code § 38.253
* Inventory of Mental Health Resources
Texas Educ. Code § 38.254
* Plan for Mental Health
Texas Educ. Code § 38.202
* Establish a Task Force
Texas Educ. Code § 38.308
* Duties of Task Force

Districts are required to create a school environment that supports the mental health of students. This will be done through identifying needs, have a plan of action in place, and report progress monitoring to legislative.

Link To Law:
https://codes.findlaw.com/tx/education-code/#!tid=NBF5B53508D0F11E9A1C7D866C91EF308

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https://www.k12dive.com/news/waiting-for-the-next-thing-what-its-like-teaching-after-a-mass-shooting/624473/

Modan, N. (2022, May 26). 'waiting for the next thing': What it's like teaching after a mass shooting. K. from https://www.k12dive.com/news/waiting-for-the-next-thing-what-its-like-teaching-after-a-mass-shooting/624473/

* Educators are experiencing feelings of stress, nervousness, and fear after the recent school shooting in Uvale, Texas.
* Teachers are being left to deal with social and emotional health of students while carrying on with academic requirements.
* The repeated trauma educators and students' experience could cause a generation to become desensitized to this type of violence.
* School safety experts recommend educators to focus on strengthening student/teacher relationships and create opportunities for peer connections.
* Teachers and students are recently taking to social media to bring awareness to the lack of emotional support they are feeling after these tragedies occur.
* There has to be a better plan in these situations than the "duck and hide" plan.
* Teacher retention is becoming an issue across the United States due behavior issues and lack of support.

(Modan, N., 2022)

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Listen to the article 9 min

This audio is auto-generated. Please let us know if you have feedback.

"And no one is saying, 'Hey, I see that this is really hard. I see this is impossible.' It just feels like we have been asked to shoulder all of the burdens that come with being around young people."

Chanea Bond

English and literature teacher in Fort Worth, Texas

Correction: In a previous version of this article, Chanea Bond's name contained a spelling error.

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'Waiting for the next thing': What it's like teaching after a mass shooting

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Listen to the article 9 min This audio is auto-generated. Please let us know if you have feedback. "And no one is saying, 'Hey, I see that this is really hard. I see this is impossible.' It just feels like we have been asked to shoulder all of the burdens that come with being around young people."

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https://www.k12dive.com/news/4-ways-ed-leaders-can-prepare-for-funds-in-newly-enacted-gun-safety-bill/626125/

Merod, A. (2022, June 27). 4 ways ED leaders can prepare for funds in newly enacted gun safety bill. from https://www.k12dive.com/news/4-ways-ed-leaders-can-prepare-for-funds-in-newly-enacted-gun-safety-bill/626125/

* The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act will provide schools with the funds to increase mental health support, improve learning conditions, and provide safe schools. This act will provide $2 billion of federal money to school districts in order to:
* build programs that foster positive school climates.
* provide schools with more mental health providers.
* train school counselors, psychologist, and social workers on mental health.
* stop violence in schools.
* raise mental health awareness among adolescents and to connect students to needed services.
* provide students with safe before and after school programs.
* provide trauma care in the school setting.

4 recommended practices for educators:
*hire more mental health professionals
*choose safety practices carefully
*build community groups
*build mental health awareness by reaching out to state education agencies

(Merod, J., 2022)

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4 ways ed leaders can prepare for funds in newly enacted gun safety bill

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The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act provides over $2 billion to expand mental health services, improve learning conditions and enhance school safety.

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https://www.ascd.org/el/articles/refining-school-threat-assessments

Flaherty, L.T., Gansner, M., & Rappaport, N. (2019). Refining school threat assessments. Educational Leadership, 77(2), 14-20.

This article gives districts and educators inside that district a guide for keeping students safe inside schools. The authors focus on a preventative plan as well as an action plan. The safety assessment plan is a strategic process that helps educators when assessing and handling unsafe situations.  As you will see in the article, school counselors and the relationships they build with students play an important role within the safety assessment.

(Flaherty et al., 2019)

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I had the privilege of interviewing Emily Taylor, the school counselor at Miss May Vernon Elementary in Royse City, Texas. Mrs. Taylor and I discussed the importance of school safety and what role it plays in the job of a school counselor. Taylor stated that there are a lot of components that go into keeping students safe, starting with prevention. She spoke about this being the role that she is most involved in when it comes to her role as counselor. We spoke about how prevention starts with the mental and emotional health of students within the school. She provides a comprehensive school counseling program that promotes emotional and social skills that lead to safer schools. Mrs. Taylor achieves this through these best practices:
* providing character lessons to all students
* providing individual/small group counseling
* providing intervention when needed
* being an advocate for her students
I asked Mrs. Taylor if there were legal issues regarding this issue that effected her as a school counselor and she stated that the policies and requirements to promote mental health are always changing therefore it is important to keep up with current regulations. For example, at this moment policy makers are looking at providing districts with funds to be used for the benefit of student mental health. This money could mean schools add more mental health professionals and resources on each campus which would benefit the safety of all students.
(Emily Taylor, personal communication, 2022)

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I have been an elementary teacher for the last fourteen years. I am currently enrolled as a graduate student at Angelo State University where I will receive my master's degree in Professional School Counseling.

The topic of this Legal and Ethical Guide will be school safety and will be geared towards current and future school counselors.

I chose the topic of school safety because it is a topic that is all over the news right now. After the recent tragic shooting in Uvalde, Texas districts, communities, states, and the government are trying to find ways to ensure the safety of our students.