BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 580
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Date of Hearing: April 29, 2015
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Patrick O'Donnell, Chair
AB 580
(O'Donnell) - As Amended April 6, 2015
SUBJECT: School employees: in-service training: early
identification of pupil mental health issues
SUMMARY: Requires each school to provide annual training to
teachers and classified staff on the early identification of
student mental health problems, including protocols for
referrals. Specifically, this bill:
1)Makes findings and declarations relative to the importance of
mental health to student success and the need for educator
training on the early identification of student mental health
issues.
2)Requires that, within the first six weeks of every school
year, as part of a regularly scheduled staff meeting, each
school district, county office of education, and charter
school provide in-service training to teachers of grades K-12
and to classified staff who have regular personal contact with
students, on the early identification of pupil mental health
issues, including referral protocols.
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3)States that this training may instead be provided in an online
format outside of a regularly scheduled staff meeting.
4)Encourages school districts, county offices of education, and
charter schools to provide this training as part of a larger
initiative aimed at improving mental health outcomes for
students.
5)Encourages the use of existing funds from other state and
federal sources, as appropriate, to meet this requirement.
6)States that nothing in this act may be construed as:
a) requiring school personnel to identify, assess,
diagnose, or treat pupil mental health issues
b) authorizing or encouraging school personnel to act
outside of the authority granted by their credential or
license.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Makes AB 114 (Committee on Budget), Chapter 43, Statutes of
2011, school districts the "responsible agency" for mental
health services for students with individualized education
programs (IEPs).
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2)Through initiative statute in 2004 (Proposition 63),
establishes the California Mental Health Services Act (MHSA)
which provides for local mental health services, including
prevention and early intervention, innovative projects, Full
Service Partnerships, peer support services, housing, and
other mental health treatment services.
3)Specifies, under federal law, that schools have the
responsibility for educationally related mental health
services. Requires local educational agencies (LEAs) to
update the Individualized Education Plan of each child that
will experience a change in services.
4)Requires, under federal law, the provision of a free,
appropriate public education to all disabled students in the
least restrictive environment.
FISCAL EFFECT: This bill has been keyed as a state-mandated
local program by the Office of Legislative Counsel.
COMMENTS:
Need for the bill. The author states, "An estimated at 20% of
children have mental health issues, and 80% of those are
undiagnosed and untreated. Mental health challenges
disproportionately affect students who face stressors such as
violence, trauma, and poverty. Research demonstrates that early
detection and treatment of mental illness improves students'
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attendance, behavior, and academic achievement.
While lack of attention to students' mental health has
significant effects on school achievement, research has shown
that teachers lack the training needed for supporting children's
mental health needs. In surveys, teachers cite disruptive
behavior and their lack of information and training in mental
health issues as major barriers to instruction.
With the last few years of training and capacity building done
by the California County Superintendents Educational Services
Association' Student Mental Health Initiative, the state is
ideally positioned to provide this training. AB 580 will equip
teachers and other school staff with the tools they need to
support the early identification of mental health problems among
their students, thereby improving academic and health outcomes."
California Mental Health Services Agency (CalMHSA) K-12
programs. The California Mental Health Services Authority
(CalMHSA) is a California Joint Powers Authority, funded by
Proposition 63 (Mental Health Services Act) dollars from 49
member counties. CalMHSA has funded twenty-six different
projects that are grouped into three categories: Suicide
Prevention; Stigma and Discrimination Reduction; and Student
Mental Health. The CalMHSA programs in student mental health
are described below.
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Student Mental Health Policy Workgroup. In 2012, the
Superintendent of Public Instruction and CalMHSA convened a
Student Mental Health Policy Workgroup to develop policy
recommendations that promote early identification, referral,
coordination, and access to quality mental health services for
students. The Student Mental Health Policy Workgroup is
comprised of teachers, school counselors, school social workers,
school psychologists, school nurses, and school administrators,
as well as state and county mental health professionals.
The Workgroup has noted the connection between mental wellness
and academic achievement, attendance, and behavior. It has also
noted that California's educators acknowledge their lack of
preparedness in addressing pupil mental health challenges as a
major barrier to instruction. The Workgroup found that "most
educators and staff lack training to identify pupils who may be
in need of support, make referrals, and, as appropriate, to help
pupils overcome or manage mental health barriers and succeed in
school." They also noted that mental health challenges
disproportionately impact students who face stressors such as
violence, trauma, and poverty.
This year the Workgroup issued a recommendation calling for
increased training of school personnel, in order to promote
earlier identification and intervention to meet the needs of
California's pupils.
Regional K-12 Student Mental Health training through CCSESA.
Since 2011, CalMHSA has funded a Student Mental Health
Initiative through the California County Superintendents
Educational Services Association (CCSESA). This project is
designed to build capacity and cross-system collaboration to
develop and sustain school-based mental health programs
addressing prevention and early identification strategies.
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One of the goals of this project is the training of school
staff. Since 2011 this project has used a train-the-trainer
model to provide educators with tools for the early
identification and prevention of mental health problems. Two
thousand trainings have been conducted, with over 140,000
thousand participants. The estimated total reach of this
project is two million students, or one third of the state's
enrollment.
The major program topics were school climate and culture,
bullying prevention, mental health and wellness, youth
development. Participants included school staff, students,
parents, mental health staff and providers, community
organizations, and law enforcement. According to evaluation
responses, these trainings have significantly increased
educators' awareness of mental health issues and knowledge of
referral processes. CCSESA estimates that this program cost an
average of $2.25 per student per year. Since 2014 this project
has declined significantly in size as a result of decreased
funding.
CDE TETRIS project. CalMHSA has also funded mental health
training through the CDE Training Educators through Recognition
and Identification Strategies (TETRIS) Eliminating Barriers to
Learning (EBL) project. This statewide K-12 Mental Health
Program promotes school and student wellness and academic
achievement by increasing capacity for all school and
administrative staff to identify students who are experiencing
mental health issues early on. To accomplish this goal, the CDE
subcontracted with the Placer County Office of Education to
deliver eleven TETRIS EBL workshops annually through 2019. The
curriculum used for the TETRIS EBL workshops is one developed by
the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Substance
Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).
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Kognito Interactive Online Simulation Program is also used as an
outside source to help support school staff in initiating
difficult conversations with students around the subject of
mental health and suicidal ideation.
SAMHSA "Now is the Time" pilot projects. Following the school
shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary in Connecticut in December
2012, President Obama established a grant program to increase
students' access to mental health services. California received
$9.7 million from the "Now is the Time Project Advancing
Wellness and Resilience in Education" (NITT AWARE) grant last
fall. According to the CDE, the grant has two components.
Three local educational agencies (LEAs), Garden Grove Unified
School District, Santa Rosa City Schools, and the San Diego
County Office of Education, were selected to participate in the
first component of the grant. The LEAs will establish a process
for referring and connecting children to mental health services.
If successful, the models developed by these LEAs can be shared
statewide. The second component utilizes a training program
called Youth Mental Health First Aid. The training teaches
school staff how to help youth experiencing mental health or
addictions challenges, or are in crisis.
What kind of training would be used in these in-services?
Several training programs are available for low or no cost to
school districts. Youth Mental Health First Aid, used in the
CCSESA and SAMHSA trainings, is a course which introduces common
mental health challenges for youth, reviews typical adolescent
development, and teaches a 5-step action plan for how to help
young people in both crisis and non-crisis situations. Topics
covered include anxiety, depression, substance use, disorders in
which psychosis may occur, disruptive behavior disorders, and
eating disorders.
In addition, as noted above, TETRIS EBL training is available at
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no charge from the CDE through 2019, and is offered in part in
an online simulation format (At Risk in PK-12, Kognito). TETRIS
EBL provides teachers and school staff with tools to identify,
recognize, refer, and support students with mental health needs
in a respectful and culturally responsive manner. Training
focuses on the early identification of mental health issues and
effective classroom and school wide strategies. Participants
gain tools to break down barriers affecting behaviors that can
interfere with academic performance and attendance.
Recommended amendments. Staff recommends that the bill be
amended to 1) state that, for classified employees, the training
may occur at a time other than a staff meeting, but that in all
cases will occur during regular work hours, 2) replace "during
the first six weeks of the school year" to "the beginning of the
school year" and change "staff meeting" to "staff meeting or
meetings," and 3) require that the training is provided to all
certificated staff.
Related legislation. AB 1133 (Achadjian) of this Session would
establish a 4-year pilot program, the School-Based Early Mental
Health Intervention and Prevention Services Support Program, to
provide outreach, free regional training, and technical
assistance for local educational agencies in providing mental
health services at schoolsites.
AB 1025 (Thurmond) of this Session would require the CDE to
establish additional pilot programs to encourage inclusive
practices that integrate mental health, special education, and
school climate interventions following a multi-tiered framework.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
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Support
California School Employees Association
California Medical Association
LIUNA Local 777
Opposition
California Right to Life Committee
Analysis Prepared by:Tanya Lieberman / ED. / (916) 319-2087
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