BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 580
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB
580 (O'Donnell)
As Amended May 28, 2015
Majority vote
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|Committee |Votes |Ayes |Noes |
| | | | |
| | | | |
|----------------+------+--------------------+----------------------|
|Education |6-0 |O'Donnell, Chávez, | |
| | |Kim, Santiago, | |
| | |Thurmond, Weber | |
| | | | |
|----------------+------+--------------------+----------------------|
|Appropriations |15-0 |Gomez, Bigelow, | |
| | |Bonta, Calderon, | |
| | |Chang, Daly, | |
| | |Eggman, Gallagher, | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | |Eduardo Garcia, | |
| | |Gordon, Holden, | |
| | |Quirk, Rendon, | |
| | |Weber, Wood | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY: Requires the California Department of Education (CDE)
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and a county office of education to develop a model protocol for
the referral of students with mental health challenges.
Specifically, this bill:
1)Makes findings and declarations relative to the importance of
mental health to student success and the need for a model
referral protocol for addressing student mental health concerns.
2)Requires the CDE and a designated county office of education
selected by the CDE which has experience in administering a
statewide student mental health initiative to, in consultation
with local educational agencies, current classroom teachers, and
current schoolsite classified staff, develop a model referral
protocol for addressing student mental health concerns.
3)Requires that the protocol:
a) Address the referral of students for mental health
concerns by school staff and allows it, at the discretion of
the CDE and the designated county office of education,
include the continuum from prevention to identification to
referral for services.
b) Reflect a multi-tiered systems of support process.
c) Be adaptable to varied local service arrangements for
mental health services.
d) Reflect evidence-based and culturally appropriate
approaches to student mental health referral.
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e) Address the inclusion of parents and guardians in the
referral process.
f) Be written to ensure clarity and ease of use by
certificated and classified school site employees.
g) Reflect differentiated referral processes for students
with disabilities and other populations for whom the referral
process may be distinct.
h) Be consistent with the state level activities conducted by
the Department in the administration of federally funded
mental health programs.
1)Encourages the CDE and the designated county office of education
to consult with the California Mental Health Services Authority,
representatives of county mental health programs, and the
Student Mental Health Policy Workgroup in the development of the
protocol.
2)Requires the CDE to post the model referral protocol on its
website for use by local educational agencies and charter
schools.
3)Makes implementation of these requirements subject to funds
being appropriated for this purpose to either the CDE or the
designated county office of education in the annual Budget Act
or other legislation, or other state, federal, or private funds
being allocated for this purpose.
4)Requires that the model referral protocol be completed and made
available within one year of the date funds are received to
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implement the act.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Makes AB 114 (Budget Committee), Chapter 43, Statutes of 2011,
school districts the "responsible agency" for mental health
services for students with individualized education programs
(IEPs).
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: According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee, one-time costs in the range of $135,000 to $145,000 for
the CDE and a designated county office of education to jointly
develop a model referral protocol for addressing pupil mental
health concerns.
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COMMENTS:
Need for this 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'
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 information needed for supporting children's
mental health needs. In surveys, teachers cite disruptive
behavior and their lack of information 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's Student Mental Health Initiative, the state is
ideally positioned to provide guidance to teachers and other
school site staff to provide this support. 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."
Varied student mental health initiatives. The state is engaged in
a number of initiatives aimed at improving support for student
mental health needs. Among them are:
Student Mental Health Policy Workgroup. In 2012, the
Superintendent of Public Instruction and CalMHSA convened a
Student Mental Health Policy Workgroup (Workgroup) to develop
policy recommendations that promote early identification,
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referral, coordination, and access to quality mental health
services for students. The 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.
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.
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 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
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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 11 TETRIS EBL
workshops annually through 2019. The curriculum used for the
TETRIS EBL workshops is one developed by the United States
Department of Health and Human Services' Substance Abuse and
Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). 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
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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.
Analysis Prepared by:
Tanya Lieberman / ED. / (916) 319-2087 FN:
0000865