BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 1857
Page 1
Date of Hearing: March 28, 2012
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Julia Brownley, Chair
AB 1857 (Fong) - As Introduced: February 22, 2012
SUBJECT : Pupils: healthy relationships promotion and teen
dating violence prevention
SUMMARY : Authorizes school districts to provide education
programs that promote healthy relationships and prevent teen
dating violence (TDV) through curricular, extracurricular, and
school climate improvement activities, as specified, and
requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI) to post
information about model curriculum programs on the California
Department of Education's (CDE) Internet Web site.
Specifically, this bill :
1)Expresses the intent of the Legislature that the SPI
encourages districts to provide, to pupils in grades 7-12,
inclusive, programs that promote healthy relationships and
prevent TDV.
2)States the intent of the Legislature that public schools
serving pupils in grades 7 to 12, inclusive, have access to
model education programs and materials designed to promote
healthy relationships and prevent TDV among pupils.
3)Authorizes a school district to provide education programs to
promote healthy relationships and to prevent TDV to pupils in
grades 7 to 12, inclusive, through curricular,
extracurricular, and school climate-improvement activities,
and authorizes school districts to work in partnership with
parents, caregivers, and youth, domestic violence, sexual
assault, or other community-based organizations as deemed
appropriate by the school district to provide these education
programs.
4)Requires school districts that choose to provide education
programs that promote healthy relationships and prevent TDV to
use research-based materials that are appropriate for pupils
of all races, genders, sexual orientations, gender identities,
and ethnic and cultural backgrounds, and for pupils with
disabilities.
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5)Requires the SPI to post on the CDE's Internet Web site
information about model education programs designed to promote
healthy relationships and prevent TDV among pupils.
6)Requires the information provided on the CDE's Internet Web
site to include, but not be limited to, all of the following:
a) The legal obligations of schools to respond to and
prevent TDV under existing federal and state law;
b) Model school TDV prevention policies; and,
c) Model school healthy relationships promotion and TDV
prevention curriculum and education programs.
7)Requires, in compiling the information to post on the CDE's
Internet Web site, the SPI to seek input from other public
agencies and private nonprofit organizations with experience
providing education programs that promote healthy
relationships and prevent TDV, and authorizes the SPI to
include materials developed by those agencies or organizations
that the SPI deems appropriate on the CDE's Internet Web site.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Authorizes schools to offer health education, and defines
"comprehensive health education programs" to include
activities designed to ensure that, among other things, pupils
will receive instruction to aid them in making decisions in
matters of personal, family, and community health.
2)Establishes the Carl Washington School Safety and Violence
Prevention Act and allows districts to, among other things,
provide age-appropriate instruction in domestic violence
prevention, dating violence prevention, and interpersonal
violence prevention.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee, on an identical measure, General Fund /Proposition 98
cost pressure of at least $450,000, to school districts and
county offices of education to provide a teen dating violence
education program to pupils in grades 7-12, as specified. In
2009-10, there were 3 million students enrolled in grades 7-12.
General Fund administrative costs to CDE, likely less than
$75,000, to provide information regarding teen dating violence
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and post this information on its Internet website, as specified.
COMMENTS : This bill authorizes school districts to provide
education programs in grades 7-12, inclusive, to promote healthy
relationships and to prevent TDV. It authorizes these programs
to be provided through curricular, extracurricular, and school
climate-improvement activities, and authorizes school districts
to partner with parents, caregivers, and youth, domestic
violence, sexual assault, or other appropriate community-based
organizations to provide these programs. Additionally, this
bill requires school districts that choose to provide such
education programs, to use research-based materials that are
appropriate for pupils of all races, genders, sexual
orientations, gender identities, and ethnic and cultural
backgrounds, and for pupils with disabilities. This bill does
not require school districts to provide this type of
instruction; and since the Education Code is permissive, an
argument can be made that districts can already provide this
type of instruction and/or activities and that legislation is
not necessary to provide such authorization to school districts.
However, the bill does establish basic parameters and guidance
to ensure the programs are research-based, appropriate and
accessible for all pupils, but leaves it up to the districts to
determine, if and how healthy relationships education and TDV
prevention programs should be provided.
The problem: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(CDC) finds that about one in five women and nearly one in seven
men who ever experienced rape, physical violence, and/or
stalking by an intimate partner, first experienced some form of
partner violence between 11 and 17 years of age; and according
to the author, a substantial number of TDV incidents occur in
school buildings and on school grounds. A 2009 nationwide
survey of the CDC further finds that, 9.8% of high school
students reported being hit, slapped, or physically hurt on
purpose by their boyfriend or girlfriend in the 12 months prior
to the survey. Unhealthy, abusive or violent relationships can
have short term and long term negative effects or consequences
on student victims. According to the CDC, "Teens who are
victims are more likely to be depressed and do poorly in school.
They may engage in unhealthy behaviors, like using drugs and
alcohol, and are more likely to have eating disorders. Some
teens even think about or attempt suicide." To the extent that
TDV affects pupil's academic achievement and threatens school
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safety, an argument could be made that schools have a
responsibility to provide a safe learning environment for all
pupils and that might include providing education on how to
prevent TDV.
In 2008, the California Attorney General's Office published, "A
Guide to Addressing Teen Dating and Sexual Violence in a School
Setting," encouraging schools to integrate TDV prevention
education into existing curricula. The document notes, "It is
important to remember that violence prevention education can and
should be implemented not at the expense of academic
achievement, but as a means to ensuring it. Schools have the
opportunity to integrate teen dating violence prevention
education into existing school curricula in many ways. Education
can be embedded in health or life skills classes and in other
academic electives such as psychology, peer counseling, and
sociology."
Healthy relationships and TDV prevention education : A policy
guide produced by the Family Violence Prevention Fund and Break
the Cycle entitled, "A School Policy to Increase Student Safety:
Promote Healthy Relationships and Prevent Teen Dating Violence
Through Improved School Climate," points out that TDV prevention
education should address two core objectives: promoting healthy
teen relationships, and preventing and responding to teen dating
abuse. Education on promoting healthy teen relationships, may
include, but is not limited to:
1) Identifying characteristics of healthy and caring
relationships and how to promote them;
2) Modeling respectful behavior in daily life;
3) Recognizing gender equity and gender norms and their
effects on young people's ability to make and implement
decisions regarding their relationships;
4) Learning communication and other skills essential to
healthy relationships; and
5) Providing opportunities for youth-developed and
youth-led strategies to promote positive relationship
norms.
This bill does not prescribe specific programs for districts to
use nor does it dictate what the programs should include.
Instead, this bill authorizes school districts to partner with
community-based organizations to provide instruction and
activities to promote healthy relationships and prevent TDV.
AB 1857
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Additionally, this bill requires the SPI to provide information
via the CDE's website on model programs and requires the SPI to
seek input from public agencies and nonprofit organizations with
experience in providing such educational programs. The author
states that for over 15 years, using federal and state funds for
domestic violence intervention/prevention and private grants,
local domestic violence and sexual assault agencies have
partnered with schools to provide TDV prevention education. A
school can make a request to a local domestic violence
prevention organization to provide education sessions to fit the
school's needs and available time. The education sessions can
be provided during classes such as health, English, history,
social studies, civics and others. In consideration of the
reduction in resources that school districts have experienced in
recent years, partnerships with local domestic violence or other
appropriate community-based organizations may provide
opportunities for expanding access to violence prevention
education. An argument could be made that authorizing
legislation could help encourage the inclusion of TDV prevention
education within school activities in schools where these
activities or education are currently lacking.
Suggested amendments : A related bill scheduled to be heard in
this Committee today, AB 1880 (Lara), amongst its various
provisions, replaces in the Education Code the term "teen dating
violence" with "dating abuse." According to the sponsors of AB
1880, the intent is to use a term that explicitly encompasses
the various types of harmful abuse and does not limit the
definition to sexual and physical violence. Dating abuse is
seen as a broader term that can include verbal and emotional
abuse as well as physical and sexual violence. Committee
suggested amendments to AB 1880 will change the term "dating
abuse" to "teen dating abuse" so as to maintain the focus on the
target population. For purposes of consistency, it may be
prudent to align the terminology in both bills. Staff
recommends an amendment to replace the term "teen dating
violence" with "teen dating abuse" throughout the bill.
Related legislation : AB 1880 (Lara) replaces the term "teen
dating violence" in existing law with "dating abuse,"
establishes a definition for "dating abuse," requires middle
schools and high schools to establish and implement a policy to
prevent and respond to dating abuse, and requires the annual
notification to parents and guardians to include the dating
abuse policy. AB 1880 is pending in this Committee and is
AB 1857
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scheduled to be heard today.
Prior legislation : AB 1373 (Fong) of 2011, an identical
measure, authorizes school districts to provide education
programs that promote healthy relationships and prevent TDV
through curricular, extracurricular, and school climate
improvement activities, as specified, and requires the SPI to
post information about model curriculum programs on the CDE's
Internet Web site. AB 1373 was held in the Assembly
Appropriations Committee.
SB 13 (Correa) of 2011 establishes the Teen Dating Violence
Prevention Education Act; authorizes school districts to provide
TDV prevention education as part of sexual health education
programs; and requires districts that choose to implement such
programs to follow specific guidelines and to provide parental
notification of such programs and an opportunity for parents to
opt their children out of this instruction. Requires the
inclusion of TDV prevention education in the heath curriculum
framework, and codifies several definitions. SB 13 failed in
the Senate Education Committee.
SB 1300 (Correa) of 2010 establishes the Teen Dating Violence
Prevention Education Act, authorizes school districts to provide
TDV prevention education as part of sexual health education
programs, and requires districts that choose to implement such
programs to follow specific guidelines and to provide parental
notification of such programs and an opportunity for parents to
opt their children out of this instruction. Requires the
inclusion of TDV prevention education in the heath curriculum
framework, and codifies several definitions relative to TDV. AB
1300 failed passage in the Assembly Education Committee.
AB 589 (Levine) of 2007 requires school districts to develop
policies, procedures, and training for school employees
regarding the prevention of teen dating violence and sexual
violence. AB 589 was held in the Assembly Appropriations
Committee.
AB 506 (Monta�ez) of 2005 requires each school district to
establish a policy and protocol, as specified, for dealing with
incidents of teen dating violence involving middle school and
high school students. AB 506 was held in the Assembly
Appropriations Committee.
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AB 558 (Jackson) of 2000 authorizes age-appropriate instruction
in domestic violence prevention in grades 1-12 and requires the
California Department of Education to identify and distribute
information and a model curriculum to school districts and
county offices of education. AB 558 was vetoed by Governor
Davis, with the following veto message:
"While I am supportive of efforts to reduce domestic violence, I
cannot support this bill for the following reasons. Existing law
already requires instruction in the principles and practices of
individual, family, and community health. In addition, if
districts chose to provide such instruction this bill could
result in redirections of up to $7 million away from core
academic programs. Any such issues should be addressed through
the annual Budget Act. Finally, this bill contains no provision
for parents to exempt their children from this instruction if
they so choose."
AB 578 (Honda) of 2000 requires the Superintendent of Public
Instruction to develop training standards for teachers on
domestic violence and sexual assault recognition and appropriate
prevention responses, and stipulates that the use of these
standards as optional for school districts. AB 578 was held in
the Senate Appropriations Committee.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees
(AFSCME), AFL-CIO
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Marisol Avi�a / ED. / (916) 319-2087