GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 1997

H	1 

HOUSE BILL 1154

Short Title:  Safe School Plans/Accountability.	(Public)

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Sponsors: Representatives Black; Aldridge, Alexander, Arnold, Baddour, Beall, Bonner, Bowie, Braswell, Brawley, Brown, Buchanan, Cole, Culpepper, Davis, Dedmon, Dickson, Earle, Easterling, Fox, Gamble, Goodwin, Grady, Hackney, Hiatt, H. Hunter, R. Hunter, Hurley, Insko, Jarrell, Jeffus, Luebke, Mercer, Michaux, Miller, Moore, Mosley, Nesbitt, Oldham, Owens, Preston, Ramsey, Redwine, Rogers, Russell, Saunders, Smith, Tolson, Wainwright, Warner, Warwick, Watson, Wilkins, and Yongue.

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Referred to:  Education, if favorable, Appropriations.

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April 24, 1997

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT TO PROVIDE FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF SAFE SCHOOL PLANS AND TO HOLD PRINCIPALS ACCOUNTABLE FOR THE SAFETY OF SCHOOLS.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
Section 1.  Chapter 115C of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new Article to read:
“ARTICLE 8C.
"Local Plans for Maintaining Safe and Orderly Schools.
"§ 115C-105.45.  Legislative findings.  The General Assembly finds that all schools should be safe, secure, and orderly.  If students are to aim for academic excellence, it is imperative that there is a climate of respect in every school and that every school is free of disruption, drugs, violence, and weapons. All schools must have plans, policies, and procedures for dealing with disorderly and disruptive behavior.  All schools and school units must have effective measures for assisting students who are at risk of academic failure or of engaging in disruptive and disorderly behavior.  
"§ 115C-105.46.  State Board of Education responsibilities.
In order to implement this Article, the State Board of Education:
(1)	Shall adopt guidelines for developing local plans under G.S. 115C-105.47;
(2)	Shall provide, in cooperation with the Board of Governors of The University of North Carolina, ongoing technical assistance to the local school administrative units in the development, implementation, and evaluation of their local plans under G.S. 115C-105.47;
(3)	May require a local board of education to withhold the salary of any administrator or other employee of local school administrative units who delays or refuses to prepare and implement local safe school plans in accordance with G.S. 115C-105.47;
(4)	May revoke the certificate of the superintendent, pursuant to G.S. 115C-274(c), for failure to fulfill the superintendent's duties under a local safe school plan.
"§ 115C-105.47.  Local plans.
(a)	Each local board of education shall develop a local plan designed to ensure that every school in the local school administrative unit is safe, secure, and orderly, that there is a  climate of respect in every school, and that appropriate personal conduct is a priority for all students and all public school personnel.  The board shall include parents, the school community, representatives of the community, and others in the development of this plan. The plan may be developed by or in conjunction with other committees.
(b)	Each plan shall include the following components:
(1)	Clear statements of the standard of behavior expected of students at different grade levels and of school personnel  and clear statements of the consequences that will result from one or more violations of those standards;
(2)	A clear statement of the responsibility of the superintendent for coordinating the adoption and the implementation of the plan, evaluating principals' performance regarding school safety, monitoring and evaluating the implementation of safety plans at the school-level, and coordinating with local law enforcement and court officials appropriate aspects of implementation of the plan.  The statement of responsibility shall provide appropriate disciplinary consequences that may occur if the superindendent fails to carry out these responsibilities, including a reprimand in the superintendent's personnel file and withholding of the superintendent's salary;
(3)	A clear statement of the responsibility of the school principal for restoring, if necessary, and maintaining a safe, secure, and orderly school environment and of the consequences that may occur if the principal fails to meet that responsibility.  The principal's duties shall include exhibiting appropriate leadership for school personnel and students, providing for alternative placements for students who are seriously disruptive, reporting all criminal acts pursuant to G.S. 115C-288(g), and providing appropriate disciplinary consequences for disruptive students.  The consequences to the principal that may occur shall include a reprimand in the principal's personnel file,  disciplinary proceedings under G.S. 115C-325 for principals who hold career status, and disciplinary proceedings under the principal's contract for principals who are under contract;
(4)	Clear statements of the roles of other administrators, teachers, and other school personnel in restoring, if necessary, and maintaining a safe, secure, and orderly school environment;
(5)	Procedures for identifying and serving the needs of students who are at risk of academic failure or of engaging in disruptive or disorderly behavior;
(6)	Mechanisms for assessing the needs of disruptive and disorderly students, providing them with services to assist them in achieving academically and in modifying their behavior, and removing them from the classroom or the school when necessary;
(7)	Measurable objectives for improving school safety and order;
(8)	Measures of the effectiveness of efforts to assist students at risk of academic failure or of engaging in disorderly or disruptive behavior;
(9)	Professional development clearly matched to the goals and objectives of the plan;
(10)	A plan to work effectively with local law enforcement officials and court officials to ensure that schools are safe and laws are enforced;
(11)	A plan to provide access to information to the school community, parents, and representatives of the local community on the ongoing implementation of the local plan, monitoring of the local plan, and the integration of educational and other services for students into the total school program;
(12)	The name and role description of the person responsible for implementation of the plan;
(13)	Direction to school improvement teams within the local school administrative unit to consider the special conditions at their schools and to incorporate into their local school improvement plans the appropriate components of the local plan for maintaining safe and orderly schools; and
(14)	Any other information the local board considers necessary or appropriate to implement this Article.
(c)	Upon its approval of the plan developed under this section, the local board shall submit the plan to the State Board of Education for its review and comments.  The local board shall consider the comments it receives from the State Board before it implements the plan.
(d)	A plan shall remain in effect for no more than three years.  The local board may amend the plan as often as it considers necessary or appropriate.  Any changes to a plan shall be submitted to the State Board of Education for its review and comments.  The local board shall consider the State Board's comments before it implements the changes."
Section 2.  There is appropriated from the General Fund to the State Board of Education the sum of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) for the 1997-98 fiscal year and the sum of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) for the 1998-99 fiscal year for the  development of guidelines for local safe school plans and for providing technical assistance to local school administrative units, in accordance with G.S. 115C-105.46, as enacted in Section 1 of this act.
Section 3.  This act becomes effective July 1, 1997.