This document addresses professional development incorporating trauma-informed practices.

This page addresses school-based mental health promotion.

(a) Each school district shall have a district improvement plan that is developed, evaluated, and revised annually, in accordance with district policy, by the superintendent with the assistance of the district-level committee established under Section 11.251. The purpose of the district improvement plan is to guide district and campus staff in the improvement of student performance for all student groups in order to attain state Standard in respect to the achievement indicators adopted under Section 39.053(c). The district improvement plan must include provisions for: (10) the trauma-informed care policy required under Section 38.036.

(d) [As amended by Acts 2019, 86th Leg., ch. 464 (S.B. 11)] Continuing education requirements for a classroom teacher must provide that not more than 25 percent of the training required every five years include instruction regarding: (6) how grief and trauma affect student learning and behavior and how evidence-based, grief-informed, and trauma-informed strategies support the academic success of students affected by grief and trauma. [...] (d) [As amended by Acts 2019, 86th Leg., ch. 352 (H.B. 18)] Continuing education requirements for a classroom teacher must provide that at least 25 percent of the training required every five years include instruction regarding: (6) how mental health conditions, including grief and trauma, affect student learning and behavior and how evidence-based, grief-informed, and trauma-informed strategies support the academic success of students affected by grief and trauma. [...] (g) The board shall adopt rules that allow an educator to fulfill continuing education requirements by participating in an evidence-based mental health first aid training program or an evidence-based grief-informed and trauma-informed care program. The rules adopted under this subsection must allow an educator to complete a program described by this subsection and receive credit toward continuing education requirements for twice the number of hours of instruction provided under that program, not to exceed 16 hours. The program must be offered through a classroom instruction format that requires in-person attendance.

(d) The staff development: (3) must include training on: (B) recognizing signs of mental health conditions and substance abuse.

The agency, in coordination with the Health and Human Services Commission, shall establish and maintain an Internet website to provide resources for school district or open-enrollment charter school employees regarding working with students with mental health conditions or who engage in substance abuse. The agency must include on the Internet website information about: (1) grief-informed and trauma-informed practices; (2) building skills related to managing emotions, establishing and maintaining positive relationships, and responsible decision-making; (3) positive behavior interventions and supports; and (4) a safe and supportive school climate.

(a) Each school district and open-enrollment charter school may develop and implement a program, in consultation with campus behavior coordinators employed by the district or school and representatives of a regional education service center, that provides a disciplinary alternative for a student enrolled in a grade level below grade three who engages in conduct described by Section 37.005(a) and is not subject to Section 37.005(c). The program must:

• (1) be age-appropriate and research-based;

• (2) provide models for positive behavior;

• (3) promote a positive school environment;

• (4) provide alternative disciplinary courses of action that do not rely on the use of in-school suspension, out-of-school suspension, or placement in a disciplinary alternative education program to manage student behavior; and

• (5) provide behavior management strategies, including:

• (A) positive behavioral intervention and support;

• (B) trauma-informed practices;

• (C) social and emotional learning;

• (D) a referral for services, as necessary; and

• (E) restorative practices.

(b) Each school district and open-enrollment charter school may annually conduct training for staff employed by the district or school on the program adopted under Subsection (a).

(f) A school district shall include in its multihazard emergency operations plan: (6) provisions for supporting the psychological safety of students, district personnel, and the community during the response and recovery phase following a disaster or emergency situation that: (A) are aligned with best practice-based programs and research-based practices recommended under Section 161.325, Health and Safety Code; (B) include strategies for ensuring any required professional development training for suicide prevention and grief-informed and trauma-informed care is provided to appropriate school personnel; (C) include training on integrating psychological safety and suicide prevention strategies into the district’s plan, such as psychological first aid for schools training, from an approved list of recommended training established by the commissioner and Texas School Safety Center for: (i) members of the district’s school safety and security committee under Section 37.109; (ii) district school counselors and mental health professionals; and (iii) educators and other district personnel as determined by the district; (D) include strategies and procedures for integrating and supporting physical and psychological safety that align with the provisions described by Subdivision (2); and (E) implement trauma-informed policies.

(a) Each school district shall adopt and implement a policy requiring the integration of trauma-informed practices in each school environment. A district must include the policy in the district improvement plan required under Section 11.252. (b) A policy required by this section must address: (1) using resources developed by the agency, methods for: (A) increasing staff and parent awareness of trauma-informed care; and (B) implementation of trauma-informed practices and care by district and campus staff; and (2) available counseling options for students affected by trauma or grief. (c) The methods under Subsection (b)(1) for increasing awareness and implementation of trauma-informed care must include training as provided by this subsection. The training must be provided: (1) through a program selected from the list of recommended best practice-based programs and research-based practices established under Section 161.325, Health and Safety Code; (2) as part of any new employee orientation for all new school district educators; and (3) to existing school district educators on a schedule adopted by the agency by rule that requires educators to be trained at intervals necessary to keep educators informed of developments in the field. (d) For any training under Subsection (c), each school district shall maintain records that include the name of each district staff member who participated in the training. (e) Each school district shall report annually to the agency the following information for the district as a whole and for each school campus: (1) the number of teachers, principals, and counselors employed by the district who have completed training under this section; and (2) the total number of teachers, principals, and counselors employed by the district. (f) If a school district determines that the district does not have sufficient resources to provide the training required under Subsection (c), the district may partner with a community mental health organization to provide training that meets the requirements of Subsection (c) at no cost to the district. (g) The commissioner shall adopt rules as necessary to administer this section.

(a) The agency, in coordination with the Health and Human Services Commission and regional education service centers, shall provide and annually update a list of recommended best practice-based programs and research-based practices in the areas specified under Subsection (c) for implementation in public elementary, junior high, middle, and high schools within the general education setting. (b) Each school district may select from the list provided under Subsection (a) a program or programs appropriate for implementation in the district. (c) The list provided under Subsection (a) must include programs and practices in the following areas: (5) grief-informed and trauma-informed practices.