Alabama Administrative Code › Title 290 - ALABAMA STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION › Chapter 290-3-1 - PUBLIC SCHOOL GOVERNANCE › Section 290-3-1-.02 - Regulations Governing Public Schools

Current through Register Vol. 42, No. 9, June 28, 2024
(1) Safe School Equipment and Facilities,
			 Laboratories, and Policies.
(a) Safety
			 precautions must be implemented and adequate facilities must be provided for
			 implementations of programs prescribed by SDE Bulletin(s).
(b) Effective with the 1995-96 school year
			 and thereafter, local boards of education must:
1. Adopt a uniform policy allowing law
			 enforcement agencies to make periodic visits to local public schools to detect
			 the presence of illegal drugs, unannounced to anyone except the local
			 superintendent and building principal.
2. Adopt a uniform policy prohibiting the use
			 of tobacco products on school property and prescribing specific penalties for
			 violating this policy.
3. Adopt and
			 enforce a uniform policy prohibiting all persons, other than authorized law
			 enforcement personnel, from bringing or possessing any deadly weapon or
			 dangerous instrument on school property and prescribing specific penalties for
			 students and school personnel who violate this policy, notwithstanding any
			 criminal penalties which may also be imposed.
(c) Local school systems which operate
			 alternative educational programs shall provide a curriculum that stresses
			 skills in recognizing and managing anger, alternatives to aggression (verbal
			 and physical assault), strategies for developing selfcontrol and personal
			 responsibility, skills for getting along with others, success through academic
			 achievement, and skills for success in the workplace.
(d) All policies and actions implemented
			 under these mandatory regulations affecting students with disabilities must
			 comply with federal and state special education laws, regulations, and court
			 rulings.
(e) Unsafe School Choice
			 Option
1. Definitions: A transfer option
			 school (TOS) in the state of Alabama is one in which for three (3) consecutive
			 school years the school has expelled one percent (1%) of the student population
			 or five (5) students (whichever is greater) for violent criminal offenses
			 committed on school property during school hours or committed at
			 school-sponsored activities. The words "transfer option school," "TOS," or "TOS
			 school" shall mean a "persistently dangerous school" as those words are used in
			 the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001,
			 Public Law
			 107-110, Title IX, §9532(a) and (b). For the
			 purpose of this definition, a "violent criminal offense" shall mean homicide;
			 robbery; assault in the first and/or second degree; sexual battery (including
			 rape) as these offenses are defined in the Criminal Code of Alabama (see §
										13A-6-1, et. seq.,
Code of Ala. 1975
); and use of a handgun, firearm
			 component, explosive, knife, and other "unknown weapons" as defined by the
			 Student Incident Report (SIR).
2. A
			 student who becomes a victim of a violent criminal offense committed on school
			 property during school hours or at school-sponsored activities shall be given
			 an opportunity to transfer to a safe public school within the LEA. The LEA
			 shall notify the student's parent/ guardian of the right to transfer as soon as
			 practicable, not to exceed ten (10) calendar days from the date of a final
			 determination by the school board or its designee that a violent criminal
			 offense has occurred. All LEA transfer procedures will be observed. It shall be
			 the policy of the Alabama State Department of Education (SDE) to notify the LEA
			 annually when one or more of its schools have been identified as a transfer
			 option school. Each Superintendent or his or her designee shall orally notify
			 the Prevention and Support Services Section of the State Department of
			 Education within twenty-four (24) hours of the decision that a violent criminal
			 offense has occurred, followed by written confirmation. The State Department of
			 Education will assist the LEA in resolving all safety issues. At a minimum, an
			 LEA that has one or more schools identified as persistently dangerous must:
(i) Step 1. Notify parents/guardians of each
			 student attending the school within ten (10) working days that it has been
			 identified as a transfer option school and offer students the opportunity to
			 transfer to a safe public school within the LEA if another school is
			 available.
(ii) Step 2. Complete
			 the transfer for those students who opt to do so within 20 working
			 days.
(iii) Step 3. Develop a
			 corrective action plan to be submitted to the SDE for approval within 20
			 working days of the LEA's receipt of status.
(iv) Step 4. Implement the corrective action
			 plan.
Once a school has been identified as a transfer option school,
				it can return to safe status by (1) completing Steps One through Four above and
				(2) completing two consecutive years with less than one percent (1%) of the
				student population or five (5) students (whichever is greater) expelled for
				violent criminal offenses as defined in its policy.
(f) Seclusion and
			 Restraint for ALL Students.
1. Definitions.
(i) Chemical Restraint - Any medication that
			 is used to control violent physical behavior or restrict the student's freedom
			 of movement that is not a prescribed treatment for the student's medical or
			 psychiatric condition. Use of chemical restraint is prohibited in Alabama
			 public schools and educational programs.
(ii) Mechanical Restraint - The use of any
			 device or material attached to or adjacent to a student's body that is intended
			 to restrict the normal freedom of movement and which cannot be easily removed
			 by the student. The term does not include an adaptive or protective device
			 recommended by a physician or therapist when used as recommended by the
			 physician or therapist to promote normative body positioning and physical
			 functioning, and/or to prevent self injurious behavior. The term also does not
			 include seatbelts and other safety equipment when used to secure students
			 during transportation. Use of mechanical restraint is prohibited in Alabama
			 public schools and educational programs.
(iii) Physical Restraint - Direct physical
			 contact from an adult that prevents or significantly restricts a student's
			 movement. The term physical restraint does not include mechanical restraint or
			 chemical restraint. Additionally, physical restraint does not include:
			 providing limited physical contact and/or redirection to promote student safety
			 or prevent self-injurious behavior, providing physical guidance or prompting
			 when teaching a skill, redirecting attention, providing guidance to a location,
			 providing comfort, or providing limited physical contact as reasonably needed
			 to prevent imminent destruction to school or another person's
			 property.
(iv) Physical Restraint
			 that restricts the flow of air to the student's lungs- Any method (face-down,
			 face-up, or on your side) of physical restraint in which physical pressure is
			 applied to the student's body that restricts the flow of air into the student's
			 lungs. Use of this type of restraint is prohibited in Alabama public schools
			 and educational programs.
(v)
			 Seclusion - a procedure that isolates and confines the student in a separate,
			 locked area until he or she is no longer an immediate danger to himself/herself
			 or others. The seclusion occurs in a specifically constructed or designated
			 room or space that is physically isolated from common areas and from which the
			 student is physically prevented from leaving. Seclusion does not include
			 situations in which a staff member trained in the use of deescalation
			 techniques or restraint is physically present in the same unlocked room as the
			 student, time-out as defined in paragraph (1.)(vi) of this rule, in-school
			 suspension, detention, or a student-requested break in a different location in
			 the room or in a separate room. Use of seclusion is prohibited in Alabama
			 public schools and educational programs.
(vi) Time-out - A behavioral intervention in
			 which the student is temporarily removed from the learning activity. Time-out
			 is appropriately used when:
(I) The
			 non-locking setting used for time-out is appropriately lighted, ventilated, and
			 heated or cooled.
(II) The duration
			 of the time-out is reasonable in light of the purpose of the time-out and the
			 age of the child; however, each time-out should not exceed 45
			 minutes.
(III) The student is
			 reasonably monitored by an attending adult who is in reasonable physical
			 proximity of the student and has sight of the student while in
			 time-out.
(IV) The time-out space
			 is free of objects that unreasonably expose the student or others to
			 harm.
2.
			 Requirements.
(i) The use of seclusion is
			 prohibited in Alabama public schools and educational programs.
(ii) The use of any method of physical
			 restraint that restricts the flow of air to a student's lungs is prohibited in
			 Alabama public schools and educational programs.
(iii) The use of mechanical restraint is
			 prohibited in Alabama public schools and educational programs.
(iv) The use of chemical restraint is
			 prohibited in Alabama public schools and educational programs.
(v) The use of physical restraint is
			 prohibited in Alabama public schools and educational programs except in those
			 situations in which the student is an immediate danger to himself or others and
			 the student is not responsive to less intensive behavioral interventions
			 including verbal directives or other de-escalation techniques. Notwithstanding
			 the foregoing, physical restraint is prohibited in Alabama public schools and
			 educational programs when used as a form of discipline or punishment.
(vi) All physical restraint must be
			 immediately terminated when the student is no longer an immediate danger to
			 himself or others or if the student is observed to be in severe
			 distress.
(vii) Schools and
			 programs that use physical restraint in accordance with paragraph (2.)(v-xiv)
			 of this rule must develop and implement written policies to govern the use of
			 physical restraint. Parents must be provided information regarding the school
			 or program's policies governing the use of physical restraint. The written
			 policies must include the following provisions:
(I) Staff and faculty training on the use of
			 physical restraint and the school or programs policy and procedures,
(II) Written parental notification when
			 physical restraint is used to restrain their student within a reasonable time
			 not to exceed one school day from the use of restraint,
(III) The use of physical restraint to be
			 documented and a debriefing session held by staff or faculty participating in
			 or supervising the restraint for each student in each instance in which the
			 student is restrained,
(IV)
			 Procedures for the periodic review of the use of restraint and the
			 documentation described in paragraph (2.)(vii)(III),
(V) Procedures for reporting the use of
			 restraint and the documentation described in paragraph (2.)(vii)(III) and any
			 prohibited use of seclusion and chemical, mechanical, or physical restraint to
			 the local board of education annually,
(VI) The documentation described in paragraph
			 (2.)(vii)(III) (monthly summary reports) and any prohibited use of seclusion
			 and chemical, mechanical, or physical restraint is to be submitted to the
			 Alabama Department of Education annually, and
(VII) The written policies described in
			 paragraph (2.)(vii)(I and II) are to be included in each local education
			 agencies' code of conduct and/or the student handbook.
(viii) Schools and programs that use physical
			 restraints in accordance with paragraph (2.)(v-xiv) of this rule, must ensure
			 that staff and faculty are trained in the use of physical restraint. This
			 training shall be provided as a part of a program which addresses prevention
			 and de-escalation techniques as well as positive behavioral intervention
			 strategies. Schools and programs must maintain written or electronic
			 documentation on training provided and the list of participants in each
			 training. Records of such training must be made available to the Alabama
			 Department of Education or any member of the public upon request.
(ix) Nothing in this rule shall be construed
			 to interfere with a school system, school or program, or school or program
			 employee's authority to utilize time-out as defined in paragraph (1.)(vi) of
			 this rule or any other classroom management technique or approach, including a
			 student's removal from the classroom, that is not specifically addressed in
			 this rule.
(x) Nothing in this rule
			 modifies the rights of school personnel to use reasonable force as permitted
			 under the
Code of Ala. 1975
, §
											16-1-14 or modifies the rules and
			 procedures governing discipline under the
Code of Ala.
			 1975
, §
											16-28-12.
(xi) Nothing in this rule shall be construed
			 to prohibit a school system, school, or program employee from taking reasonable
			 action to diffuse or break up a student fight or altercation.
(xii) Nothing in this rule shall be construed
			 to prohibit a school system, school, or program employee from taking reasonable
			 action to obtain possession of a weapon or other dangerous objects on a student
			 or within the control of a student.
(xiii) Nothing in this rule shall be
			 construed to eliminate or restrict the ability of an employee of a school
			 system, school or program to use his or her discretion in the use of physical
			 restraint to protect students or others from imminent harm or bodily injury.
			 Nothing in this rule shall be construed to create a criminal offense or a
			 private cause of action against any local board of education or program or its
			 agents or employees.
(xiv) In some
			 instances in which a student is an immediate danger to himself or herself or
			 others, the school or program must determine when it becomes necessary to seek
			 assistance from law enforcement and/or emergency medical personnel. Nothing in
			 these rules shall be construed to interfere with the duties of law enforcement
			 or emergency medical personnel. Parents must be promptly informed when students
			 are removed from the school or program setting by emergency medical or law
			 enforcement personnel.