January 2024 Safety Newsletter
KEEPING YOU IN THE KNOW
Legal Disclaimer
NEW Region 10 Session Offering!
The School Safety Blueprint Training offers practical strategies for dealing with dangerous situations, reducing risks associated with targeted school violence, and meeting the mental health needs of students. This one-day interactive workshop will guide participants navigating the complex web of federal and state laws that apply in response to dangerous situations created by students with disabilities and students who may be suspected of having a disability, as well as legally defensible strategies for responding to victims of school violence, and practical guidance for serving students who may engage in targeted violence.
Topics covered include:
- District liability and personal liability in the context of student violence
- Threat assessment teams and the duty to warn
- Confidentiality
- Disciplinary options & alternatives to discipline under IDEA
- Residential treatment centers & continuum of placement
- Expedited hearings
- Law enforcement and the community
- Risk management when threats are identified
Target Audience: Texas school leaders including administrators, counselors and mental health professionals, members of the board of trustees, and School Resource Officers (SROs).
One resource book per campus or central office will be provided.
TxSSC: Updated School Safety and Security Audit Checklist
- The Texas School Safety Center has updated the K-12 Facility Audit Checklist to include the latest mandates and best practices. Download the K-12 School Facility Audit Checklist (Note: Clicking the link downloads an Excel file.) Learn More About the Safety and Security Audit Process
TxSSC: New Utilities Toolkit
The Utilities Toolkit provides resources to assist districts when creating a Utilities Annex to the district’s multi-hazard emergency operations plan. The Utilities Annex establishes the policies and procedures under which the district will operate if an incident impacts a district by disrupting utilities. This toolkit includes a Utilities Annex Template and completion guide that will assist districts with completing the annex. This toolkit also includes a list of available trainings and additional resources from various agencies all intended to provide districts with additional support while creating the Utilities Annex. Visit the Toolkit
Standards for Permissible Electronic Devices and Software Applications
House Bill 18 (88R) established Texas Education Code, Section §32.1021 and requires the TEA to provide these Standards for Electronic Devices and Software Applications with which school districts or open-enrollment charter schools are expected to comply. TAA, Released November 30, 2023
Approved List: Operation & Instructional Time Waivers for School Safety Training
As mandated by TEC 25.0815, Operation and Instructional Time Waivers for School Safety Training, the Texas School Safety Center (TxSSC) has developed a list of approved school safety training courses. The commissioner shall provide a waiver allowing for fewer minutes of operation and instructional time than required under Section 25.081(a) for a school district that requires each educator employed by the district to attend an approved school safety training course. See Here
How to update information in AskTED
Districts: Please submit the liaison information to your district’s AskTED administrator. Include the liaison’s name, email address and phone number.
Charter Schools: Please submit the liaison information to the TEA Charter School Division directly via (512) 463-9575 or CharterSchools@tea.texas.gov. Make sure you include the liaison’s name, email address, and phone number. This information will be added to the AskTED directory for you.
FY23 School Safety Allotment Data Collection
The 86th Legislature passed Senate Bill (SB) 11, creating an annual school safety allotment to help fund equipment, programs and training related to school safety and security. The 87th Legislature enacted House Bill (HB) 1525 which included a provision requiring TEA to publish an annual report regarding the programs, personnel, resources, and other purposes for which those funds are used by LEAs.
FY 2023 School Safety Allotment data will be collected by mandatory survey beginning Friday, January 5, 2024, and concluding Monday, February 12, 2024. Superintendents will receive the Qualtrics survey via email Friday, January 5, 2024.
To successfully complete the survey, LEAs should gather and collect information related to all expenditures from their school safety allotment for the 2023 fiscal year. When completing the survey, LEAs should only account for funds allotted. LEAs should complete the survey by 11:59 p.m. on Monday, February 12, 2024. Prior to submission, please review the requested information for the FY 2023 School Safety Allotment data collection.
For additional information, please see Texas Education Code, Section 48.115.
School Safety Funding
SAFE GRANT - CYCLE 1
Cycle 1: IF A DISTRICT WAS NOTIFIED THEY RECEIVED CYCLE 1 FUNDS - THEY MUST NOW COMPLETE THE CYCLE 1 APPLICATION. 2024 TEA | SAFE Grant Final Allocations Table (PDF).
2023-2025 Safety and Facilities Enhancement (SAFE) Grant, Cycle 1 eGrant Application
For eligible LEAs who received an allocation for this program, please login into eGrants via TEAL to complete the required application to receive a Notice of Grant Award. If you have any questions regarding the grant process, or require technical assistance, please contact Nick Davis (nick.davis@tea.texas.gov).
SAFE Grant (Cycle 1) Application deadline - January 15, 2024.
**New Guidance**
TEA has issued a SAFE grant Cycle 1 Errata #2. They extended the eGrant Application due date for SAFE Grant Cycle 1 from January 8 to January 15. If your LEA did not complete the needs assessment in Fall 2023, you do not qualify for this grant.
Errata Notice: 2023-2025 Safety and Facilities Enhancement (SAFE) Grant, Cycle 1
TEA has issued a second errata for the 2023-2025 Safety and Facilities Enhancement (SAFE) Cycle 1 Grant, the errata highlights the following changes:
· Due date of eGrants application changed to January 15, 2024 (was previously January 8, 2024).
Dates have also been updated on TEA's Grant Opportunities page to reflect this errata notice. To view the errata, please visit TEA's Grant Opportunities page and search for the "2023-2025 Safety and Facilities Enhancement Grant (SAFE) Cycle 1 " program to view a PDF of the issued errata.
SAFE GRANT - CYCLE 2
The 88th Texas Legislative Session appropriated $1.1B to support school systems in meeting the adopted School Safety Standards. SAFE Grant Cycle 2 will award $279.5M from the overall legislative appropriation to local educational agencies (LEAs) through a formula grant process. This funding is designated to help LEAs meet the required safety standards as well as other statutory school safety requirements.
Eligibility
LEAs meeting the enrollment criteria below are eligible to apply for this grant program:
- School districts and open-enrollment charter schools with a reported enrollment of at least one student from the October 2021 PEIMS fall snapshot submission will be eligible for funding.
- Charter schools that opened prior to January 1, 2024 (the date of grant availability).
- Note: Private schools are not eligible recipients for funding.
Required Compliance Assessment
As part of the process to receive a SAFE Cycle 2 grant award, LEAs are required to complete a compliance assessment. The window to complete the compliance assessment is December 14, 2023, to January 31, 2024. The compliance assessment can be accessed through the Intruder Detection Audit Dashboard.
TEA will host three LEA SAFE Cycle 2 Trainings on these dates in January
- January 9 LEA Webinar
- January 10 LEA Webinar
- January 11 LEA Webinar
TEA FAQ's
Grant Resources
2022-2025 School Safety Standards FAQs
Compare School Safety Grant Requirements
Updated: T4PA State Initiative Use of Funds Crosswalk Document
Student Discipline
TEA: Student Discipline Virtual Professional Developments
- TEA Discipline Reports by state, region, district, or campus level.
- T-Rex discipline system will transfer the last 5 years of PEIMs Discipline Records when a student transfers as of last week.
Technical Resources
- TEA Discipline Website
- New PEIMS Info - Table 165 Discipline Action Codes - Marihuana, E-Cig, Controlled Substance
- Discipline Flowchart for Students Identified with or suspected to have a Disability Under IDEA
- COMING SOON: TEA Educator training series focused on addressing student behavior and creating a better school experience for students and educators.
Substance Misuse Prevention
Smokefree Teen Resources
The National Cancer Institute’s Tobacco Control Research Branch developed Smokefree Teen as part of the Smokefree.gov Initiative to reduce the number of youth who use tobacco. Free resources include a text messaging program, the quitSTART app, personalized quit plans, and other strategies for tackling cravings, bad moods, and other situations where teens may smoke.
Mental and Behavioral Health - Fentanyl Awareness & Prevention
Mental Health and Well-Being Resources
Events + Resources
SAMSHA: Warning Signs for Youth Video
SAMSHA: Build a Safety Plan Video
HHSC - Suicide Prevention Quarterly Newsletter (PDF)
2024 Texas Mental Health Creative Arts Contest Open - Deadline March 1, 2024
TEA General School Mental Health Resources
TEA Mental Health Resources Database
TEA Mental Health Best Practice Registry
T4PA School Safety State Initiative Mental Health & Safety Resources
School Safety Resources
Just Released! TEA Child Abuse Prevention and Awareness & Human Trafficking Webinar Series
January 12 | Labor Trafficking | Registration Zoom Link
Educators are in a unique position to recognize, report and help to prevent child abuse and human trafficking. Educators are vital in recognizing the warning signs of abused or neglected students and guiding potential victims to available resources and support. This webinar series is a collaboration of state and regional agencies to assist and support school leaders with fulfilling their mandated duties and requirements concerning child abuse and neglect and promoting the well-being and safety of all Texas school students. All Zoom meetings will be held from 10:30-11:30 am. They are open to all ESCs, Districts, and Community Partners. Click Here for Registration and/or Print for Distribution.
School Safety Trainings
Safety & Security Roundtable Series
The Safety & Security Roundtable Series are developed to bring District Leadership, School Safety & Security Professionals, School Based Law Enforcement and school district stakeholders together to keep our LEAs informed of training requirements, legislative updates and trends affecting school safety. The goals of the roundtables are to:
- Explore critical safety issues facing schools
- Identify potential threats, risks or trends
- Examine potential solutions
- Information Sharing
- Collaborate with local, county & state partnerships
- Improve the climate of school safety
Mandatory School Drills and Active Threat Exercises
January 18, 2024
9am-11am
Region 10 ESC
400 E Spring Valley Rd
Richardson, TX 75081
This roundtable will focus on requirements for Texas Administrative Code 103.1209: Mandatory School Drills, Texas Administrative Code 103.1211: Active Threat Exercises and Establishing a Drill Timetable.