Trauma-Informed Schools Act of 2018
This bill provides for the use of trauma-informed practices in public elementary and secondary schools and allows states to use certain federal funds to train teachers in such practices.
[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7320 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
115th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 7320
To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to provide
criteria for use of Federal funds to support trauma-informed practices
in schools, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
December 17, 2018
Ms. Clark of Massachusetts introduced the following bill; which was
referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to provide
criteria for use of Federal funds to support trauma-informed practices
in schools, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Trauma-Informed Schools Act of
2018''.
SEC. 2. TRAUMA-INFORMED PRACTICES.
(a) Definition.--Section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801) is amended--
(1) by redesignating paragraphs (51) and (52) as paragraphs
(52) and (53), respectively; and
(2) by inserting after paragraph (50) the following:
``(51) Trauma-informed practices.--The term `trauma-
informed practices' means--
``(A) evidence-based activities that promote a
shared understanding among teachers, school leaders,
paraprofessionals, specialized instructional support
personnel, and other staff that traumatic life
experiences in the lives of children--
``(i) are common, yet are often not
disclosed or reported;
``(ii) cause neurological, psychological,
and social effects that affect learning,
behavior, and relationships;
``(iii) create risk of further trauma;
``(iv) do not inherently undermine the
capabilities of students to reach high
expectations in academics and life; and
``(v) can and should be mitigated in
schools by evidence-based schoolwide
approaches;
``(B) adoption of disciplinary procedures and
practices that--
``(i) accompany disciplinary actions with
holistic assessments and interventions to
address the underlying causes of student
behavior, including trauma;
``(ii) avoid harsh and punitive,
exclusionary disciplinary practices;
``(iii) utilize evidence-based restorative
practices that build a culture of trust; and
``(iv) do not discriminate on the basis of
race, color, national origin, sex (including
sexual orientation or gender identity),
disability, English proficiency status, migrant
status, or age consistent with the Age
Discrimination Act of 1975 (42 U.S.C. 6101 et
seq.), title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
(42 U.S.C. 2000d et seq.), title IX of the
Education Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et
seq.), section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of
1973 (29 U.S.C. 794), the Americans with
Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et
seq.), and the Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act (42 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.);
``(C) activities that promote a culture of
acceptance that connects a student to the school
community and provides multiple opportunities to
practice newly developing skills;
``(D) activities that promote teamwork, shared
staff responsibility, and ongoing, effective
communication among teachers, school leaders,
paraprofessionals, specialized instructional support
personnel, and other staff regarding the needs of each
individual student enrolled in such school; and
``(E) activities which provide teachers, school
leaders, paraprofessionals, specialized instructional
support personnel, and other staff with evidence-based
professional development on skills including--
``(i) identifying students who exhibit
symptoms commonly associated with trauma;
``(ii) recognizing and preventing adult
implicit bias;
``(iii) proactively anticipating and
adapting to the changing needs of each student
who has experienced trauma;
``(iv) integrating evidence-based practices
that build social-emotional skills into
rigorous academic instruction; and
``(v) using evidence-based practices to
holistically address the needs of each student
who has experienced trauma in a culturally
sustaining manner, including by supporting,
with respect to each such student, the
following:
``(I) Success in academic and
nonacademic areas.
``(II) Physical, social, and
emotional health and well-being.''.
(b) State Plan.--Section 1111(g)(1)(C) of such Act (20 U.S.C.
6311(g)(1)(C)) is amended--
(1) by striking ``reducing'';
(2) in clause (i), by inserting ``reducing'' before
``incidences'';
(3) in clause (ii)--
(A) by inserting ``reducing'' before ``the
overuse''; and
(B) by striking ``and'';
(4) in clause (iii)--
(A) by inserting ``reducing'' before ``the use'';
and
(B) by inserting ``and'' after ``safety;''; and
(5) by adding at the end the following:
``(iv) increasing the prevalence of trauma-
informed practices;''.
(c) Plan Provisions.--Section 1112(b) of the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6312(b)) is amended--
(1) by redesignating paragraphs (12) and (13) as paragraphs
(13) and (14), respectively; and
(2) by inserting after paragraph (11) the following:
``(12) how the local educational agency will support
efforts to increase the prevalence of trauma-informed
practices;''.
(d) Schoolwide Program.--Section 1114(b)(7)(A)(iii) of such Act (20
U.S.C. 6314(b)(7)(A)(iii)) is amended--
(1) in subclause (IV), by striking at the end ``and''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``(VI) the implementation of
trauma-informed practices; and''.
(e) Training.--Section 2101 of such Act (20 U.S.C. 6611) is
amended--
(1) in subsection (c)(4)(B)--
(A) by redesignating clauses (xv) through (xxi) as
clauses (xvi) through (xxii), respectively; and
(B) by inserting after clause (xiv) the following:
``(xv) Providing training for all teachers,
school leaders, paraprofessionals, and
specialized instructional support personnel on
trauma-informed practices.''; and
(2) in subsection (d)(2)--
(A) by redesignating subparagraphs (K) through (M)
as subparagraphs (L) through (N) respectively; and
(B) by inserting after subparagraph (J) the
following:
``(K) A description of how the State educational
agency will use funds under this part to increase the
prevalence of trauma-informed practices.''.
(f) Local Use of Funds.--Section 2103(b)(3)(I) of such Act (20
U.S.C. 6613(b)(3)(I)) is amended--
(1) by redesignating clauses (i) through (iv) as clauses
(ii) through (v); and
(2) by inserting before clause (ii), as redesignated, the
following:
``(i) trauma-informed practices;''.
(g) State Activities.--Section 4104(b)(3)(B)(ii) of such Act (20
U.S.C. 7114(b)(3)(B)(ii)) is amended--
(1) in subclause (I), by striking at the end ``or'';
(2) in subclause (II), by inserting ``or'' at the end; and
(3) by inserting at the end the following:
``(III) increase the prevalence of
trauma-informed practices;''.
(h) State Application.--Section 4203(a)(6) of such Act (20 U.S.C.
7173(a)(6)) is amended by striking ``development;'' and inserting
``development, which may include professional development on trauma-
informed practices;''.
(i) Description of Plan.--Section 4303(f)(1)(A)(viii) of such Act
(20 U.S.C. 7221b(f)(1)(A)(viii)) is amended--
(1) in subclause (I), by striking at the end ``and'';
(2) in subclause (II), by inserting ``and'' at the end; and
(3) by inserting at the end the following:
``(III) adopting trauma-informed
practices.''.
(j) Application Requirements.--Section 4305(b)(3)(B)(ii) of such
Act (20 U.S.C. 7221d(b)(3)(B)(ii)) is amended--
(1) in subclause (II), by striking ``and'';
(2) in subclause (III), by inserting ``and'' at the end;
and
(3) by inserting at the end the following:
``(IV) the discipline practices
that will be used, including a
description of whether such practices
are consistent with trauma-informed
practices;''.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce.
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