Bill Text: HI HCR51 | 2021 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: Requesting The Department Of Education To Convene A Working Group To Create A Model Statewide School Policy On Student Suicide Prevention, Intervention, And Postvention In Grades K-12.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 8-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2021-03-24 - Report adopted; referred to the committee(s) on EDN with none voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and none excused (0). [HCR51 Detail]

Download: Hawaii-2021-HCR51-Introduced.html

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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.C.R. NO.	51
THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2021
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

 

 

requesting the department of education to convene a working group to create a model statewide school policy ON STUDENT suicide prevention, INTERVENTION, AND POSTVENTION IN GRADES K-12.

 

 

 

     WHEREAS, the Department of Health, in its Hawaii Sexual and Gender Minority Health Report (2017) and Hawaii Sexual and Gender Minority Report 2018:  A Focus on Transgender Youth, found that:

 

     (1)  Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning youth are more likely than heterosexual youth to experience suicidal ideation as a result of minority stress;

 

     (2)  Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and questioning youth are significantly more likely to have engaged in self-injury, considered suicide, made a suicide plan, and attempted suicide than heterosexual youth;

 

     (3)  The prevalence of lesbian, gay, and bisexual youth who report that they have considered and attempted suicide is also significantly higher than questioning youth;

 

     (4)  Transgender youth are around three times more likely to consider suicide and make a suicide plan than cisgender youth; and

 

     (5)  Half of transgender youth reported attempting suicide one or more times, which is nearly seven times higher than cisgender youth; and

 

     WHEREAS, school personnel who interact with students on a daily basis are essential gatekeepers for recognizing warning signs of suicide and making the appropriate referrals for help; and

 

     WHEREAS, E Ola Hou Prevent Suicide Maui County Task Force has been working with the Department of Education to provide mandated suicide prevention training for all school employees; now, therefore

 

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-first Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2021, the Senate concurring, that the Department of Education is requested to convene a working group to create a model statewide school policy on student suicide prevention, intervention, and postvention in grades K-12 by September 1, 2021; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the policy is requested to be developed in consultation with school and community stakeholders, school-employed mental health professionals and suicide prevention experts and, at a minimum, address the following:

 

     (1)  Mental health and substance use;

 

     (2)  Childhood abuse, neglect, or trauma;

 

     (3)  Prolonged stress, such as bullying or harassment and stressful life events, including rejection, breakups, or loss;

 

     (4)  Exposure to another person's suicide or sensationalized depictions of suicide;

 

     (5)  Previous suicide attempts or history of suicide within the family;

 

     (6)  How to use expertise of school employees who have been trained in recognizing suicide risk and referral procedures;

     (7)  How school employees should respond to a crisis situation where a student is in imminent danger to the student's self;

 

     (8)  Policies and protocols for communication with parents, including those that specify how to proceed if parental notification is not in the best interest of the student;

 

     (9)  Counseling services available with the school for students and their families related to suicide prevention; and

 

    (10)  Development of a plan to assist survivors of attempted suicide and assist students and school employees; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the policy is requested to address the needs of high-risk groups, including but not limited to the following:

 

     (1)  Youth with disabilities or with chronic health conditions, including mental health and substance use conditions;

 

     (2)  Youth experiencing homelessness or in out-of-home settings, such as foster care; and

 

     (3)  Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning, intersex, asexual, and pansexual (LGBTQ+) youth; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Education is requested to post this model policy by January 1, 2022, on the Department's website, along with relevant resources and information to support schools in developing and implementing the policy; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the working group is requested to review the impact of the suicide prevention policy every fifth year and, if necessary, update the policy; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Chairperson of the Board of Education, Superintendent of Education, and Executive Director of the State Public Charter School Commission.

 

 

 

	OFFERED BY:	_____________________________

Report Title: 

Department of Education; Suicide Prevention Working Group; Model Statewide School Policy