Bill Text: HI SCR18 | 2020 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: Urging The Department Of Education To Implement Brown-bag Lunch Sessions At Middle Schools And High Schools.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 5-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-28 - Referred to EDU. [SCR18 Detail]

Download: Hawaii-2020-SCR18-Introduced.html

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THE SENATE	S.C.R. NO.	18
THIRTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2020
STATE OF HAWAII

SENATE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

 

 

URGING THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION TO IMPLEMENT BROWN-BAG LUNCH SESSIONS AT MIDDLE SCHOOLS AND HIGH SCHOOLS.

 

 

     WHEREAS, bullying in schools is a serious problem and can lead to high suicide rates; and

 

     WHEREAS, the Department of Health has found Hawai‘i to have the highest teen suicide rate in the nation; and

 

     WHEREAS, the suicide rates of youth who are or feel marginalized on the basis of race, sexuality, religion, nationality, or gender identification can be even higher than the teen suicide rate as a whole; and

 

     WHEREAS, students need to feel safe in order for quality learning to take place; and

 

     WHEREAS, the establishment of schools as safe places goes beyond the school simply as a place where students, teachers, and staff are free from physical or verbal violence; and

 

     WHEREAS, one of the most valuable conditions created by schools as a place of safety is their fundamental utility in fostering a climate conducive to valuable, ongoing conversations among students, teachers, and staff by creating a sense of inclusion, belonging, and community; and

 

     WHEREAS, these ongoing conversations are a fundamental prerequisite for the creation of opportunities for all students to engage in complex cognitive, intrapersonal, and interpersonal development; and

 

     WHEREAS, studies have shown that with guided recess time and with the implementation of meaningful programs during recess, reports of bullying drops and learning increases; and

 

     WHEREAS, brown-bag lunch meetings provide an informal training and learning environment to discuss a multitude of topics guided by counselors, teachers, volunteers, or guest speakers; and

 

     WHEREAS, the attendees at the twenty-sixth annual Children and Youth Summit in 2019 identified the creation of these lunch meetings as a priority; now, therefore,

 

     BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Thirtieth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2020, the House of Representatives concurring, that the Department of Education implement brown-bag lunch sessions in both middle schools and high schools on at least a weekly basis to provide an informal training and learning environment to discuss a multitude of topics guided by counselors, teachers, volunteers, or guest speakers; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that student counselors, faculty, and students are engaged in the implementation of the program and in the content choices of the program; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Education reach out to and collaborate with community-based organizations, such as those funded by Americorps and Vista, to support the implementation of this program; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that student attendance of the program shall be voluntary; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Governor, Chair of the Board of Education, and Superintendent of Education.

 

 

 

	OFFERED BY:	_____________________________

Report Title: 

Urges the Department of Education to implement brown-bag lunch sessions at middle schools and high schools.