Report 2016-136 Recommendations

To ensure that districts and county offices properly review and approve safety plans as required, CDE should provide additional guidance regarding district and county office responsibilities under state law by updating and correcting the safety plan compliance checklist and making it available to all districts and county offices.

To ensure that districts and county offices properly review and approve safety plans as required, CDE should provide additional guidance regarding district and county office responsibilities under state law by providing general direction to schools on what to include in their building disaster plans.

To ensure that districts and county offices properly review and approve safety plans as required, CDE should provide additional guidance regarding district and county office responsibilities under state law by providing information on best practices similar to those we discuss in this report for monitoring and approving safety plans.

To ensure that districts, county offices, and schools receive guidance on a variety of safety issues and to comply with state law, CDE and DOJ should resume their partnership activities, as required by state law. Further, the partnership should update the 2002 handbook, "Safe Schools: A Planning Guide for Action," and distribute it to all districts and county offices. If CDE or DOJ determine the need for additional funds to implement the legislative recommendations or to reestablish the partnership's activities, they should request those funds from the Legislature.

To ensure that districts, county offices, and schools receive guidance on a variety of safety issues and to comply with state law, CDE and DOJ should resume their partnership activities, as required by state law. Further, the partnership should update the 2002 handbook, "Safe Schools: A Planning Guide for Action," and distribute it to all districts and county offices. If CDE or DOJ determine the need for additional funds to implement the legislative recommendations or to reestablish the partnership's activities, they should request those funds from the Legislature.

To ensure that their schools' safety plans comply with state law and are submitted and approved on or before March 1 each year, the Kern, Placer, and San Bernardino county offices, and San Bernardino City Unified should implement procedures to monitor and approve their schools' safety plans. The procedures should include the use of electronic document-tracking systems and safety plan templates.

To ensure that students and staff are prepared to respond to violent incidents on or near school sites, the Legislature should require that safety plans include procedures, such as lockdowns, recommended by federal and state agencies. The Legislature should also require schools to hold periodic training and drills on these procedures.

To ensure that districts and county offices are complying with state law each year, the Legislature should require CDE to conduct an annual statewide survey to determine whether schools have submitted plans and whether those plans have been reviewed and approved by their respective district or county office. The Legislature should also require CDE to issue an annual report detailing the survey's results.

To ensure that districts and county offices are complying with state laws related to safety plans, the Legislature should add a requirement to the EAAP audit guide for districts and county offices to receive audits of their approval of safety plans.

The Legislature should require that the partnership between CDE and DOJ periodically review safety plan requirements to ensure that the plans keep pace with evolving school environments and updated educational research.

To ensure that their schools' safety plans comply with state law and are submitted and approved on or before March 1 each year, the Kern, Placer, and San Bernardino county offices, and San Bernardino City Unified should implement procedures to monitor and approve their schools' safety plans. The procedures should include the use of electronic document-tracking systems and safety plan templates.

To ensure that their schools' safety plans comply with state law and are submitted and approved on or before March 1 each year, the Kern, Placer, and San Bernardino county offices, and San Bernardino City Unified should implement procedures to monitor and approve their schools' safety plans. The procedures should include the use of electronic document-tracking systems and safety plan templates.

To ensure that their schools' safety plans comply with state law and are submitted and approved on or before March 1 each year, the Kern, Placer, and San Bernardino county offices, and San Bernardino City Unified should implement procedures to monitor and approve their schools' safety plans. The procedures should include the use of electronic document-tracking systems and safety plan templates.