General

School Counseling

• Requires the school district to publish in handbooks and on the website a statement of policies and procedures adopted to promote physical health and mental health of students, including resources available at each campus, and for each campus, a statement of whether the campus has a full-time nurse or school counselor

• Renames Developmental Guidance and Counseling Program to Comprehensive School Counseling Program

• Requires a school counselor to work with school faculty, staff, students, parents, and the community to plan, implement, and evaluate a program that conforms to the Texas Model for Comprehensive School Counseling Programs developed by the Texas Counseling Association

Miscellaneous

• Adds mental health instruction to the health curriculum offered by school districts

• Allows a school district to contract with a non physician mental health professional

• Requires TEA and HHSC to provide, and annually update, a list of recommended best practice-based programs for mental health promotion and intervention, substance abuse prevention and intervention, and suicide prevention (must be provided by 8/1/2020)
  

  • School districts may select a program from the list to implement in the district

District Committees

District Improvement Team

• Requires school district DIT plans to include evidence-based practices that address the needs of students for special programs, positive behavior interventions and support, including interventions and support that integrate best practices on grief-informed and trauma-informed care (instead of discipline management), and implementation of a comprehensive school counseling program

• Requires DIT plans to include strategies for providing to elementary school students, teachers, counselors, and parents information related to higher ed admissions and financial aid, making informed curriculum choices and sources of information on higher ed admissions and financial aid (currently just for middle and high school)

Local School Health Advisory Committee

• Requires LSHAC to recommend policies, procedures, strategies, and curriculum related to instruction on substance abuse prevention, mental health services, and a comprehensive school counseling program

• Allows Boards of Trustees to appoint a school counselor to the LSHAC

Professional Development

Certification

• Adds additional options for satisfying certification requirement that training required to obtain a certificate that requires a bachelor's degree include instruction regarding mental health, substance abuse, and youth suicide
  

  • This training can now be obtained through a course offered by any accredited public or private postsecondary institution as part of a degree program

  • This training must also include effective strategies for teaching and intervening with students with mental health conditions or who engage in substance abuse

Continuing Education

• CE requirements for teachers and principals must provide that at least (as opposed to not more than) 25% of training every five years include instruction regarding, among other things, educating diverse student populations including SPED students, students with 504s, students with mental health conditions or substance abuse problems, and students with intellectual or developmental disabilities, and how mental health conditions affect student learning
  

  • Instruction about how mental health conditions affect student learning must be based on relevant best practice-based programs and research based practices

• CE requirements for principals must also provide that at least (as opposed to not more than) 25% of training every five years include instruction regarding, among other things, effective implementation of a comprehensive school counseling program

• CE requirements for counselors must provide that at least (as opposed to not more than) 25% of training required every 5 years include instruction regarding, among other things, counseling students concerning mental health conditions and substance abuse, including through the use of grief-informed and trauma-informed interventions and crisis management and suicide prevention strategies and effective implementation of a comprehensive school counseling program

• TEA must adopt rules that allow educators to satisfy CE requirements by participating in an evidence-based mental health first aid training program, or an evidence-based, grief-informed and trauma-informed care program (cannot be online)

• Requires staff development to include training on suicide prevention, recognizing signs of mental health conditions and substance abuse, strategies for establishing and maintaining positive relationships among students, how grief and trauma affect student learning and behavior, and preventing, identifying, responding to, and reporting incidents of bullying (some of these were previously allowed to be included, but not required)
  

  • This training must use a best practice-based program recommended by HHSC and TEA