by Jay Waagmeester, Florida Phoenix
The Florida Department of Education has begun writing regulations to implement some of the education-related bills lawmakers approved this spring, including the training teachers must have to respond to children experiencing allergic reactions.
The Department of Education held three brief public meetings on the proposed regulations Tuesday, the first step in the rulemaking process. Ultimately, the state Board of Education must approve the rules following a mandatory public-comment period.
SB 1514 requires an “adequate number” of charter and traditional public school personnel to be trained to respond to allergic reactions, including administering epinephrine.
Language drafted by the department defines “adequate number” as “trained personnel and contracted personnel whose duties include regular contact with a student who has experienced or is at risk of a life-threatening allergic reaction, including anaphylaxis.”
According to the draft language, the training must include recognition of symptoms of an allergic reaction, administering an epinephrine delivery device that contains a pre-measured dose, and procedures for accessing and recommending care when students are on school grounds. Specific language can be found here.
The department posts its approved trainings to its website.
Existing regulations require students to have a health plan with the school nurse regarding life-threatening allergies, including a plan of action for students unable to inject themselves with epinephrine.
Form of high school diplomas and certificate of completion
Another rule discussed Tuesday relates to HB 1105, which, in part, eliminates certificates of completion. The certificates are given to students who complete credits required to graduate but do not score high enough grade point averages to graduate.
Eliminating the certificate better sets students up for success, lawmakers said when debating the bill.
Lawmakers suggested that most jobs either require a high school diploma, college degree, or neither, rendering a certificate of completion effectively useless. Eliminating the certificate, lawmakers argued, would encourage students to study harder.
The state is taking public comment on draft language eliminating the certificates and changing rules establishing graduation requirements for students with disabilities.
Community service for Bright Futures
The department discussed a proposed rule for high school students to more easily earn community-service hours needed to qualify for the Bright Futures scholarship, the Lottery-funded merit award for in-state students going to college.
The rule change would allow high schoolers working as paid tutors for the Reading Achievement Initiative for Scholastic Excellence (RAISE) program to count their work hours as the requisite community-service hours. Existing regulations permit only unpaid hours.
RAISE is designed to increase reading scores for elementary students and includes an opportunity for high school students to provide tutoring.
The highest level of the Bright Futures scholarship requires students to perform 100 hours of community service.
A date has not been set for the Board of Education to approve the rules.
Florida Phoenix is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Florida Phoenix maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Michael Moline for questions: info@floridaphoenix.com.
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This article originally appeared here and was republished with permission.
