Pennsylvania School Discipline Laws & Regulations: Formal Incident Reporting of Conduct Violations

Pennsylvania School Discipline Laws & Regulations: Formal Incident Reporting of Conduct Violations

Category: Monitoring and Accountability
Subcategory: Formal Incident Reporting of Conduct Violations
State: Pennsylvania

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Pennsylvania

LAWS

24 P.S. § 13-1302-A. Office for safe schools.

(b) The office shall have the power and duty to implement the following:

(2.1) To direct all school entities to submit annual school violence statistics and reports to the office no later than July 31 of each year.

(5) To develop forms to be used by school entities and police departments for reporting incidents involving acts of violence and possession of weapons on school property. The forms shall be reviewed on a biennial basis and revised when necessary.

(7) To publish and post on the Department of Education's Internet website a School Safety Annual Report no later than November 1 of each calendar year outlining all incidents required to be reported under section 1303-A and any school district that failed to submit a report under section 1303-A.

(c) In addition to the powers and duties set forth under subsection (b), the office is authorized to make targeted grants to school entities, and to intermediate units on behalf of nonpublic schools, to fund programs which address school violence, including:

(15) An Internet web-based system for the management of student discipline, including misconduct and criminal offenses.

24 P.S. § 13-1303-D. Safe2Say Program.

(a) Establishment.–The Safe2Say Program is established within the office.

(b) Administration.–The Attorney General shall:

(1) administer the program pursuant to the requirements under subsection (c); and

(2) promulgate regulations and adopt all guidelines necessary for the establishment of the program and administration of this article, in consultation with Statewide organizations.

(1) To ensure anonymous reporting concerning unsafe, potentially harmful, dangerous, violent or criminal activities in a school entity or the threat of the activities in a school entity.

(2) To establish protocols and procedures to promptly notify the appropriate law enforcement agency via 911 centers and the Pennsylvania State Police when the program receives an anonymous report of violent or criminal activities in a school entity that poses an immediate threat of violence or criminal activity.

(3) To ensure that the identity of the individual making a report remains unknown to any person, including law enforcement officers and employees of the office.

(4) To ensure that information obtained from an individual making a report who voluntarily discloses his or her identity and verifies that he or she is willing to be identified may be shared with law enforcement officers, employees of the office and school officials.

(5) To ensure that if the identity of an individual making a report becomes known through a means other than voluntary disclosure, the identity is not further disclosed.

(6) To establish procedures to promptly forward information received by the program to the appropriate law enforcement agency, school official or organization, as determined by the office. The office may not be held liable for investigation of a report made to the program following confirmation of receipt of the report by the appropriate law enforcement agency, school official or organization.

(7) To train or provide instruction to individuals, including, but not limited to, emergency dispatch centers and school entities, on appropriate awareness and response to the program.

(8) To provide program awareness and education materials to school entities.

(9) To, in consultation with the Department of Education, establish guidelines school entities may utilize to respond to a report received from the program.

(10) To work with school entities, local law enforcement agencies and organizations to identify each person to whom a report from the program will be sent.

(d) School entity.–Each school entity shall develop procedures for assessing and responding to reports received from the program.

24 P.S. § 13-1307-A. Maintenance of records.

All school entities and private schools within this Commonwealth shall maintain updated records of all incidents of violence, incidents involving possession of a weapon and convictions or adjudications of delinquency for acts committed on school property by students enrolled therein on both a district-wide and school-by-school basis. Records maintained under this section shall be contained in a format developed by the Pennsylvania State Police in cooperation with the Department of Education. A statistical summary of these records shall be made accessible to the public for examination by the public during regular business hours.

24 P.S. § 13-1317.2. Possession of weapons prohibited.

(a) Except as otherwise provided in this section, a school district or area career and technical school shall expel, for a period of not less than one year, any student who is determined to have brought onto or is in possession of a weapon on any school property, any school-sponsored activity or any public conveyance providing transportation to a school or school-sponsored activity.

(b) Every school district and area career and technical school shall develop a written policy regarding expulsions for possession of a weapon as required under this section. Expulsions shall be conducted pursuant to all applicable regulations.

(c) The superintendent of a school district or an administrative director of an area career and technical school may recommend modifications of such expulsion requirements for a student on a case-by-case basis. The superintendent or other chief administrative officer of a school entity shall, in the case of an exceptional student, take all steps necessary to comply with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (Public Law 91-230, 20 U.S.C. § 1400 et seq.).

(d) The provisions of this section shall not apply to the following:

(1) a weapon being used as part of a program approved by a school by an individual who is participating in the program; or

(2) a weapon that is unloaded and is possessed by an individual while traversing school property for the purpose of obtaining access to public or private lands used for lawful hunting, if the entry on school premises is authorized by school authorities.

(e) Nothing in this section shall be construed as limiting the authority or duty of a school or area career and technical school to make an alternative assignment or provide alternative educational services during the period of expulsion.

(e.1) A school district receiving a student who transfers from a public or private school during a period of expulsion for an act or offense involving a weapon may assign that student to an alternative assignment or provide alternative education services, provided that the assignment may not exceed the period of expulsion.

(f) All school districts and area career and technical schools shall report all incidents involving possession of a weapon prohibited by this section as follows:

(1) The school superintendent or chief administrator shall report the discovery of any weapon prohibited by this section to local law enforcement officials.

(2) The school superintendent or chief administrator shall report to the Department of Education all incidents relating to expulsions for possession of a weapon on school grounds, school-sponsored activities or public conveyances providing transportation to a school or school-sponsored activity. Reports shall include all information as required under section 1303-A.

(g) As used in this section, the term "weapon" shall include, but not be limited to, any knife, cutting instrument, cutting tool, nunchaku, firearm, shotgun, rifle and any other tool, instrument or implement capable of inflicting serious bodily injury.

REGULATIONS

No relevant regulations found.