Public schools; best practice of tech. tools to assist w/identifying students at risk of self-harm.

Plain English Breakdown

The bill does not provide specific details on how the work group will be funded or what happens after the report submission.

Public Schools; Technology Tools for Student Safety

This bill directs Virginia's Department of Education to create a work group that will study technology tools designed to help schools identify students at risk of self-harm or intending to harm others, and then report their findings.

What This Bill Does

• Directs the Department of Education to convene a work group consisting of representatives from various education roles and technology industries.
• The work group will study best practices for procuring, implementing, and using technology tools in public schools to identify students at risk of self-harm or intending to harm others.
• Includes considerations on how these tools impact the timeliness and scope of a school's response, student privacy protection, and potential fiscal impacts.
• Identifies pilot programs for implementation by July 1, 2027.
• Makes recommendations on best practices for immediate responses, prevention procedures, and follow-up services for at-risk students.
• Requires the work group to submit a report with findings and recommendations to legislative committees by November 15, 2026.

Who It Names or Affects

• Virginia's Department of Education
• Public school staff and administrators
• Technology companies that make safety tools

Terms To Know

Work group

A team of people brought together to study a specific topic or solve a problem.

Limits and Unknowns

• It is not clear how much money will be needed for the work group's activities.
• The bill does not specify what happens after the report is submitted.

Official Summary Text

Department of Education; best practices for implementation in public schools of technology tools to assist with the identification of students at risk of engaging in self-harm or intending to inflict harm on others; report.
Directs the Department of Education to convene a work group consisting of representatives set forth in the bill, as determined by the Department in consultation with and based on consideration of suggestions from statewide education organizations and appropriate technology industries, for the purpose of identifying and making recommendations to the chairs of the Senate Committee on Education and Health and the House Committee on Education on best practices for the procurement, implementation, and use in public schools of technology tools designed to assist with the identification of students at risk of engaging in self-harm or intending to inflict harm on others. The bill directs the work group to submit a report on its findings and recommendations to the chairs of the Senate Committee on Education and Health and the House Committee on Education by November 15, 2026.

Current Bill Text

A BILL to direct the Department of Education to identify best practices relating to implementing technology tools to assist with identifying students at risk of engaging in self-harm or intending to inflict harm on others.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1.
§ 1. The Department of Education (the Department) shall convene a work group for the purpose of identifying best practices for the procurement, implementation, and use in public schools of technology tools designed to assist with the identification of students at risk of engaging in self-harm or intending to inflict harm on others. The work group shall include the following representatives: (i) a school counselor, (ii) a school social worker, (iii) a school psychologist, (vi) a representative of a school board, (v) representatives of appropriate technology industries, (vi) a school level administrator, (vii) a division-level administrator, and (viii) such other stakeholders as the Department deems necessary or appropriate. The Department shall consult with and consider suggestions obtained from statewide education organizations and appropriate technology industries in selecting the representatives described in clauses (i) through (viii) for inclusion in the work group.
The work group shall:
1. Consider, for each technology tool, (a) the parameters of the tool, (b) how the tool would impact the timeliness and scope of a school's ability to respond to a student identified as at risk of engaging in self-harm or intending to inflict harm on others, (c) the impact of using such tool on the protection of student privacy and ways to mitigate any related concerns, (d)
[

whether the tool incorporates racial and cultural bias mitigation strategies, (e)

]

the ability of a school to evaluate data collected by such tool, and
[

(e)
(f)
]

potential fiscal impacts to school divisions in procuring, implementing, using, and maintaining such tool;
2. Identify school divisions for placement in a pilot program, to be established by the Department by July 1, 2027, for the implementation of any such technology tools;
3. Make recommendations on best practices for the procurement, implementation, and use of such technology tools in public schools, including best practices for schools on (a) immediate responses to any student identified through the use of such a tool as intending to engage in self-harm or inflict harm on others, (b) the implementation of procedures aimed at preventing any such student from harming himself or others, and (c) the implementation of follow-up services for any such student after the immediate risk of harm has been addressed; and
4. Submit a report on its findings and recommendations to the chairs of the Senate Committee on Education and Health and the House Committee on Education by November 15, 2026.