School-related laws took effect July 1, following this year’s legislative session, including those pertaining to allegations of abuse or neglect by school employees and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training.
Abuse or neglect
Under Public Act No. 15-112, if a school employee is reported to have abused or neglected a child and the Connecticut Department of Children and Families commissioner — upon completion of an investigation — finds the report to be unsubstantiated, any references to the report is to be removed from the employee’s records.
Such records include the employee’s personnel records and “any other records relating” to him or her.
The law also states that “a report that a child has been abused or neglected by a school employee that is found to be unsubstantiated “shall not be used against the school employee for any purpose relating to employment.”
Click here to read Public Act No. 15-112.
CPR training
Under Public Act No. 15-94, each local and regional education board in Connecticut will be required to incorporate CPR instruction in their health and safety curriculums “for the school year commencing July 1, 2016, and each school year thereafter.”
The law requires the instruction be based on the American Heart Association’s guidelines for emergency cardiovascular care and at least include hands-on CPR training.
Furthermore, the law states, education boards may accept gifts, grants and donations, including “in-kind donations designated for the purchase of equipment or materials needed to provide [CPR] instruction.”
Click here to read Public Act No. 15-94.
Correction: The original version of this article included Public Act No. 15-145, regarding special education expenditure reporting, as one of the school-related laws that took effect July 1. That bill, however, did not take effect and was vetoed.