Dear County and District Superintendents and Charter School Administrators:

Annual Reminder to Update and Adopt Comprehensive School Safety Plans by March 1

The California Department of Education (CDE) is committed to helping you and your districts and schools become as prepared as possible for emergencies and to maintain safe learning environments year-round.

We move into 2023 with hope and expectancy for recovery and renewal from nearly three years of extraordinary circumstances affecting all aspects of education. However, health crises, increased violence and mass shootings, and unprecedented learning and teaching challenges continue to plague our state and nation.

I acknowledge and honor your resilience, perseverance, and all that you and your teams are accomplishing on behalf of California’s students through these demanding times.

Each year, we remind you of the urgency of ensuring that each school’s comprehensive school safety plan (CSSP) is reviewed, updated, and adopted by the school site council (SSC) or designated safety committee by March 1 (California Education Code [EC] Section 32288), then forwarded to the school district or County Office of Education (COE) for approval (EC Section 32288[a]). Each school district or COE must annually notify the CDE by October 15 of any schools that have not complied with these requirements (EC Section 32288[c]).

To clarify the CSSP adoption versus approval timelines, please note that, after holding the required public meeting (EC Section 32288[b][1]), CSSPs must be adopted by the SSC or school safety committee by March 1, then forwarded to the district or COE for approval. Both adopting and approving CSSPs by March 1 works well for many local educational agencies (LEAs) and complies with requirements.

Each school, district, and COE is responsible for knowledge of and compliance with EC sections 32280-32289.5. You can find EC sections 32280-32289.5 on the California Legislative Information EC web page at https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displayText.xhtml?division=1.&chapter=2.5.&part=19.&lawCode=EDC&title=1.&article=5. To assist LEAs in meeting requirements and recommendations, the CDE has posted its statewide webinar from September 15, 2022, on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tEsYgHLQV_4. The CDE also posts the CDE CSSP compliance checklist and best practice considerations for schools, districts, and COEs for reviewing and updating CSSPs. You will find the CDE CSSP compliance checklist and best practices on the CDE CSSPs web page at https://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/ss/vp/cssp.asp. Please share this important information with administrators, school safety directors/coordinators, school site councils, and all those involved in school safety planning.

State Compliance Audit Guide

Starting with the 2018–19 school year, compliance with CSSP requirements has been audited through the annual state compliance audit process (EC Section 41020) to ensure that CSSPs are updated and adopted by March 1 of each year and approved by the school district (board of trustees or superintendent) or COE. Findings from the past four years indicate that LEAs have become more aware of compliance requirements but still must do more to fully comply in a timely manner. The following requirements will be audited:

• EC Section 32286(a): Each school shall review, update, and adopt its CSSP by March 1 of each year.
• EC Section 32288(a): Each school shall forward its CSSP to the school district or COE for approval.
• EC Section 32288(c): Each school district or COE shall annually notify the State Department of Education by October 15 of any schools that have not complied with Section 32281.

Thank you for your diligence, dedication, and attention to safety, security, and welcoming school communities for all students, staff, and families.

If you have any questions regarding this subject, please contact Nancy Zarenda, Education Programs Consultant, School Health and Safety Office, at SHSO@cde.ca.gov.

Sincerely,

Signed by

Steve Zimmer, Deputy Superintendent
Student Support Services Branch

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