Dear County and District Superintendents and Charter School Administrators:

Annual Reminder to Update and Adopt Comprehensive School Safety Plans and Important Safety Reminders

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

As we move into 2022 with hope and expectancy for recovery and renewal from two years of extraordinary health crises and challenges, I acknowledge and honor your resilience, perseverance, and all that you and your teams are accomplishing on behalf of California’s students.

As our students and staff return to schools, our state and nation also face increased violence and crimes in different venues, including settings in and near schools. It is critical to ensure that each school’s comprehensive school safety plan (CSSP) is reviewed, updated, and adopted by March 1, 2022, and forwarded to the school district or county office of education (COE) for approval prior to October 15, 2022. The CDE CSSP compliance checklist is available at https://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/ss/vp/documents/schoolsafetyplanchklist.pdf. It may be used to help ensure requirements are met.

Also, I urge you to include the Pandemic Preparedness resources on the CDE Additional Coronavirus (COVID-19) Resources web page at https://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/he/hn/coronavirusadtlinfo.asp#schoolhealth and school behavior threat assessment protocols that are on the National Association of School Psychologists Behavior Threat Assessment and Management (BTAM) Best Practice Considerations for K–12 Schools web page at https://bit.ly/33iWZp8.

Report to the Governor: Senate Bill 541 Lockdown Drills and Multi-option Response Drills

The CDE recently submitted the Senate Bill 541 Report to the Governor and Legislature on Lockdown and Multi-option Response Drills, which includes results from a statewide survey of local educational agencies (LEAs) on response drills practices and protocols, best practice considerations for age-appropriate response drills, and a reference list of research-based reports and resources. The report will be posted on the CDE Safe Schools Planning web page soon.

Safe Storage of Firearms and School Safety and Security

District and school administrators must help educate parents and guardians about firearm safety and California’s child access to firearms prevention laws; it is a crime for a person to negligently store or leave a loaded firearm in a place where a child is likely to access it.

It is urgent to inform your school community about the law regarding safe storage of firearms. Sample templates (in English and Spanish) for memoranda to parents and guardians informing them of the laws in California regarding safe storage of firearms are available on the CDE’s Violence Prevention web page at https://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/ss/vp/. You may use these documents or create your own.

Schools alone cannot prevent incidents of gun violence. It is the responsibility of parents, guardians, and household members to store firearms according to California law. Tips and information about firearms safety, including Rules for Kids, can be found on the State of California Department of Justice Firearm Safety web page at https://oag.ca.gov/firearms/tips.

State Compliance Audit Guide

Starting in the 2018–19 school year, compliance with CSSP requirements have been audited through the annual state compliance audit process per California Education Code (EC) Section 41020 to ensure CSSPs are updated and adopted by March 1 of each year and approved by the school district or COE.

Findings from the past three years indicate that LEAs must do more to comply in a timely manner. The following requirements will be audited:

California EC Section 32286(a): Each school shall review, update, and adopt its CSSP by March 1 of each year.

California EC Section 32288(a): Each school shall forward its CSSP to the school district or COE for approval.

California 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.

Each school, school district, and COE is responsible for compliance with all applicable sections of California EC sections 32280–32289.5.

School Safety Planning Resources

Please take time to review these resources and share with your schools, districts, COEs, and education partners.

• The 2021 Educator’s Guide to CSSPs, published by the Los Angeles COE (LACOE), developed in collaboration with the CDE, California Department of Justice, California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (CalOES), school safety stakeholders, and state and federal agencies.
• The Guide offers step-by-step guidance on developing CSSPs and includes a template to assist in the required annual systematic planning process. It contains legislative history and trends, a wide range of school safety considerations, emergency operations planning, and an array of reports and resources. A digital or print version may be purchased through LACOE. To order the Guide, contact Elizabeth Cabrera, Los Angeles COE, by email at Cabrera_Elizabeth@lacoe.edu.
• For training information, please contact Campus Safety Group, a nonprofit organization, by phone at 855-537-7526 or by email at info@campussafetygroup.com.
• See the CalOES School Planning and Emergency Preparedness web page at https://caloes.ca.gov/schools-educators.
• The U.S. Department of Education Office of Safe and Supportive Schools Readiness and Emergency Management for Schools (REMS) Technical Assistance Center (TA) provides a webinar highlighting services and how to interact with REMS on the REMS Exploring the REMS TA Center at a Glance: Safety, Security, Emergency Management, and Preparedness Services and Supports for Education Agencies web page at https://rems.ed.gov/webinarDetail?id=61.

The new year brings great challenges as we restore our education system and maintain resilience and confidence in the future. I am grateful for your hard work and determination and encourage us to team up, keep safety first for all, and stay safe, healthy, and hopeful.

If you have any questions regarding this subject, please contact the School Health and Safety Office by email at SHSO@cde.ca.gov.

Sincerely,

Tony Thurmond
State Superintendent of Public Instruction