SB 24-225

This Colorado bill, SB 24-225, requires schools to notify parents at least five days in advance about when school safety drills will take place. It also sets up a work group to develop guidelines for conducting these drills in a way that is sensitive to students' mental health needs and trauma history. Starting from August 1, 2027, schools must follow the work group's recommendations on how to conduct these drills more effectively while being mindful of student well-being. The bill also mandates that teacher training programs include instruction on trauma-informed practices for school safety drills starting in the 2026-2027 academic year. Since the status is "signed," this means the bill has been approved by both houses of the Colorado legislature and signed into law by the governor, making it official state policy.

Official Summary

The bill requires a school to provide written notification at least 5 days in advance of the scheduled date of a school safety drill to the parent, legal guardian, or legal custodian of a student detailing when the school safety drill will take place. On or before July 1, 2025, the bill requires the office of school safety (office) to convene a work group to develop best practices for the use of trauma-informed practices to conduct school safety drills. No later than August 1, 2026, the bill requires the work group to develop recommendations to support schools in training school personnel on the use of trauma-informed practices in conducting school safety drills, how to best conduct school safety drills in a trauma-informed manner, and how to best respond to school safety incidents. Beginning August 1, 2027, the bill requires a school to conduct school safety drills in compliance with the work group's recommendations. On or before December 31, 2027, the bill requires the work group to submit a report to the office summarizing the work group's recommendations and information from the schools on the implementation of the trauma-informed best practices. The bill requires educator preparation programs and alternate teacher programs to include a training requirement on trauma-informed practices for a teacher candidate to learn how to conduct school safety drills and, beginning in the 2026-27 school year, requires educator preparation programs and alternate teacher programs to implement the work group's recommendations on best practices to incorporate trauma-informed practices into the conduct of school safety drills. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)

Related Legislation