California lawmakers approved hundreds of new laws that will take effect this year including dozens that involve public education.
We have provided a list of the most notable ones that kicked in Jan. 1, just as students and staff across Orange County start to wind up their winter breaks and prepare to return to classes.
Here are five new state regulations involving public education that have taken effect.
AB 1974, uncollected meal debts: This law forbids districts from withholding transcripts or diplomas from students for unpaid debts for student meals, and bill collectors from reporting unpaid parents’ payments to credit agencies.
AB 3205, classroom door locks: This law requires that any school modernization project done with money from the state’s school facility bond program include locks that allow doors to classrooms and any room with an occupancy of five or more people to be locked from the inside.
AB 1868, sexual health and social media: This law authorizes a school district to provide optional instruction, as part of comprehensive sexual health education and HIV prevention education, regarding the potential risks and consequences of creating and sharing sexually suggestive or sexually explicit materials through cell phones, social networking sites, computer networks, or other digital media.
AB 2289, parenting and pregnant students: The law requires schools to grant parental leave to students who are parents or are soon to be parents, prohibits parental leave from being deemed absences in computing average daily attendance, requires schools to grant parenting pupils four excused absences per school year to care of a sick child, requires schools to notify pregnant and parenting students of their educational rights and options and requires schools to provide students with guidelines for a make-up work if individualized instruction is not available.
AB 2800 High school athletics, coach training and heat illness: The law requires high school coaches to be trained will a basic understanding of the symptoms of heat illness. It would add certification to the first aid training that high school coaches already receive that proves an understanding of signs of heat illness and the appropriate responses.