PRINTER'S NO. 2237
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No.
1805
Session of
2023
INTRODUCED BY SCIALABBA, DIAMOND, KAUFFMAN AND BERNSTINE,
OCTOBER 31, 2023
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION, OCTOBER 31, 2023
AN ACT
Amending the act of March 10, 1949 (P.L.30, No.14), entitled "An
act relating to the public school system, including certain
provisions applicable as well to private and parochial
schools; amending, revising, consolidating and changing the
laws relating thereto," providing for school counseling
services.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. The act of March 10, 1949 (P.L.30, No.14), known
as the Public School Code of 1949, is amended by adding an
article to read:
ARTICLE XIII-F
SCHOOL COUNSELING SERVICES
Section 1301-F. Definitions.
The following words and phrases when used in this article
shall have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
context clearly indicates otherwise:
" Administrative activities." Activities that are not
directly related to the plan and that are absent of any direct
student services or interaction.
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"Department." The Department of Education of the
Commonwealth.
"Direct services." As follows:
(1) Services that are provided through face-to-face
contact with students.
(2) The term includes the following:
(i) Classroom instruction.
(ii) Individual and group counseling for students.
(iii) Responsive services on behalf of a student
whose academic or career development is at risk.
Responsive services include the administration of a risk-
assessment.
(iv) Interventions for a student who is:
(A) at risk of dropping out of school; or
(B) exhibiting dangerous behaviors, such as drug
use, self-harm or gang activity.
"Indirect services." Consultations among a student, a parent
or legal guardian of the student, school staff and community
agencies concerning the student's academic or career needs.
"Plan." The school counseling plan under section 1302-F.
"School entity." Any of the following:
(1) A school district of any class.
(2) An intermediate unit as described in Article IX-A.
(3) A charter school as defined in section 1703-A.
(4) A cyber charter school as defined in section 1703-A.
(5) A regional charter school as defined in section
1703-A.
(6) An area career and technical school as described in
section 1841.
Section 1302-F. School counseling plan.
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(a) Authorization and purpose.--A school entity shall
develop and implement a written school counseling plan that
ensures that student services are coordinated in a manner that
provides academic or career developmental support to all
students of the school entity.
(b) Requirements generally.--A plan shall:
(1) Be implemented by a Pennsylvania-certified school
counselor.
(2) Utilize nationally recognized and State-recognized
counselor frameworks, which may not include medical guidance,
social and emotional learning, critical race theory or
behavioral health.
(3) Be reviewed annually and updated as needed by the
school counselor, in collaboration with the affected building
principal and other stakeholders, including parents or legal
guardians of enrolled students.
(4) Be systemically aligned to kindergarten through
grade 12 within the school entity.
(c) Components.--A plan shall contain the following:
(1) A foundation component that includes:
(i) A vision statement.
(ii) A mission statement.
(iii) Plan goals.
(2) A management component that utilizes assessments and
other data to develop, implement and evaluate the plan.
(3) A delivery component that focuses on direct services
and indirect services through the implementation of the plan.
(4) An accountability component that ensures regular
analysis of the plan.
(d) Contents.--A plan shall:
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(1) Guide students in academic pursuits and career
planning.
(2) Follow the school counseling plan guidance provided
by the department that is limited to academic pursuits and
career planning.
Section 1303-F. School counselor use of time.
(a) General requirement.--A school entity shall allot
sufficient time for the school entity's counselor to carry out
the duties stated in the school entity's plan.
(b) Direct and indirect services.--Direct services and
indirect services may be provided in collaboration with other
school personnel, parents or legal guardians, as provided herein
or otherwise deemed appropriate, and include:
(1) Providing academic advisement services, including:
(i) Developing an individual planning system to
guide a student to access and monitor the student's own
academic and career progress.
(ii) Guiding a student along the pathways to
graduation.
(iii) Guiding a student in goal-setting and course
selection aligned with the student's post-secondary
goals, including college education, trade and industrial
education and military service.
(iv) Addressing accelerated learning opportunities.
(v) Addressing academic deficits and the
accessibility of resources.
(vi) Providing student assessment reviews, interest
inventories or academic results needed to develop, review
and revise a student's plan of study.
(vii) Providing support for students who show
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potential so they are more likely to engage in rigorous
coursework and take advantage of post-secondary
opportunities.
(2) Providing a career planning process, including:
(i) Guidance in understanding the relationship
between classroom performance and success in school and
beyond.
(ii) The provision of resources to identify career
interests and aptitudes to assist a student in age-
appropriate college and career planning, including trade
and industrial education and military service.
(iii) Guidance in understanding the advantages of
completing career certifications, Junior Reserve
Officers' Training Corps, apprenticeships and
internships.
(iv) Interpretation of augmented, criterion-
referenced or norm-referenced assessments for students
and parents or guardians of students.
(v) The provision of information to a parent or
legal guardian of a student, such as through workshops on
preparing for college, a trade, military service,
financial aid and career opportunities.
(vi) Encouragement to a parent or legal guardian of
a student to support partnerships in the student's
learning and career planning processes.
(3) Providing skills designed to:
(i) Address bullying, including:
(A) Training programs for school employees
regarding how to recognize bullying behaviors.
(B) Protocols for responding to bullying that is
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occurring in the school entity.
(C) Strategies that support a student who is
being bullied.
(D) Protocols for immediate parental or legal
guardian inclusion when responding to all bullying
activity, including initial and subsequent
interactions with students. Anti-bullying materials
must be shared with parents or legal guardians in
advance of being shared with students.
(ii) Address suicide through:
(A) Strategies that help identify a student who
is at risk for suicide. Parents or legal guardians
must be immediately notified if their student is
considered at risk for suicide.
(B) Strategies and protocols that help a student
who is at risk for suicide, including parental or
legal guardian involvement, absent good cause shown
as to why the parent or legal guardian should not be
involved. If a parent or legal guardian is not
involved, the school entity must obtain a court order
to that effect.
(C) Protocols for responding to a suicide death.
(4) Intervening with students who are at risk of
dropping out of school to determine if there is a way to keep
the students in school.
(5) Providing orientation programs for new students and
transferring students at each level of education.
(6) Serving as a contributing member of decision-making
teams and programs, which include:
(i) Teams that are convened under section 504 of the
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Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Public Law 93-112, 29 U.S.C.
ยง 701 et seq.).
(ii) Multitiered System of Supports (MTSS) or
Response to Intervention (RTI) teams.
(iii) English language learner programs.
(iv) Parental or legal guardian involvement or
family engagement programs.
(v) Advanced placement and gifted and talented
programs.
(c) Administrative activities.--Administrative activities
provided by a school counselor in collaboration with other
school personnel include:
(1) Coordinating State assessments, cognitive
achievement assessments, advanced placement programs and
language acquisition testing programs.
(2) Developing master schedules.
(3) Coordinating the following:
(i) Teams that are convened under section 504 of the
Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
(ii) Response to Intervention (RTI) teams.
(iii) English language learner programs.
(iv) Parental or legal guardian involvement or
family engagement programs.
(v) Advanced placement and gifted and talented
programs.
(vi) Data entry.
(4) Monitoring students in common areas, such as the
cafeteria, a hallway, the playground or bus lines.
Section 1304-F. Posting the school counseling plan.
A school entity shall post its school counseling plan on the
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school entity's publicly accessible Internet website or, in the
alternative, on the publicly accessible Internet website of the
school entity's school district, under the category of State-
required information.
Section 1305-F. Parental Notification and Private Right of
Action.
(a) Policy.--The governing body of a school entity in the
Commonwealth shall adopt a policy concerning school guidance and
counseling programs in the schools under its jurisdiction. At a
minimum, the policy shall contain the following:
(1) A provision for written notification, at least
annually or more frequently if required in the policy, to
parents or legal guardians about the academic and career
guidance programs that are available to their children. The
notification shall include the purpose and general
description of the programs, information regarding ways
parents or legal guardians may review materials to be used in
guidance and counseling programs at their child's school and
information about the procedures by which parents or legal
guardians may limit their child's participation in the
programs. If social or emotional programs are available or
provided, parents or legal guardians must be provided notice
of the programs and the associated materials at least two
weeks prior to student engagement with the program.
(2) A provision prohibiting the use of counseling
techniques that are beyond the scope of the professional
certification or training of school counselors, including
counseling techniques that are normally employed in medical
or clinical settings and focus on mental illness, behavioral
health or psychopathology.
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(3) A provision requiring that information and records
of social and emotional counseling be kept confidential and
separate from a student's educational records and not
disclosed to third parties without prior parental consent or
as otherwise provided by law.
(4) A provision with respect to social and emotional
counseling stating the procedures by which parents or legal
guardians can elect in writing to have their child opt in to
the counseling. In no event shall a governing body require
affirmative parental consent for one-time counseling that is
needed to maintain order, discipline or prevent immediate
harm to a student. Parents or legal guardians must be present
at all times that a student is counseled in the context of
social and emotional learning or counseling.
(5) A provision that provides for the meaningful
inclusion of a parent or legal guardian when a student
receives direct or indirect services from a school counselor.
(b) Private right of action.--If a parent or legal guardian
of a student reasonably believes that the parent or legal
guardian has been denied meaningful involvement in counseling or
access to the student when receiving direct or indirect services
from a school counselor without good cause, the parent or legal
guardian shall have a private right of action against the
governing body of the school entity.
Section 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
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