Section 6557 - Maine School Safety CenterThe Maine School Safety Center, referred to in this section as "the center," is established within the department to assist schools in their efforts to provide for the overall safety of their school community. The primary role of the center is to provide training, guidance and technical support to schools in this State regarding their efforts to safely mitigate against, prepare for, respond to and recover from all hazards and threats. [2021, c. 542, §1(AMD).]
1.Purposes. The purposes of the center are to: A. Serve as a central location for school safety and security information, training and technical assistance related to successful implementation of school safety and security programs in schools; [2021, c. 542, §1(NEW).]B. Be a resource for the prevention of youth violence; [2021, c. 542, §1(NEW).]C. Promote overall school safety by developing recommendations to support a positive school climate and multiple-hazard mitigation and response plans; [2021, c. 542, §1(NEW).]D. Develop and provide school emergency management, training, guidance and technical support to include information provided by persons with expertise in the relevant subject matter in the development of the center's school safety specialist education program; [2021, c. 542, §1(NEW).]E. Promote, develop and implement technical support and training for a behavioral threat assessment program; [2021, c. 542, §1(NEW).]F. Facilitate and assist local schools and public safety stakeholders in preventing, preparing for and responding to threats and acts of violence, including self-harm, through a holistic, solution-based approach to improving school safety; and [2021, c. 542, §1(NEW).]G. Advise and make recommendations to the department on policies and legislation related to the overall safety of schools and school communities. [2021, c. 542, §1(NEW).] [2021, c. 542, §1(NEW).]
2.Collaboration. The center shall work collaboratively with all appropriate stakeholders in furtherance of its purposes as set out in subsection 1. [2021, c. 542, §1(NEW).]
3.Services to schools. The center is responsible for providing the following services to schools in the State:A. Training, including school safety specialist training and credentialing in a school emergency management education program; [2021, c. 542, §1(NEW).]B. Mental health and behavioral threat assessment; [2021, c. 542, §1(NEW).]C. Site assessment and school climate assessment; [2021, c. 542, §1(NEW).]D. Planning and emergency operation plan review and exercises; [2021, c. 542, §1(NEW).]E. Training, procedures and best practices for school resource officers and officers that may have interactions with youth; [2021, c. 542, §1(NEW).]F. Best practices and policy recommendations and review; [2021, c. 542, §1(NEW).]G. Administrative assistance; [2021, c. 542, §1(NEW).]H. Restorative justice assistance and assistance regarding alternatives to traditional discipline; and [2021, c. 542, §1(NEW).]I. Contracted school safety services. [2021, c. 542, §1(NEW).] [2021, c. 542, §1(NEW).]
Amended by 2022, c. 542,§ 1, eff. 8/8/2022.Added by 2021SP1, c. 398,§ HH-1, eff. 7/1/2021.Reallocated from section 6556 by State Revisor to correct a numbering problem created by Public Law 2021, chapters 156 and 398, which enacted 2 substantively different provisions with the same section number.