District of Columbia School Discipline Laws & Regulations: Authorizations, Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs), and/or Funding

District of Columbia School Discipline Laws & Regulations: Authorizations, Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs), and/or Funding

Category: Partnerships between Schools and Law Enforcement
Subcategory: Authorizations, Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs), and/or Funding
State: District of Columbia

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District of Columbia

LAWS

§ 5-132.01. Definitions.

For the purposes of this subchapter, the term:

(1) "Chancellor" means the Chancellor of the District of Columbia Public Schools.

(1A) "DCPS" means the District of Columbia Public Schools.

(1B) "MOA" means the Memorandum of Agreement into which DCPS and MPD enter pursuant to § 5-132.04.

(2) "MPD" means the Metropolitan Police Department.

(2A) "Public charter schools" shall have the same meaning as provided in § 38-1800.02(29).

(3) "School resource officer" means a sworn MPD officer assigned to DCPS or public charter schools for the purpose of working in collaboration with DCPS, public charter schools, and community-based organizations to:

(A) Prevent crime through community-oriented policing strategies;

(B) Address crime and disorder, gang, and drug activity problems affecting or occurring in or around the schools to which the school resource officer is assigned; and

(C) Ensure that DCPS schools and grounds and public charter schools and their grounds are safe environments for students, teachers, and staff.

(5) "School security personnel" means individuals, including unarmed security guards, that DCPS hires or contracts to support safety in DCPS schools.

(5A) "Security-related contract" means any contract to provide physical or personal security services, including school security personnel, at DCPS schools.

§ 5-132.02. Establishment of the Metropolitan Police Department School Safety Division; functions of the School Safety Division.

(a) There is established within the Metropolitan Police Department a School Safety Division that shall provide school resource officers to the DCPS schools and public charter schools.

(b) The School Safety Division shall be headed by a Director, appointed by, and reporting to, the Chief of Police with rank equal to a Commander or above.

(1) Hire and train school resource officers;

(2) Deploy school resource officers to:

(A) DCPS schools, consistent with the terms of the MOA; and

(B) Public charter schools;

(3) Coordinate with DCPS and public charter schools regarding the use and sharing of resources and communications between MPD and school-specific safety teams; and

(4) Provide recommendations to the Mayor, Council, and the DCPS Chancellor regarding the impact of school closings, consolidations, grade reconfigurations, use of swing space during school reconstruction, and gang and crew violence on the safety and well-being of children.

(c)(1) School resource officers shall not report any information regarding a student's suspected crew or gang affiliation, or that of their family members, to a law enforcement agency for the purpose of including such information in any District government crew or gang database, nor shall any such information shared by or derived from a school resource officer be otherwise included in any District government crew or gang database.

(d)(1) The School Safety Division shall develop a plan to be implemented before the beginning of each DCPS school year for protecting children walking to and from DCPS and public charter schools and for protecting children from gang and crew violence on, in, and around DCPS and public charter schools' property. Beginning in 2009, this plan shall be provided to the Mayor, the Council, and the Chancellor, by August 15th of each year.

(2) The plan shall include a description of:

(A) Safety issues children may face during passage to and from school, and recommended solutions to these issues; and

(B) A description of specific gang and crew conflicts and recommended solutions for the protection of children from gang and crew violence on, in, and around DCPS and public charter schools property.

(3) The plan shall incorporate the recommendations of the District Department of Transportation on the deployment of school crossing guards required under § 38-3101(f-1).

(e) The School Safety Division's sworn and civilian staffing shall be as follows:

(1) By July 1, 2022, a maximum of 60 personnel;
(2) By July 1, 2023, a maximum of 40 personnel;
(3) By July 1, 2024, a maximum of 20 personnel; and
(4) By July 1, 2025, the School Safety Division shall be dissolved, and MPD no longer shall staff DCPS and public charter schools with school resource officers.

§ 5-132.03a. DCPS responsibilities for school security.

(a) By October 1, 2020, DCPS shall be responsible for school security personnel within DCPS schools, and shall:

(1) Oversee the hiring or contracting of school security personnel for DCPS;

(2) Deploy school security personnel to DCPS schools;

(3) Provide oversight over school security personnel and be responsible for administering all disciplinary actions related to school security personnel, including termination;

(4) Execute, approve, administer, monitor, and provide oversight over any security-related contract for school security personnel; and

(5) Create and implement school building security and emergency operations plans, in consultation with MPD and the Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency.

§ 5-132.04. Coordination of school security efforts between DCPS and MPD.

By October 1, 2020, DCPS and MPD shall enter into a MOA for the purpose of coordinating the agencies' respective security obligations at DCPS schools. The MOA shall:

(1) Reflect DCPS's role as the administrator of any security-related contract;

(2) Include provisions for effectuating the transfer of any personnel, property, funds, or records necessary to transfer responsibility for any existing security-related contract from MPD to DCPS;

(3) Delineate lines of authority, supervision, and communication between MPD and DCPS, including how school resource officers deployed at each school will provide security in coordination with the school's principal and school security personnel; provided, that during emergencies, incident command shall be consistent with the District of Columbia response plan, as defined by § 7-2301(1A);

(4) Include a process for resolving disagreements between DCPS and MPD at all levels; and

(5) Provide for MPD advice and consultation on DCPS school building security and emergency operations plans.

REGULATIONS

No relevant regulations found.