AN ACT ESTABLISHING 6-YEAR CAREER PLANS FOR ALL MASSACHUSETTS PUBLIC SCHOOL STUDENTS
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same as follows:
SECTION 1. Subsection (d) of section 8 of chapter 15D of the General Laws is hereby amended by striking out the first paragraph, as amended by section 31 of chapter 165 of the acts of 2014, and inserting in place thereof the following paragraph:-
The regulations shall provide that:
(i) a person providing child care or support services with the potential for unsupervised contact with children in any program or facility licensed or funded by the department and any household members or persons regularly on the premises of family child care and large family child care homes shall be subject to a criminal offender record information check every 3 years in accordance with regulations established by the department; provided, however, that an applicant for employment in a department licensed, funded or approved program who is subject to a fingerprint-based check of the state and national criminal history databases for the same employer that is approved pursuant to chapter 19B or 71B shall submit to a fingerprint-based check under regulations established by the department; provided further, that no person who is considered suitable by the department shall be subject to more than 1 fingerprint-based check every 3 years to maintain employment with the same employer that is licensed, approved or funded pursuant to this chapter and said chapters 19B or 71B and shall not be subject to duplicative fingerprint-based checks for the same employer unless an exception described in the regulations of the department applies; and provided further, that the department shall only determine whether an applicant is suitable for association with a department licensed, funded or approved program;
(ii) potential adoptive and foster parents and their household members age 15 or older shall be subject to fingerprint-based checks of the state and national criminal history databases pursuant to 42 U.S.C. section 16962 with the exception of those applicants and household members who are subject to section 26A of chapter 119; and
(iii) an applicant for a department issued license and an applicant for employment, interns and volunteers in a department licensed, funded or approved program shall be subject to a fingerprint-based check of the state and national criminal history databases pursuant to Public Law 92-544.
SECTION 2. The second paragraph of section 38R of chapter 71 of the General Laws, as appearing in section 7 of chapter 77 of the acts of 2013, is hereby amended by striking out the second sentence and inserting in place thereof the following sentence:- For the purpose of this section, employees shall include any apprentice, intern or student teacher who may have direct and unmonitored contact with children; provided, however, that no person who is deemed suitable by the department of early education and care shall be subject to more than 1 fingerprint-based check every 3 years to maintain employment with the same employer operating programs licensed, funded or approved pursuant to chapter 15D and chapter 71B; and provided further, that the department of early education and care shall conduct the background record check in accordance with section 8 of said chapter 15D.
SECTION 3. On or before June 1, 2015, the executive office of education shall convene an advisory committee to investigate and study a development and implementation process for 6-year career planning to be coordinated by licensed school guidance counselors for all students in grades 6 to 12, inclusive. The advisory committee may consider whether licensed school guidance counselors require specialized training in order to effectively provide 6-year career planning to students and make recommendations accordingly.
The advisory committee shall consist of 11 members: 1 of whom shall be the secretary of education or a designee, who shall serve as chair; 1 of whom shall be the commissioner of elementary and secondary education or a designee; 1 of whom shall be the commissioner of higher education or a designee; 1 of whom shall be the secretary of labor and workforce development or a designee; 1 of whom shall be appointed by the Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents, Inc.; 1 of whom shall be appointed by the Massachusetts Secondary School Administrators' Association; 1 of whom shall be appointed by the Massachusetts Association of School Committees, Inc.; 1 of whom shall be appointed by the New England Association for College Admission Counseling, Inc.; 1 of whom shall be appointed by the New England Regional Office of the College Board; 1 of whom shall be a guidance director who shall be appointed by the Massachusetts Association of Vocational Administrators, Inc.; and 1 of whom shall be appointed by the Massachusetts School Counselors Association, Inc.
The committee shall report to the general court the results of its investigation and study and any recommendations by filing the same with the clerks of the house of representatives and the senate who shall forward the same to the chairs of the joint committee on education and the chairs of the house and senate committees on ways and means on or before December 31, 2015.
Approved, January 6, 2015.