House Bill 254 is a simple bill but it could save lives. It requires all public schools with students in grades 7-12 that already issue student identification cards to have printed on the identification cards the telephone or text numbers for the National Suicide Prevention and National Domestic Violence Hotlines and allows them to add the National Sexual Assault, Teen Dating Violence and Bullying Hotlines’.
I would change this bill in two ways: 1) require all students to have ID cards in Delaware public schools, from grades 1 to 12, and 2) put the numbers on all the cards for grades 1 to 12.
House Bill 254 Sponsors | Yes Votes | No Votes |
Griffith, Baumbach, Chukwuocha, Heffernan, K.Johnson, Mitchell, Moore, Morrison, K.Williams, Briggs King, M.Smith | ||
McBride, Brown, Sokola | ||
Current Status: Out of Committee |
Lead sponsor Repesentative Krista Griffith: “Tragically, a growing number of our young people have their lives upended by dating violence, sexual assault, and mental health crises. This is a trend we need to stop- and vulnerable people must get the help they need in these situations. To help connect students to life-saving resources, I’ve introduced legislation that would require public secondary schools and higher education institutions to include crisis hotline numbers on student identification cards.
With the contact information for the National Suicide Prevention Hotline, the National Domestic Violence Hotlines, and local campus police at their fingertips, students will have direct access to the help they need.I’m pleased that HB 254 received unanimous support in the House Education Committee, and I look forward to seeing this important legislation advance through the General Assembly.”
This came out of recommendations by domestic violence and mental health professionals – always nice to see frontline worker recommendations adopted!