Sarah Eagan, Connecticut's Child Advocate, said this legislative session accomplished a lot for children.
"With this really difficult budget year, I think there was some very significant initiatives that were passed that will help children and their families," Eagan said.
Some of the bills awaiting Governor Dannel Malloy's signature include requiring the Commissioner of the Department of Children and Families to study the policies and procedures it uses to protect vulnerable children from unexpected death or critical injury.
Eagan said another bill eliminates restraints and seclusion for children-- a practice she said that is traumatic for children and school staff.
"The bill markedly reduces the utilization of restraint and seclusion and seeks to offer training and other tools to educators and administrators to avoid having to rely on restraint and seclusion in the first place," Eagan said.
Another school-related bill will prevent the expulsion and suspension of children in preschool through second grade. Eagan said Connecticut Department of Education data shows this type of discipline for young children has gone up in recent years with over 1000 incidents in the last school year.
"That is something that is not good policy and practice for kids, or teachers, or the state. Because everything we know about taking kids out of school particularly at a very young age is that it leads to very poor educational, academic, social, and emotional outcomes for children," Eagan said. "And so, it's imperative that we find effective alternatives to reduce and prevent problem behaviors, and avoid reliance on having kids removed from school in order to address those issues."
The legislation only allows suspensions and expulsions for extreme behavior, like bringing a firearm to school. Eagan also applauded the General Assembly for approvinga bill that will clarify the right of access to necessary mental health care for children.
One of the bills the Child Advocate would have liked to see pass was one that called for a change in current law that permits the state child welfare agency to transfer a child not charged or convicted of an adult crime to an adult prison. In 2014, DCF used a rare statute when asking a judge to approve the transfer of a 16-year-old transgender girl to York Correctional Institution, the state's women's prison. The case of Jane Doe received national attention and many criticized the state for its actions.
DCF Commissioner Joette Katz maintains the state did the right thing to protect other juveniles and its staff from harm because the teenager had a history of violence. Jane Doe has since been moved into a community placement.
