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Ohio House Bill 123, also known as the Safety and Violence Education Students Act (SAVE Students), requires school districts to provide one hour, or one standard class period, of instruction to students in grades 6 through 12 on the following topics:

• Suicide awareness and prevention

• Safety training and violence prevention

• Social inclusion

Local boards must use a training program approved by the Ohio Department of Education which can be found at THIS website. Parents may opt out of the instruction. 

On May 17, 2023, the ESC of Northeast Ohio hosted a virtual session providing districts the opportunity to share their implementation plans for HB 123. The session recording can be accessed by clicking here and entering the following passcode: 2JyGR6D. (Note: the period must be included when entering the passcode).

The Brooklyn City School district’s comprehensive plan for meeting the HB 123 requirements is outlined below. 

SUICIDE PREVENTION

Erika’s Lighthouse (video-based instruction)

• Grades 4 and 5

  • Present Level 1 program, “We All Have Mental Health,” once per year, by school counselor in classroom SEL lessons.

• Grades 6-8    

  • Present Level 2 program, “Depression Awareness,” twice per year by Mental Health Coordinator during Intervention/Enrichment class.

• Grades 9-12

  • Present Level 3 program, “Depression Education and Suicide Awareness,” four times per year by Mental Health Coordinator during Intervention/Enrichment class.  

• Students receiving online learning will also receive instruction.

VIOLENCE PREVENTION

Sandy Hook Promise’s Say Something

• Age-appropriate videos will be presented to grades 6-12 once a year by the Mental Health Coordinator during the Intervention/Enrichment class period.

SOCIAL INCLUSION

Sandy Hook Promise’s Sandy Hook Start with Hello

• Grades K-7

  • Appropriate video lessons taught once per year by the school counselor during SEL lessons.

• Grades 8-12

  • Video lessons taught once per year by the school counselor during grade level meetings.

• District-wide spirit week will reinforce lesson material.

If your district would like assistance in developing a plan to meet the requirements for this bill, reach out to Denise Pietrzak at [email protected].