South Cook News

State Sen. John Curran (R-Downers Grove) said that Illinois has put into force a bill to create an additional shield of prevention against potential violence in schools.

The Illinois legislature has passed Senate Bill 3936, which mandates that the Illinois State Police (ISP) join together with additional government agencies in dealing with individuals with mental health issues who have expressed thoughts about attacking others at school, according to Curran's e-newsletter. The legislation builds on Illinois' already in force Safe2Help program, which gives students a hotline to send in tips about alarming activities at their school.

"As lawmakers, we must do everything we can to ensure the safety of school children," Curran said. "To provide an additional tool to school officials and law enforcement, legislation was recently signed into law that refines and improves a statewide hotline that can receive reports from the public regarding potential self-harm or criminal acts directed at schools, teachers, or students. Calls into the hotline would be confidential." 

Curran also drew attention to several other new bills pertaining to schools and students, such as Senate Bill 157, which decreases the sales tax on clothes and school supplies from 6.25% to 1.25% between Aug. 5 and 14. House Bill 4316 adds a layer of protection against teachers who have engaged in or been credibly accused of sexual misconduct by mandating that superintendents let parents and the school board know. The law also requires school boards to review the employment histories of new hires to verify that the teachers have not been previously fired for sexual misconduct.

House Bill 3296 tries to enhance career exploration and development activities for students by providing opportunities for districts to develop and implement programs through which older students can explore a variety of high-skill, in-demand career fields.