The important legislation would ensure Florida schools are ready to respond immediately and effectively if a child with special needs goes missing – and help prevent unthinkable tragedies.
Tallahassee, FL: Representative Anna V. Eskamani and Senator Victor Torres have filed legislation to support Florida children with special needs by ensuring that school districts engage in advance training and planning in case such a child leaves the school campus.
According to the National Autism Association, roughly half of children with an Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) attempt to elope from a safe environment – such as a school. That’s nearly four times higher than the elopement rate for their unaffected siblings. Such elopements can lead to tragedies such as drownings.
Eskamani and Torres’ legislation (HB 1395 and SB 1578) would require every public school in Florida to designate School Staff Assistance for Emergencies Teams that would be responsible for elopement preparation and response. Each school SAFE Team — which must, at a minimum, include the school’s principal, vice principal and at least five other members – would be tasked with creating school elopement plans to be implemented if a student with special needs elopes from the school campus.
School elopement plans, which would have to be updated at least once a year, would have to include:
- A search grid of the school campus and surrounding areas, including bodies of water, intersections, train tracks and stations, parks, playgrounds and other features that may pose a risk for students with special needs;
- Procedures for school personnel to notify school administrators and safety officers if a student with special needs elopes and to immediately initiate a search;
- Instructions to initiate a “Code Gray,” which will alert all school personnel of the elopement, and to immediately contact the student’s parent;
- The names, positions and contact info of all members of the SAFE Team
School SAFE Teams would also be required to provide training to all school personnel to familiarize them with the details of the school’s elopement plan. And if a school has a student with disabilities who is prone to elopement, the SAFE Team would be required to work directly with the student’s parent to create a student-specific elopement reference guide, which must include a current photograph of the student as well as important details such as the student’s level of communication, health concerns, and interests, behaviors, preferences or aversions.
“There is nothing scarier for a parent than not being able to find their child. And that fear is magnified when your child has special needs. This legislation will help ease those fears – and prevent unthinkable tragedies – should a child with special needs elope from their school,” said Representative Eskamani. “Our schools should be safe and supportive spaces for all children with special needs, and their families.”
“As a father, grandfather and now great-grandfather I know nothing is more precious to us than our children and family members,“ said Senator Torres. “I am hopeful this bill will make special needs children safer in our schools, decrease instances of student elopements and avoid future loss of lives for these families.”
Monica Carretero is a Florida Mom of a child with autism. Her child was diagnosed in 2015 at the age of three, and began to develop a habit of eloping from his home. Once, he eloped from his school classroom and was found at the outdoor basketball court. Monica was eventually notified about this, and as a member of a special need’s advocacy group, felt compelled to do more to ensure the safety of all kids.
“I constantly learn of neurodiverse children eloping from classrooms. In some instances, the children have been found miles away. In other occasions, children are found too late, resulting in physical harm or, in some instances, death,” stressed Monica. “As a society, we need to be more assertive in protecting the needs, safety, and dignity of the neurodiverse population. All special needs students in Florida deserve the same protection. All schools should be equally safe for all special needs students, and that is why I fully support this bill.”