Des Moines, Iowa — The Iowa legislature has unanimously approved a bill that requires K through-12 schools to have discipline policies for students who are violent or disruptive.
Senator Lynn Evans, a Republican from Aurelia, represents Osceola, O’Brien, and Buena Vista counties and parts of Clay and Cherokee counties, and is a former superintendent.
In March, the House voted to require in-school suspensions any time a student is removed from a classroom due to violent behavior. Last month, the Senate adjusted the bill giving schools more latitude, but requiring escalating discipline for students who are disruptive or violent. The House has now approved those changes and sent the bill to the governor. Representative Brook Boden, a Republican from Indianola, says lawmakers are responding to teachers, support staff, parents, and administrators.
The bill will allow educators to report incidents of classroom violence or the destruction of school property to the State Ombudsman for investigation. Representative Sharon Steckman, a Democrat from Mason City, is a retired teacher who suggests the bill is a good first step to addressing the problem.
Senator Molly Donahue, a Democrat, is a teacher from Cedar Rapids who urged her peers to back the bill.
A report from the Iowa Department of Education indicates there were nearly two-thousand assaults in Iowa schools during the last school year. Over 11 hundred incidents of property damage were reported.
