A bill for an act relating to school personnel training, including by implementing provisions related to emergency care planning, authorizations for assisting, and limitations of liability concerning students with epilepsy or seizure disorder, and requiring the department of education to convene a health care-related training for school personnel work group.(Formerly SF 111.)
SF 368 would add detailed requirements for Iowa public schools and accredited nonpublic schools regarding students with epilepsy or seizure disorders. Beginning with the 2025-26 school year, each school would need at least one employee at each school trained to administer or assist with seizure rescue medication and vagus nerve stimulator use, with a full-time school nurse able to satisfy that requirement. The bill also requires schools to provide seizure recognition and first-aid training to all school personnel by December 31, 2026, and to repeat training for staff responsible for student supervision or care every two years.
The bill further requires parent or guardian authorization before seizure medication assistance is provided, directs schools to collaborate with families and health professionals on individual health plans and seizure action plans when requested, and requires schools to keep those documents on file and share relevant plan information with staff responsible for the student. It also directs the state board of education to create an optional age-appropriate seizure education program and requires state training guidance to align with Epilepsy Foundation of America standards. In addition, the bill grants liability protection to schools and employees acting reasonably, in good faith, and in compliance with a student’s health plan and seizure action plan, and it creates a Department of Education work group to review broader health-related training requirements for school personnel and report recommendations by December 1, 2025.
The bill would amend Iowa Code by creating a new section on seizure action plans and training requirements for schools, while also directing the state board of education to adopt rules for seizure education programming and plan-related procedures. It would impose new operational duties on school districts and accredited nonpublic schools, especially those serving students with known epilepsy or seizure disorders or students taking seizure medication, and it would establish a statutory immunity provision for compliant school personnel and schools. The bill also requires the Department of Education to convene a multi-stakeholder work group and submit recommendations to the legislature, governor, and state board, potentially influencing future training mandates and rulemaking beyond seizure-related issues.
The bill appears to have been generally favorable in committee, as reflected by the 14-1 Senate Education report vote. The structure of the bill suggests broad support for improving school preparedness, student safety, and clarity around seizure-related care, while also trying to reduce liability concerns for staff who act in good faith. The bill was ultimately withdrawn, however, indicating that despite committee support, it did not complete the legislative process in its introduced form.
The main points of contention are likely to have involved the scope and burden of the new training and documentation requirements, especially for schools without full-time nurses and for nonpublic schools that would need to comply. Another likely issue is the balance between allowing school personnel to assist students and limiting duties such as suppository administration to school nurses only. There may also have been concern about the bill’s reliance on outside standards from the Epilepsy Foundation, the breadth of the liability immunity language, and the potential cost and administrative impact of the broader health-care training work group and any future recommendations it generates.