Documents › Board of Education, 2026-02-12

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Also attached to this agenda item: Policy 1050--Annual District Election and Budget Vote... Policy 1230--Public Comment at Board Meetings FOR... Policy 2120.2--Voting Procedures FOR SECOND READING 2-12-26 Policy 2210--Board Organizational Meeting FOR SECOND...

5420.1 CONCUSSION MANAGEMENT The Board of Education recognizes that concussions and head injuries can have serious consequences and must be managed carefully and immediately. The district is committed to the safety of all students, and to ensuring that students who have suffered a concussion are permitted to return to school or extra-curricular or co-curricular activities only when, and to the extent that, they are medically able to do so. Concussion Management Team The District will establish a District Concussion Management Team (CMT). The CMT will consist of the Athletic Director, the school nurses assigned to each school in the district, and the School Physician, as well as other staff members as designated by the Superintendent. The District’s CMT will coordinate training for all administrators, teachers, coaches, and parents, and will be responsible for administering the concussion management protocol for any student who has suffered a concussion. Education Concussion education should be provided for all administrators, teachers, coaches, school nurses, athletic trainers and guidance counselors. Information on the identification and management of concussions will be made available to staff, students and parents on the district’s website. Concussion education is mandatory for all coaches, assistant coaches, and volunteer coaches that work with student athletes, and each coach, assistant coach, and volunteer coach must sign an acknowledgement that they have read and understand the District’s concussion management policy and the concussion guidelines and they accept the responsibility of referring any student-athlete suspected of having sustained a concussion to the athletic trainer or, in their absence, to the school nurse. Parents need to be aware of the school district’s policy and how these injuries will ultimately be managed by school officials. Education of parents of student-athletes will be accomplished through preseason meetings for parents of students participating in a sport and/or information sheets provided to parents, as well as through posting of information on the District’s website. The District website will include information regarding concussions and current guidelines on concussion management and/or information on how to access such information from the websites of the New York State Education Department, the New York State Department of Health, and/or the Centers for Disease Control. Education of students, including student-athletes, about concussions will be provided as appropriate. Education will include, but not be limited to the definition of concussion, signs and symptoms of concussion, how concussions may occur, why concussions are not detected with CT scans or MRIs, management of the injury, and the protocol for return to school and return to participation in extracurricular or co-curricular activities or interscholastic athletics. In addition, staff, parents, and students will be provided information about available resources for concussion information, management and treatment. Deleted: shall Deleted: shall Deleted: shall Deleted: shall Deleted: Training should be Deleted: shall Deleted: newsletters and publications to parents Deleted: , including student-athletes, shall Deleted: shall Deleted: Scans Deleted: shall Concussion Management Protocol The Concussion Management Protocol applies to all students returning to school after suffering a injury that resulted in or is suspected of having resulted in a concussion regardless of whether the incident from which a concussion was sustained occurred outside of school or while participating in a school activity. An individual who is observed to, or is suspected of, suffering a significant blow to the head or body, has fallen from any height, or collides hard with another person or object, may have suffered a concussion. Symptoms of a concussion may appear immediately, may become evident in a few hours, or may evolve and worsen over a few days. Any student demonstrating signs, symptoms, or behaviors consistent with a concussion while participating in a school-sponsored class, extracurricular activity or interscholastic athletic activity will be immediately removed from the class, activity or competition and be evaluated as soon as possible by an appropriate health care professional. If there is any doubt whether a student has sustained a head injury, it should be treated as a concussion until proved otherwise. The District will take steps to notify the student’s parents and/or guardians as soon as possible and will serve as a resource for the student’s parent(s)/guardian(s). If a student sustains a concussion at a time other then when engaged in a school-sponsored activity, the District expects that the student and/or the student’s parent/guardian to report the condition to the school nurse so that the District can ensure that the student does not participate in educational or cocurricular/extracurricular activities, including athletics, that would be inconsistent with the student’s treatment for the concussion and to support the appropriate management of the condition. Appropriate members of the CMT, including the school nurse of the school attended by the student, will act as a liaison for any student returning to school and/or to participation in any cocurricular or extracurricular activity, including athletics, following a concussion. These CMT members will review and/or design an appropriate plan for the student while the student is recovering. Return of Students to Classroom Activities The school nurse will notify the student’s teachers and guidance counselor that the student has sustained a concussion. A student returning to school must report to the school nurse at the beginning of the first day back to school. Teachers will make accommodations that minimize aggravating symptoms so that the student has sufficient cognitive rest. The nurse will provide information from the private medical provider regarding limitations on the student during the recovery phase. Return of Students to Physical Education Class and Cocurricular Activities and Student Athletes to Practice or Competition Deleted: shall Deleted: , Deleted: shall Deleted: should No student or student athlete will be allowed to return to physical education classes or to participate on an athletic team on the day of injury that has caused or is suspected of causing a concussion and all students and student athletes must obtain appropriate medical clearance prior to returning to physical education classes or participation on an interscholastic team or other athletic activity. Return to physical education class, a cocurricular activity, or athletic practice or competition following a concussion involves a step-by-step progression until and after the individual is symptom free. There are many risks to premature return to play including: a greater risk for a second concussion because of a lower concussion threshold, second impact syndrome (abnormal brain blood flow that can result in death), exacerbation of any current symptoms, and possibly increased risk for additional injury due to alteration in balance. No student will be permitted to return to physical education class or to cocurricular activities and no student athlete will be permitted to return to participation on a team while symptomatic. Once the student or student athlete is symptom free at rest for 24 hours and has been seen by a licensed physician and been provided with a written and signed authorization by the licensed physician, in the case of a student athlete, also been provided clearance by the School Physician, they may begin the return to physical education class or to participate on an interscholastic athletic team in accordance with a return-to-full-activities progression that shall be consistent with the Guidelines for Concussion Management in Schools issued by the New York State Education Department. The School Physician will make the final decision on return to activity including physical education class and after school sports and other cocurricular activities. A copy of the authorization from the licensed physician and of the clearance by the School Physician will be maintained in the student’s permanent health record. Depending on the severity of the head injury and individual circumstances of the student, appropriate modifications may be made to the student’s participation in school in an effort to reduce the risk of re-injury and promote recovery. The District will follow any directives issued by the student’s treating physician with regard to limitations and restrictions on school attendance and activities in which the student may participate, unless otherwise directed by the School Physician. Collaboration and communication between and among appropriate members of the CMT, private health care professionals and parent(s)/guardian(s) of the student will help ensure the development and implementation of an appropriate concussion management plan for the student. Cross-ref: 5420, Student Health Services 5420-R, Student Health Services Regulation 5280, Interscholastic Athletics Deleted: play Deleted: stepwise Deleted: once Deleted: shall Deleted: shall Deleted: If there is any doubt as to whether a student has sustained a concussion, it should be treated as a concussion. … Commented [NH2]: Removed because this is stated in the previous section. Commented [NH3]: Removed because this is included in the previous section. Deleted: a signed release by the treating clinician Deleted: she/he Deleted: the Deleted: below (provided there are no other mitigating circumstances)… Deleted: For student-athletes, the return to play progression shall include the following steps:¶ Deleted: Day 1: Light aerobic activity¶ Day 2: Sport-specific activity¶ Day 3: Non-contact training drills¶ Day 4: Full contact practice¶ Day 5: Return to play Deleted: Each step shall take a minimum of 24 hours so that a student or athlete will take approximately a minimum of one week to proceed through the full rehabilitation protocol once they are asymptomatic at rest. If any post concussion symptoms occur while in the stepwise program, then the student should drop back to the previous asymptomatic level and try to progress again after a further 24-hour period of rest has passed. Any student who continues to have signs or symptoms upon return to play must be removed from the activity and reevaluated by their health care provider. A certified athletic trainer or school nurse will implement the students post concussion return protocol and work with individual students to assess their rehabilitation level. Ref: Concussion Management and Awareness Act (Chapter 496 of the Laws of 2011) Education Law § 305(42) Public Health Law § 2595 8 NYCRR §§ 135.4, 136.5 NYSPHSAA Concussion Management Support Materials and Guidelines Guidelines for Concussion Management in Schools, New York State Education Department, Office of Student Support Services (July 2023) Adoption Date: April 11, 2013 Revised: _____________ FOR SECOND READING 2-12-26 [REVISION; ADDITIONS AND DELETIONS SHOWN IN TRACK CHANGES] Deleted: the School Setting Deleted: June Deleted: 2012