H.B. 253 - Prevent Students From Harm Act

• Requires local boards of education to incorporate character education instruction addressing eight traits (courage, good judgment, integrity, kindness, perseverance, respect, responsibility, and self-discipline) at all grade levels, beginning with the 2023-2024 school year.

• Mandates that bullying and harassment policies include character education instruction or conflict resolution/mediation as remedial consequences, and adds bullying and harassing behavior to school safety responsibilities.

• Authorizes nonprofit organizations with over 10 years of experience in research-based child sexual abuse prevention curriculum to provide the required two-hour child sexual abuse and sex trafficking training programs for school personnel.

• Adds age-appropriate resources, skills, and strategies for suicide prevention to the mental and emotional health component of health education curriculum, and requires abuse and neglect prevention information including resources for reporting abuse.

• All provisions take effect immediately upon enactment, with character education and health education updates applying beginning the 2023-2024 school year.