SB 2357

Until July 1, 2029, this bill establishes the Tennessee council for research of deaf, deaf-blind, and hard of hearing children ("council"") within the department of health. The council consists of 17 members five appointed by the governor who are deaf, de af-blind, or hard of hearing; (ii) five members appointed by the speaker of the senate who are parents or legal guardians of a deaf, deaf-blind, or hard of hearing child or individuals who have experience working with children who are deaf, deaf-blind, or h ard of hearing; (iii) one member appointed by the speaker of the senate who is a deaf early intervention professional for children from birth to age three; (iv) four members appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives who are deaf, deaf-blind, or hard of hearing; and (v) two members appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives who are parents or legal guardians of a deaf, deaf-blind, or hard of hearing child or individuals who have experience working with deaf, deaf-blind, or hard o f hearing children. This bill provides that the appointed members that are individuals who have experience working with children who are deaf, deaf-blind, or hard of hearing may be any of the following:  A credentialed teacher who uses both ASL and English during instruction to deaf students.  A credentialed teacher who uses spoken English with or without visual supplements during instruction to deaf students.  A credentialed, deaf pediatric teacher of deaf students or an ASL specialist who has expertise in curriculum development and instruction of ASL and English .  A credentialed pediatric teacher who has expertise in evaluating and assessing language development in both ASL and English of deaf students .  A speech language pathologist who is fluent in ASL and English with experience working with children from birth to age 10.  A professional with a linguistic background who conducts research on language outcomes of birth to school aged-children who are deaf or hard of hearing and use ASL and English .  A community member who is knowledgeable about teaching and using both ASL and English in the education of children who are deaf, deaf-blind, or hard of hearing .  An interpreter for the deaf with national certification from the Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf (RID), achieved the highest score on the educational interpreter performance assessment, and has multiple years of experience in preschool, elementary, and secondary educational settings .  The department of health, newborn hearing screening or early hearing detection and intervention (EHDI) administrator .  The coordinator of the Tennessee school for the deaf's (TSD) deaf mentor and parent advisor program .  The director of the Tennessee school for the deaf .  The executive director of a parent organization .  The president of the Tennessee Association of the Deaf .  The assistant commissioner of the Tennessee Early Intervention System (TEIS ).  An individual representative from the department of health's legislative research department .  The coordinator or representative from the centers of excellence in early childhood. This bill requires the appointing authorities to ensure that members include representatives across early intervention, K-12 education, linguistics, audiology, and family advocacy. All council members must be appointed by August 31, 2026. Members must serve without compensation but are eligible for reimbursement for travel expenses. The first meeting of the council must occur by September 15, 2026. DUTIES OF THE COUNCIL This bill requires the council to identify the number of deaf, deaf-blind, and hard of hearing children from birth to age 10 in this state who have an audiological diagnosis without the child's assistive listening devices worn during an assessment, along with such child's race, sex, and zip code. The council must also identify and recommend (i) assessment tools that are designed to assess the language development of deaf, deaf-blind, and hard of hearing children from birth to age 10; (ii) a fully access ib le assessment practice compliant with the federal Disabilities Education Act for testing language levels of deaf, deaf-blind, and hard of hearing children in American sign language and English; and (iii) qualifications needed for an individual administeri ng an assessment tool to ensure such individual is qualified. This bill also requires the council to make recommendations for (i) specific language criteria to be used consistently and regularly to assess the language developmental milestones of each deaf, deaf-blind, and hard of hearing child from birth to age 10; (ii) a design and criteria for a data system that tracks each deaf, deaf-blind, and hard of hearing child from birth to age 10; (iii) a design to identify specific, key criteria of language gaps and how to provide notice for a need of immediate intervent io n; (iv) protocols to establish an annual data reporting system; and (v) a parent resource guide to be distributed to families upon identification of a child's hearing status and entrance into a program and early intervention and academic setting. This bill requires the council to comply with all state and federal privacy laws in effectuating its duties. Further, the council must compile a report of its findings and recommendations and submit such to the department of health by July 1, 2029. The council terminates upon the submission of this report."