Section 4358. Protection of pupils

The department shall:
    (a)  Promulgate regulations concerning standards for the protection of
  children in residential care  from  abuse  and  maltreatment,  including
  procedures for:
    (i)  consistent  with appropriate collective bargaining agreements and
  applicable  provisions  of  the  civil  service  law,  the  review   and
  evaluation  of  the  backgrounds  of and the information supplied by any
  person applying to be an employee,  a  volunteer  or  consultant,  which
  shall include but not be limited to the following requirements: that the
  applicant  set forth his or her employment history, provide personal and
  employment  references  and  relevant   experiential   and   educational
  information,   and   sign  a  sworn  statement  indicating  whether  the
  applicant, to the best of his or her knowledge, has ever been  convicted
  of a crime in this state or any other jurisdiction;
    (ii)  establishing,  for  employees, relevant minimal experiential and
  educational  qualifications,  consistent  with  appropriate   collective
  bargaining  agreements  and  applicable  provisions of the civil service
  law;
    (iii) assuring adequate  and  appropriate  supervision  of  employees,
  volunteers and consultants;
    (iv)   demonstrating   by  a  residential  facility  or  program  that
  appropriate action is taken to assure the safety of  the  child  who  is
  reported  to  the  state  central  register as well as other children in
  care, immediately upon notification that a  report  of  child  abuse  or
  maltreatment  has  been made with respect to a child in such facility or
  program;
    (v) removing a child when it is determined that there is risk to  such
  child if he or she continues to remain within a facility or program; and
    (vi)  appropriate preventive and remedial action to be taken including
  legal actions, consistent with appropriate collective bargaining  agree-
  ments and applicable provisions of the civil service law.
    Such  standards  shall also establish as a priority requirements that:
  (A)  subject  to  the  amounts  appropriated  therefor,  administrators,
  employees,  volunteers  and consultants receive training in at least the
  following:  child  abuse  prevention  and  identification,  safety   and
  security  procedures,  the  principles of child development, the charac-
  teristics of  children  in  care  and  techniques  of  group  and  child
  management  including  crisis  intervention,  the  laws, regulations and
  procedures  governing  the  protection  of  children  from   abuse   and
  maltreatment,  and  other appropriate topics, provided however, that the
  department  may  exempt  administrators  and   consultants   from   such
  requirements upon demonstration of substantially equivalent knowledge or
  experience; and
    (B)  subject  to  the  amounts appropriated therefor, children receive
  instruction, consistent with their age, needs and circumstances as  well
  as  the  needs  and  circumstances  of  the  facility, in techniques and
  procedures which will enable such children to  protect  themselves  from
  abuse and maltreatment.
    The  department  shall  take  all  reasonable and necessary actions to
  assure  that  employees,  volunteers  and  consultants  in   residential
  facilities  and  programs  are  kept  apprised on a current basis of all
  department  policies  and  procedures  relating  to  the  protection  of
  children from abuse and maltreatment and shall monitor and supervise the
  provision  of  training  to  such administrators, employees, volunteers,
  children and consultants. Regulations and standards  developed  pursuant
  to  this section shall, to the extent possible, be consistent with those
  promulgated by other state agencies for such purposes;

    (b) Cooperate with the state department of social services to  protect
  the  health  and safety of pupils at the school pursuant to title six of
  article six of the social services law. Such cooperation shall  include:
  the  making of reports of alleged child abuse or maltreatment; providing
  necessary  assistance  to the state department of social services in the
  department's investigation thereof and considering  the  recommendations
  of  the  state department of social services for preventive and remedial
  action including legal action and  provide  or  direct  the  residential
  facility  to  provide  such  written reports to the department of social
  services as to the implementation of plans of prevention and remediation
  approved by the department; and
    (c) Provide for the  development  and  implementation  of  a  plan  of
  prevention  and remediation with respect to an indicated report of child
  abuse or maltreatment. Such action shall include: (i) within ten days of
  receipt  of  an  indicated  report  of  child  abuse  or   maltreatment,
  development  and  implementation of a plan of prevention and remediation
  to be taken with respect to a custodian or the residential  facility  in
  order  to  assure  the  continued  health  and safety of children and to
  provide for the prevention of future acts of abuse or maltreatment;  and
  (ii)  development  and  implementation  of  a  plan  of  prevention  and
  remediation, in the event an investigation of a report of alleged  child
  abuse or maltreatment determines that some credible evidence of abuse or
  maltreatment  exists and such abuse or maltreatment may be attributed in
  whole or in part to noncompliance by the residential facility or program
  with provisions  of  this  chapter  or  regulations  of  the  department
  applicable to the operation of such residential facility or program. Any
  plan  of prevention and remediation required to be developed pursuant to
  paragraph (ii) of this subdivision  by  a  facility  supervised  by  the
  department  shall  be  submitted  to  and  approved by the department in
  accordance  with  time  limits  established  by   regulations   of   the
  department.    Implementation  of  the  plan  shall  be monitored by the
  department. In reviewing the continued qualifications of  a  residential
  facility  or  program for an operating certificate, the department shall
  evaluate  such  facility's  compliance  with  plans  of  prevention  and
  remediation developed and implemented pursuant to this subdivision.