Alabama high school students may soon be required to learn about violence prevention, conflict resolution and mediation before graduating if a bill proposed by Sen. Rodger Smitherman, D-Birmingham, becomes law.
Smitherman filed SB34 earlier this week, directing the Department of Education to develop learning standards and provide teacher training for these courses.
Requirements
The requirement would begin with students in the ninth grade at the start of the 2026–27 school year. The bill requires “discussion of or instruction in all of the following”:
- “Responsible decision-making,
- The causes and effects of school violence and harassment, cultural diversity and nonviolent methods for resolving conflict, including peer mediation,
- The consequences of violent behavior,
- The causes of violent reactions to conflict,
- Nonviolent conflict resolution techniques,
- The relationship between drugs, alcohol and violence,
- The implementation of voluntary peer mediation programs and the integration of conflict resolution models in classrooms.”
Local boards would be allowed to choose their own curriculum under the bill’s requirements.
Other bills addressing violence prevention
Smitherman also introduced four other bills addressing violence prevention. Two focus on gun-related issues, one requires couples getting married to complete a conflict resolution class and another mandates life without parole for certain offenses involving machine guns.
Smitherman could not be immediately reached for comment.
The proposed legislation comes as Birmingham grapples with a persistent gun violence crisis. The city recorded 151 homicides in 2024, breaking its record, according to AL.com. Smitherman’s push for violence prevention education reflects growing concern about the impact of brutality for some Alabama communities and schools.
Rep. Phillip Ensler, D-Montgomery, recently secured $200,000 in state funding to continue a conflict resolution program at Montgomery’s Percy Julian High School for a second year.
EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was written by Trisha Powell Crain and originally published by Alabama Daily News. It is reprinted with permission.
Share with others: