Florida & Federal Legal Compliance

ACE-to-BASE™ Statutory Alignment & Student Protections

ACE-to-BASE™ is a prevention-first educational Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) framework that operates fully inside Florida education law, school safety law, early-learning statutes, and federal civil-rights protections.

It is not an experimental program and not a medical or mental-health treatment service. It is legally structured as Tier-1 universal prevention for schools and communities.

What Laws ACE-to-BASE™ Aligns With

ACE-to-BASE™ is designed to comply with and support:

• Florida K–20 Education Code (Title XLVIII)
  
  

• Florida MTSS & Student Services Law
  
  

• Florida School Safety & Mental Health Initiatives
  
  

• Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act
  
  

• Florida Early Learning & School Readiness Statutes
  
  

• Federal Disability & Civil Rights Law:
  
  

  • Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
    
    

  • Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act
    
    

  • Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)
    
    

How ACE-to-BASE™ Meets Florida Education Law

ACE-to-BASE™ functions as a universal Tier-1 student wellness and prevention framework, which means:

• All students may participate (no diagnosis required)
  
  

• Instruction is non-punitive and non-disciplinary
  
  

• Emotional regulation and SEL skills are taught before crisis occurs
  
  

• Family engagement and school readiness are supported
  
  

• Student privacy is protected under FERPA and Florida law
  
  

• Program design aligns with district authority under the
  Florida Department of Education
  
  

MTSS & Student Services Compliance

Florida law requires districts to use a Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) with Tier-1 universal prevention first.

ACE-to-BASE™ fulfills this requirement by:

• Operating as Tier-1 universal emotional-regulation and SEL instruction
  
  

• Supporting early identification of emotional risk without labeling
  
  

• Preventing unnecessary Tier-2 and Tier-3 escalation
  
  

• Protecting districts from “wait-to-fail” liability
  
  

School Safety & Mental-Health Compliance

Florida school-safety law requires:

• Early identification of emotional and behavioral risk
  
  

• Staff mental-health awareness training
  
  

• Threat-assessment and student-support systems
  
  

ACE-to-BASE™ supports these mandates by:

• Teaching students to regulate emotions before escalation
  
  

• Training adults in trauma-informed, de-escalation-focused responses
  
  

• Reducing behavior that leads to suspensions, law-enforcement referrals, and crisis removals
  
  

This strengthens prevention-based school safety, not punishment-based safety.

Early Learning & School Readiness Compliance

Florida early-learning statutes require support for:

• Emotional development
  
  

• Social skills
  
  

• Family engagement
  
  

• Kindergarten readiness
  
  

ACE-to-BASE™ begins in early childhood, ensuring children develop:

• Emotional awareness
  
  

• Self-regulation
  
  

• Safe peer interaction
  
  

• School readiness skills before entering K-12
  
  

ADA, Section 504 & IDEA Compliance

ACE-to-BASE™ is accessible by design and supports students with disabilities through:

• Universal Design for Learning (UDL)
  
  

• Non-punitive, non-exclusionary participation
  
  

• Neurodivergent-safe pacing and presentation
  
  

• Captioning and accessible digital formats
  
  

It supports IDEA’s early-intervention and least-restrictive-environment requirements and protects districts from civil-rights violations.

What This Means for Parents & Caregivers

• ACE-to-BASE™:
  
  

  • ✅ Is not a diagnosis
    
    

  • ✅ Is not therapy
    
    

  • ✅ Is not a disciplinary program
    
    

  • ✅ Protects student privacy
    
    

  • ✅ Is accessible to children with disabilities
    
    

• Program participation is protected by:
  
  

  • FERPA
    
    

  • ADA
    
    

  • Section 504
    
    

  • Florida education law
    
    

Parents retain all legal rights at all times.

What This Means for Schools & Districts

ACE-to-BASE™ helps districts:

• Meet MTSS Tier-1 prevention requirements
  
  

• Support student services mandates
  
  

• Strengthen school safety compliance
  
  

• Use mental-health funding lawfully
  
  

• Reduce:
  
  

  • Discipline escalation
    
    

  • ESE over-referral
    
    

  • Civil-rights exposure
    
    

  • Failure-to-intervene liability
    
    

What This Means for Legislators & Policymakers

ACE-to-BASE™ is:

• Already authorized under existing Florida law
  
  

• Aligned with school-safety and youth mental-health policy
  
  

• Fully compliant with federal civil-rights protections
  
  

• Designed for rural and underserved districts
  
  

• Structured to reduce:
  
  

  • Medicaid behavioral-health costs
    
    

  • Juvenile-justice pipeline entry
    
    

  • Long-term public-system dependency
    
    

This is prevention-first public infrastructure, not a discretionary add-on.

Plain-Language Legal Summary

ACE-to-BASE™ is:

✅ Legal under Florida education law
✅ Aligned with school-safety mandates
✅ ADA, Section 504, and IDEA compliant
✅ Structured as MTSS Tier-1 prevention
✅ FERPA-protected and non-diagnostic
✅ Designed for early learning through high school

It exists to protect children, schools, families, and public systems — legally and clinically.

Educational-Only Legal Disclaimer

ACE-to-BASE™ is an educational Social-Emotional Learning and prevention framework.
It does not provide medical care, mental-health treatment, psychotherapy, diagnosis, or clinical services and does not create a provider–patient or therapist–client relationship.

In any medical or mental-health emergency, families should contact local emergency services or a licensed healthcare provider.