Missouri: Families Against Seclusion and Restraint

Plainfield School Accused of Food Denial, Using ‘Jail Cell’

2010-03-07T11:15:00.001-06:00

Connecticut, March 6, 2010

Withholding food, a “jail cell” time-out room and unnecessary restraint of special education students are among the allegations being made against Shepard Hill Elementary School’s Clinical Day Treatment Program by paraprofessionals, parents and a Board of Education member.

“It’s an ugly mess,” Board of Education Vice Chairwoman Angela Klonoski said. “It’s just been a nightmare.”

The Shepard Hill program is one of five in the district for children with emotional or intellectual disabilities, Plainfield Superintendent of Schools Mary Conway said.

Philip LaFemina, coordinator for the programs, said the Shepard Hill program includes eight students who spend most of their day with the program. It also provides support services for another five to six students who spend most of their day in regular classrooms. He said eight full and part-time paraprofessionals work in the program, though other paraprofessionals assist when students are immersed into classrooms.

Read the complete story here.

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Copy and paste URL: http://www.norwichbulletin.com/news/x324650860/Plainfield-school-accused-of-food-denial-using-jail-cell

House Approves Bill to Protect Schoolchildren from Harmful Restraint and Seclusion

2010-03-03T16:18:00.004-06:00

EDUCATION & LABOR COMMITTEE
Congressman George Miller, Chairman

Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Press Office, 202-226-0853

House Approves Bill to Protect Schoolchildren from Harmful Restraint and Seclusion
GAO Found Hundreds of Cases of Students Being Abused Through Inappropriate Uses of Restraint and Seclusion

WASHINGTON, D.C. – In response to a recent government investigation that found widespread allegations that children were being abused through misuses of restraint and seclusion in classrooms, the U.S. House of Representatives today approved bipartisan legislation to protect children from inappropriate uses of these practices in schools. The Keeping All Students Safe Act (H.R. 4247) passed by a vote of 262 to 153.

A U.S. Government Accountability Office report released last spring exposed hundreds of alleged cases of schoolchildren being abused as a result of inappropriate uses of restraint and seclusion, often involving untrained staff. The victims were children as young as three and four, students with disabilities and without disabilities, who attended both public and private schools. In a number of cases, children died. In some of the cases GAO investigated, ropes, duct tape, and chairs with straps and bungee cords were used to restrain or isolate young children.

“It’s time to end this nightmare of abuse that has hurt too many students, classmates, families and school communities,” said U.S. Rep. George Miller (D-CA), chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee. “This bill simply says that every child, in every school, in every state deserves the same basic level of protections that they currently receive in hospitals.”

“I am genuinely pleased by the House’s bipartisan support for H.R. 4247, the Keeping All Students Safe in Schools Act,” said U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), original sponsor of the legislation. “This critical piece of legislation confronts the unimaginable situation in schools across the country whereby some of our nation’s most vulnerable children are treated in an inhumane and degrading manner. The thousands of incidents reported by GAO and others together with the piecemeal approach taken by the states demonstrates the need for federal guidance. I’ve been proud to work with many organizations and this is a victory for them. I thank Chairman Miller for his leadership and my colleagues for their support. Together, we will work to ensure this bill is passed by the Senate.”

Unlike in hospitals and other community-based facilities that receive federal taxpayer dollars, there are currently no federal laws that address how and when restraint and seclusion can be used on children in public and private schools. GAO also found that improperly trained teachers were too often using these practices as frequent discipline.

Seclusion, as the term is used in this context, means the act of involuntarily confining a student in an area by himself. Restraint is used to restrict an individual’s freedom of movement.

According to a recent report from the U.S. Department of Education, state laws on restraint and seclusion vary widely. Nineteen states have no laws at all. Of the 31 states that do have laws in place, many are not comprehensive enough to protect all students, in every kind of school.

The Keeping All Students Safe Act would establish, for the first time, minimum federal standards to provide equal protections to all students, in every state across the country. It would make clear that physical restraint or locked seclusion should be used only when there is imminent danger of injury and only when imposed by trained staff. It would prohibit mechanical restraints, such as strapping children to chairs, misusing therapeutic equipment to punish students or duct-taping parts of their bodies and any restraint that restricts breathing.

It would also prohibit chemical restraint, which are medications used to control behavior that are not consistent with a doctor’s prescription.

The bill would prohibit school staff from including restraint or seclusion as planned interventions in student’s education plans, known as Individualized Education Programs (IEPs). It would also require schools to notify parents immediately after incidents when restraint or seclusion was used.

In many of the cases GAO examined, parents only learned that their child was being restrained or secluded from a whistle-blowing teacher – or when their child came home bruised.

The legislation would also allow states the flexibility to tailor their individual laws based on their needs: It would ask states to have their own laws in place, within two years, that either meet or exceed these basic federal standards.

Chairman Miller’s prepared remarks - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJk5Y_KTxjQ

Chairman Miller’s closing remarks - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K239Glb77y4

Press release - http://edlabor.house.gov/newsroom/2010/03/houses-approves-bill-to-protec.shtml

Roll call vote - http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2010/roll082.xml

APRAIS Responds to CASE

2010-03-02T11:43:00.003-06:00

APRAIS responds to the Council for American Private Education letter regarding H.R. 4247/S. 2860.

CASE letter: http://nomoseclusion.blogspot.com/2010/02/private-school-perspective-house-poised.html
APRAIS letter: http://www.disabilityscoop.com/reports/100301_APRAIS_letter.pdf

Ahead Of House Vote, Private Schools Seek Restraint, Seclusion Exemption

2010-03-02T11:36:00.001-06:00

disabilityscoop, March 2, 2010

As the House of Representatives prepares to vote Wednesday on legislation to curb restraint and seclusion in schools, private schools are working to block the bill in a move that’s catching disability advocates by surprise.

In a letter to members of the House, a group representing 80 percent of the country’s private schools said they are concerned that provisions of the bill are too far-reaching and could inhibit a teacher from “breaking up a schoolyard dust-up” or “grabbing a child about to dart into the carpool lane at dismissal.” Further, they say private schools should not be subject to this type of federal oversight.

The group called the Council for American Private Education, or CAPE, is asking members of Congress to oppose the legislation.

Read the complete story here.

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Copy and paste URL: http://www.disabilityscoop.com/2010/03/02/ahead-of-house-vote-private-schools-seek-restraint-seclusion-exemption/7189/

Mom: APS Put 1st Grader In Timeout Room All Day, Every Day

2010-03-02T08:00:00.002-06:00

Colorado, March 1, 2010

How long is too long to spend in timeout?

An Aurora woman told 7NEWS that her 7-year-old son’s teacher has been putting him in a timeout room at school for most of the day and has been doing so since last October.

Raven Rainer said her son has Attention Deficit Disorder and that she knew the timeout room could be used if Debran became disruptive in class.

But Rainer said she had no idea Debran would be spending nearly his entire school day in isolation.

Read the complete story here.

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Copy and paste URL: http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/22711633/detail.html

URGENT FEDERAL BILL NEWS ALERT - The House Votes on Wednesday so we need to make calls on Monday 3/1 and Tuesday 3/2!

2010-03-01T09:56:00.000-06:00

URGENT FEDERAL BILL NEWS ALERT - The House Votes on Wednesday so we need to make calls on Monday 3/1 and Tuesday 3/2! Please send this out to all your contacts!!!

ASK CONGRESS: VOTE YES FOR HR 4247, THE PREVENTING HARMFUL RESTRAINT AND SECLUSION IN SCHOOLS ACT!! This week, the House of Representatives will vote on the Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act (HR 4247). CALL YOUR CONGRESSIONAL REPRESENTATIVE THIS WEEK (MONDAY 3/1 AND TUESDAY 3/2 ARE BEST) AND ASK THEM TO VOTE FOR THE BILL. Dial 202-224-3121 (TTY 202-225-1904) and ask for your Representative’s office. See instructions below. Please get your friends and family to call, too!

1) To Find Out Who Your Congressional Representative is go to http://www.house.gov/ top left side of the page and enter your zip code +4 extra zip numbers. (You can find your +4 numbers on the front of your phone or electric bill next to your zip code) You can call your Representative directly or you can call the switchboard number above and ask them to connect you.

2) Call and ask your Representative to VOTE FOR H.R. 4247, the Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act. Also tell your Representative to vote against any amendment that would weaken the bill. If you are unable to call due to disability or other reason, send an email on Monday morning. Calls are very important, though. They immediately show that voters want action. When you call or write, be sure to include the bill’s name, “The Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act,” and its number (H.R. 4247). Also be sure to include your city or town, so they know you are a constituent. The House of Representatives will vote on the bill this week, so its important to call early in the week.

WHY SUPPORT HR 4247? IT IS AN IMPORTANT BILL THAT WILL PREVENT SCHOOLS FROM USING ABUSIVE TACTICS ON SCHOOL CHILDREN. The Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act (HR 4247) is a bill that will stop schools from restraining children, confining them in seclusion rooms, and using aversive interventions to harm them. A Government Accountability Office study found hundreds of cases of alleged abuse and death from restraint and seclusion in public and private schools over the last two decades. Examples included a 7 year old who died after being held face down for hours by school staff; 5 year olds allegedly being tied to chairs with bungee cords and duct tape by their teacher and suffering broken arms and bloody noses; and a 13 year old who hanged himself in a seclusion room after prolonged confinement. The majority of students in the GAO study had disabilities.

HR 4247 will create a minimum level of protection for schoolchildren that all states must meet or exceed. Currently, 23 states have laws with weak or no protections. HR 4247 will prohibit restraint and locked seclusion of schoolchildren unless there is an imminent risk of physical injury that less restrictive interventions would not stop. It will forbid using these abusive techniques as punishment and behavior modification, and to deal with educational disruption and the like. Positive behavioral interventions are the appropriate ways to deal with disruptive behavior. HR 4247 is designed to encourage schools to use positive interventions and de-escalation, instead of abusive tactics. The bill prohibits schools from using mechanical and chemical restraints or restraints the impede breathing. Schools must notify parents within 24 hours if their child is restrained or secluded; schools will not be able to hide abuse any more. The bill bans aversives that hurt health and safety, such as using electric shock, forcing foul substances into the mouth, eyes, or nose of children, denying them food, water and access to the bathroom; and similar actions designed to cause severe pain and trauma.

HR 4247 will protect all students, whether in private or public school. Many children with disabilities are placed in private schools by school districts and they should not lose vital health and safety protections. Other parents choose to send their children to private school for religious or other reasons; they should not be forced to give up protections from abuse. When you call, please ask your Representative to vote against any amendment to exclude private schools from the bill.

For more information about the dangers of restraint and seclusion and H.R. 4247, see http://edlabor.house.gov/blog/2009/12/preventing-harmful-restraint-a.shtml and http://edlabor.house.gov/blog/2010/02/myth-vs-fact-preventing-harmfu.shtml

PLEASE FORWARD AND SHARE THIS ALERT BROADLY.

Barbara R. Trader, MS
Executive Director
TASH: Equity, Opportunity, and Inclusion for People with Disabilities Since 1975
1025 Vermont Ave, NW 3rd Floor
Washington , DC 20005
202-540-9013
btrader@tash.org
www.tash.org

Phyllis Musumeci

Parent Advocate/Founder

Families Against Restraint and Seclusion

http://familiesagainstrestraintandseclusion.blogspot.com/

Florida Families Against Restraint and Seclusion

http://floridafamiliesagainstrestraint.blogspot.com/

Parents: Houston Principal Mishandled Son

2010-02-27T09:58:00.002-06:00

Georgia, February 26, 2010

David and Stephanie Hawk say their 9 year-old son, diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome, had rug burns on his wrists, back, and neck after his principal restrained him for misbehavior.

Houston County Schools Superintendent, David Carpenter would not comment on the specific case, but said staff members are trained to follow the proper techniques of restraint, which he says is only done when the child is a risk to themselves or someone else.

"He was exhausted and panting, and screaming that his skin was on fire," said Stephanie Hawk. " As a mother you just want to take them and run."

Read the complete story here.

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Copy and paste URL: http://www.41nbc.com/news/1002261564773/parents-houston-principal-mishandled-son

Special Needs Teacher Charged

2010-02-26T15:49:00.001-06:00

Nebraska, February 26, 2010

A 53-year-old Council Bluffs teacher is facing multiple counts of assault and child endangerment involving a special needs student.

The teacher, Donna M. Thomas, turned herself in to authorities on Thursday and was released on her own recognizance after appearing before a judge.

Thomas is a special education teacher at Thomas Jefferson High School but has been on paid leave since the middle of November.

She is accused of placing a 15-year-old special needs student in a “choke hold” on two or more occasions and forcing the student’s “head down onto a table.” Thomas was arrested on suspicion of two counts of child endangerment, two counts of serious assault, two counts of child endangerment with injury, and neglect or abandonment of a dependent person.

Read the complete story here.

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Copy and paste URL: http://www.omaha.com/article/20100226/NEWS97/100229716

Third-Grader Leaves School Unnoticed, Walks 2 Miles Home

2010-02-25T11:39:00.000-06:00

Ohio, February 24, 2010

It is a worry of all parents of young children: getting the news that your child is missing from school.

The ordeal of Kayla Hill began at Indian Springs Elementary school last Friday when she was put in isolation for behavior problems.

Kayla’s father tells NBC 4 that he was told his daughter, who has special needs, went missing from her school about 1:30 p.m. and headed west up Henderson Road.

Kayla ended up walking along busy North High Street. At some point during her two-mile, 45-minute walk home, the third grader managed to cross High Street by herself.

She ended up at the Duke and Duchess Shoppe at North High Street and Broad Meadows Blvd.

Kayla’s parents contend the school didn’t call them until 3 p.m. and police just a few minutes before that.

Read the complete story here.

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Copy and paste URL: http://www2.nbc4i.com/cmh/news/local/article/third-grade_student_leaves_school_unnoticed_walks_2_miles_home/32377/#comments

Department of Education Summary of State Laws, Regulations, Policies, Guidelines on Use of Restraint and Seclusion Techniques in Schools

2010-02-24T13:17:00.004-06:00

Access the Department of Education summary of state laws, regulations, policies, guidelines on use of restraint and seclusion techniques in schools here.

U.S. Department of Education
Arne Duncan
Secretary

February 2010
This report is in the public domain. Authorization to reproduce it in whole or in part is granted. While permission to reprint this publication is not necessary, the citation should be: U.S. Department of Education, Summary of Seclusion and Restraint Statutes, Regulations, Policies and Guidance, by State and Territory: Information as Reported to the Regional Comprehensive Centers and Gathered from Other Sources, Washington, D.C. 2010.

This report includes the descriptive information verified by each state and territory. Additional information can be found at the URLs provided in a specific state profile, or by contacting the state directly. No official endorsement by the U.S. Department of Education of any product, commodity, service, enterprise or policy mentioned in this report, on a state’s Web site or other URL included in this
report is intended or should be inferred. All Web addresses consulted or listed within this report were operational as of December 2009, unless otherwise noted.
This report is available on the U.S. Department of Education’s Web site:
www.ed.gov/policy/seclusion/seclusion-state-summary.html.

On request, this document can be made available in accessible formats, such as Braille, large print and computer diskette. For more information, please contact the U.S. Department of Education’s Alternative Format Center at 202-260-0852 or 202-260-0818, or send an e-mail to frank.pacheco@ed.gov.

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Copy and paste URL: http://go.usa.gov/lpQ

February 26, 2010 - Join the National Call-In Day to Prevent Restraint and Seclusion!

2010-02-19T22:08:00.004-06:00

Dear Friends,

On behalf of APRAIS (the Alliance to Prevent
Restraint, Aversive Interventions and Seclusion), TASH encourages you to contact
your congressional representatives during our National Call-In Day on February
26, 2010 and tell them to support the FEDERAL BILL - Preventing Harmful
Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act (H.R. 4247, S. 2860).

Recently,
the House Committee on Education and Labor voted H.R. 4247 out of committee with
a vote of 35 to 10. Your hard work has certainly made a difference, but we need
your continued efforts to advance this important legislation. Specifically, we
need your assistance to get the bill moved to the floor for a full House vote
and to obtain Co-sponsors for the Senate version, S. 2860.

Senator Chris
Dodd (D-CT) introduced the Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools
Act in the Senate, but we need to increase the number of Senate Co-Sponsors and
get this bill out of committee as soon as possible. Once passed, this
legislation will provide students with and without disabilities vital
protections against abuse in schools.

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

Ask your Congressional Representative to Co-sponsor H.R. 4247 and your
Senators to Co-Sponsor S. 2860 on Friday, February 26th!!

To find out
the names of your US Senators and Representative, click http://www.blogger.com/www.congress.org

Dial the Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121 and ask for the offices of
your US Senators and Representative

Ask to speak to the person working on education issues
Identify
yourself as a constituent and the organization that you represent (if any)

Please also encourage your friends, family, and co-workers to
participate in this important National Call-In!

Message: “I am
calling to urge [your Senator] to cosponsor S.2860, legislation preventing
harmful use of restraint and seclusion in schools.”

Message: “I
am calling to urge [your Representative] to cosponsor H.R. 4247, legislation
preventing harmful use of restraint and seclusion in schools.”

Thank you
for your advocacy. Your action will help increase congressional support for
these bills and move them through the legislative process toward enactment.
Please join the National Call-In Day on Friday, February 26,
2010, and tell your friends and family to join!

Please visit http://aprais.tash.org/ to learn more!

Best Regards,

The APRAIS Coalition

If you called during the last call-in day, and your congressman/senator has shown no action, I'd ask whomever answers the phone to explain to you the congressman's/senator's stand on the issue.

A DRNC Report on School Seclusion and Restraint: February 2010

2010-02-19T21:49:00.001-06:00

DRNC, February 2010

This report details DRNC's investigations that show North Carolina public school employees use dangerous face-down restraints on students with disabilities. Government and media reports have shown these prone restraints have been the cause of injuries and even death in students across the country. Accordingly, DRNC strongly opposes the use of these restraints and has joined a national effort to ban the use of these restraints. DRNC encourages school districts in North Carolina to join in this national effort and lead other school districts to protect the lives and welfare of North Carolina's students.

Read the report here.

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Copy and paste URL: http://www.disabilityrightsnc.org/pages/249/school-seclusion-and-restraint-prone/%3Cbr%20/%3E

Senate Takes Up Controversial "Time-Out Rooms" in Schools

2010-02-18T21:43:00.000-06:00

Wisconsin, February 18, 2010

Any parent or teacher of a child with special needs will probably tell you disciplining that child is a challenge. But the big question is: how far is too far?

The Wisconsin Senate Committee on Education heard public testimony Thursday on a bill limiting the use of seclusion and restraint in schools.

The bill introduces Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) as a better disciplinary alternative, aiming to cut back on dangerous practices in restraining and secluding students. It also requires school teachers and administrators to document any incidents and report them to parents and the Department of Public Instruction.

Time-out rooms are often without lights or furniture, with a door that locks from the outside.

Currently, there is nothing in Wisconsin law that prohibits teachers from putting unruly students into the room for as long as necessary. Many parents say that needs to change.

Read and watch complete story here.

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Copy and paste URL: http://www.wkowtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=12004860

Restraint, Seclusion Rooms in Schools Discussed

2010-02-18T21:36:00.000-06:00

Georgia, Feb. 18, 2010

Don and Tina King are on a mission to see that what happened to their son never happens to anyone else’s child.

Jonathan King was 13 when he hanged himself inside a “seclusion room” at a Gainesville school for special needs children in 2004.

The unfurnished, 8-foot-by-8-foot room at the Alpine Psychoeducational Program was used for dealing with unruly children. The Kings say they never saw the room until his death and claim school officials kept them in the dark about its use.

“They never told us how often he went in,” Tina King said Thursday. “They would just tell us they were using ‘time out.’”

Read the rest of the story here.

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Copy and paste URL: http://www.gainesvilletimes.com/news/article/29701/

Stricter Standards Sought for Use of Seclusion and Restraint by Schools

2010-02-18T21:29:00.001-06:00

Wisconsin, February 18, 2010

How best to deal with special needs students who become disruptive was the subject of a sometimes contentious Capitol hearing Thursday. The authors of proposed legislation say existing guidelines are inadequate, and lawmakers heard disturbing testimony regarding students being locked alone in rooms, or injured in restraints. Jeff Spitzer-Reznick of Disability Rights Wisconsin said they’ve met with the state teachers’ union and other stakeholders, on how to address use of seclusion and restraint in schools. He said the state Department of Public Instruction hired a mediator to bring the two sides together. “They said ‘we want school safety.’ We said ‘we do, too. What are your ideas?’ And the answers were none. No ideas.”

“I want to tell you that’s not true,” Wisconsin Education Association Council President Mary Bell told the Senate Education Committee. “We participated in those discussions, and WEAC supports reasonable approaches to a safe environment.” Bell said WEAC supports additional training, and reporting incidents of isolation and restraint to parents, but that the legislation (SB 468) proposed by Senator Julie Lassa (D-Stevens Point) and Representative Sandy Pasch (D-Whitefish Bay) goes “beyond that, to an inappropriate level.”

Read or listen to the complete story here.

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Copy and paste URL: http://www.wrn.com/2010/02/stricter-standards-sought-for-use-of-seclusion-and-restraint-by-schools/

Emotional Debate Over Use of Seclusion Rooms In School

2010-02-18T21:08:00.000-06:00

Wisconsin, February 18, 2010

How much leeway should teachers have when dealing with kids prone to violent outbursts? That question goes to the heart of the debate at the Capitol and in the classroom over seclusion rooms and restraints.

"I have a third grade son with special needs." Becky Van Ravenstein's son is prone to outbursts. She says at his previous school, there was no room for him to calm down in. "Since he has transferred to Merrill (Elementary, in Oshkosh) with appropriate facilities to address his needs, including a timeout room, he has been much more successful."

Becky testified at a Capitol hearing Thursday against a bill that would strictly regulate seclusion rooms like the one her son uses.

"Restraint and seclusion are harming our childrens academic progress and perhaps even more disturbing, causing serious physical and emotional harm," says Rep. Sandy Pasch (D-Whitefish Bay).

It's unknown how many schools have or use seclusion rooms and restraints.
The Department of Public Instruction only has guidelines for their use and schools don't have to report how often they're used.

Read the complete article here.

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Copy and paste URL: http://www.nbc15.com/home/headlines/84740257.html

Supporters of Bill Say School Restraint Methods Need Regulation

2010-02-18T20:59:00.000-06:00

Wisconsin, February 18, 2010

In her yellow T-shirt, Daari Pawelski was one of a dozen or so Racine residents who traveled to Madison Thursday to pack a Capitol hearing room.

They were in Madison to support a bill that would regulate the way schools handle children. A proposed bill focuses on reducing the use of intervention methods like seclusion and restraint in schools.

Some of them have children with special needs. Some of them work with families who have children with disabilities.

The bill has divided educators, disability rights advocates and parents over the way the state should deal with the improper use of certain methods.

"I think we're really outdated here," said Pawelski, a registered nurse who is a member of a Racine support group. "I don't believe in restraints. There are other ways."

Read the full story here.

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Copy and paste URL:
http://www.journaltimes.com/news/state-and-regional/article_4199da50-1cbb-11df-b1ba-001cc4c03286.html

Seclusion-Restraint Bill to Get Senate Committee Hearing

2010-02-17T09:18:00.001-06:00

Wisconsin, February 17, 2010

The Senate Education Committee will hold a hearing Thursday on a bill that would restrict schools' ability to use physical restraints and seclusion methods on students.

Parents of students with autism, bipolar disorder, attention deficity hyperactivity disorder, anxiety or depression are most likely to report that their children have been secluded or restrained by school personnel, according to a report released last year on such occurrences in Wisconsin schools.

Read the complete story here.

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Copy and paste URL: http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/news/84525752.html

Seclusion and Restraint: Concerns and Solutions Materials Available

2010-02-16T10:38:00.000-06:00

Florida, February 16, 2010

Materials are now available from the February 8, 2010 web and teleconference “Seclusion and Restraint: Concerns and Solutions.” Presenters include Lise Fox, Sylvia Smith, Margaret Hooper, and F. Daniel Armstrong. Materials now available and include the presentation, a recording of the teleconference, and all supporting materials. Families, educators, advocates, and students are becoming increasingly concerned about the use of seclusion and restraint in school settings. The panel discusses the concerns related to the use of seclusion and restraint; provide information on its use within Florida Schools; and present current efforts for ensuring how schools can provide effective and safe behavior intervention procedures including proposed state legislation, resources, and training opportunities. This web and teleconference event includes the on-line presentation and a teleconference discussion during which participants had the opportunity to ask presenters questions about the topic. This event is sponsored by the Advocacy Center for Persons with Disabilities, Florida Developmental Disabilities Council, Florida Center for Inclusive Communities, and the Mailman Center for Child Development. Materials are available at http://flfcic.fmhi.usf.edu/projects/webinars.html.

Originally posted here.

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Copy and paste URLs:
Original post: http://www.assistedu.org/seclusion-and-restraint-webinar-materials/
Materials: http://flfcic.fmhi.usf.edu/projects/webinars.html

Group Seek Federal Ban on Pinning Prone Students

2010-02-15T10:45:00.000-06:00

North Carolina, February 15, 2010

A disability rights group is asking the state superintendent of schools for a ban on a specific means of student restraint, saying the practice is dangerous and could lead to death.

Disability Rights North Carolina will release a report Tuesday outlining findings of a study into how schools physically restrain students who are acting out. In the report, DRNC suggests a federal ban on the use of "prone restraint," in which students are pinned face-down.

Prone restraint is one of five legal means school employees have for getting students under control, but, the report from DRNC concludes, classroom staff often lack the appropriate training in those techniques.

Read the complete story here.

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Copy and paste URL: http://www.wral.com/news/local/politics/story/7040560/

Hutchings restrains young patients more than most of NY's psychiatric facilities for children

2010-02-15T10:33:00.000-06:00

New York, February 15, 2010

The state Office of Mental Health is shining a light on the use of restraint and seclusion in its children’s psychiatric facilities as part of an effort to end these potentially dangerous and deadly practices.

OMH is publishing data on its Web site showing how often youngsters in 13 state-run mental hospitals are subjected to restraint and seclusion. Hutchings Psychiatric Center in Syracuse and St. Lawrence Psychiatric Center in Ogdensburg are tied for having the second highest rates of restraint.

The rate of restraint for Hutchings is .33 per 1,000 patient hours. That’s lower than the national average of .48.

A rate of .33 means during an average month at Hutchings, children are restrained about 4 ½ hours.

The state’s short-term goal is to get facilities to cut their restraint rates to .15 or less.

Read the complete story here.

Copy and paste URL: http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2010/02/hutchings_restrains_young_pati.html

Snow Delays Education Department Release Of Restraint, Seclusion Policies

2010-02-12T16:23:00.002-06:00

DisabilityScoop, February 12, 2010

A listing of state policies on restraint and seclusion in schools expected Friday from the Department of Education is delayed after snow shut down federal offices in Washington for nearly a week.

The commitment to publicly post a roundup of state laws, regulations, policies and guidelines on restraint and seclusion in schools hearkens back to an appearance before Congress by Secretary of Education Arne Duncan in May.

After a Government Accountability Office report found hundreds of cases of abusive and even deadly uses of the disciplinary practices in the nation’s schools, Duncan told Congress, “I want to make sure that at the start of the next school year that every state has a real clear plan as to how to do this in a way that makes sense and that doesn’t jeopardize, doesn’t endanger children.”

Read the rest of the story here.

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Copy and paste URL: http://www.disabilityscoop.com/2010/02/12/ed-dept-delay-restraint/6993/

Kentucky Works Towards Curbing Abuse in Public Schools

2010-02-12T16:17:00.002-06:00

Kentucky, February, 12 2010

A shocking new report released by The National Disability Rights Network suggests abusive use of seclusion and restraint on school children and a lack of state and federal regulation governing such practices. Kentucky has been working on revising their guidelines concerning these practices in public schools. Caleb Campbell has this story.

About two weeks ago Janet Board got a phone call from her grandson's school in Meade County. It wasn't the first time this had happened. Her grandson, who we'll call Sam, suffers from O.C.D., early on-set bipolar and post-traumatic stress. School officials made the call because Sam was acting erratically again, a behavior pattern that had been with him throughout his entire life.

"When I got to the school they told me he was in the gymnasium. I went down there. A principal holding one arm, a teacher holding the other and another teacher sitting on him pinned against the gym floor."

Read the rest of the story here.

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/wkms/news.newsmain/article/1/0/1611642/WKMS.Local.Features/Kentucky.works.towards.curbing.abuse.in.public.schools

Parents File Suit Over Alleged Child Abuse

2010-02-12T12:18:00.002-06:00

Pennsylvania, February 10, 2010

Several area parents have filed a civil lawsuit against five YMCA Child Development Center workers who allegedly gave pickling salt to their children as a form of discipline.

Through their legal counsel - attorneys Alan Perer and Brian W. DelVecchio of the Pittsburgh law firm of Swensen Perer & Kontos - parents Brian and Janean Ansell, Shannon Partridge, Jessica Harr, Rodney and Lori Humbertson, Amber Doppelheur, Ryan Timms and Hillary Hamborsky have requested that a jury hear the matter on behalf of their children.

Named as defendants in the lawsuit are five employees, including Stephanie Griffith, Kristen Homes, Ann Lancaster, Derek Hillen and Kerri Trich, along with their employer, the Regional Family YMCA of Laurel Highlands and the National Council of Young Men's Christian Associations of the United States of America.

According to the court document, day-care center assistant group supervisor Rebecca DeWitt shared a conversation with Partridge that revealed Griffin had given a 6-year-old child alum as a means of discipline in January 2009.

Read the rest of the story here.

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://www.heraldstandard.com/news_detail/article/1631/2010/february/10/bparents-file-suit-over-alleged-child-abuse-by-patty-yauger-b.html

Family of Boy Strangled at Tenn. Center Settles Suit for $10.5 Million

2010-02-12T12:06:00.002-06:00

Pennsylvania, February 12, 2010

The family of a Philadelphia teenager who was strangled after being placed in a restraint hold at a Tennessee treatment center has settled a federal lawsuit against the facility for $10.5 million.

The family of Omega "Manny" Leach, 17, agreed to drop claims against the city and its Department of Human Services, which sent the troubled teen to the Chad Youth Enhancement Center despite warnings that it was dangerous.

A key piece of evidence, said family attorney Thomas R. Kline, was a photograph from a surveillance camera showing a Chad mental-health technician with both hands around Leach's neck as he pinned him to the floor.

Read the rest of the story here.

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://www.philly.com/philly/news/homepage/20100212_Family_of_boy_strangled_at_Tenn__center_settles_suit_for__10_5_million.html

How do we get them to "see" what is going on?

2010-02-12T11:48:00.003-06:00

My Representative's response to my concerns regarding MO HB 1543:

I read the bill and this bill will only protect students, staff and property from any type of harm and it does not increase or allow any type of punishment for "acts" of students.

My response:

Representative Smith,

Thank you for your response. I really appreciate your efforts to take my concerns seriously. I think it is extremely difficult for people to envision the type of abuse that can happen in schools. Unfortunately "use of force to protect person or property" can be interpreted in many different ways. If a child rips paper off a bulletin board the proposed bill language not only gives the schools the authority to apply "use of force" to stop the child from "damaging property", it also allows them to determine what is "reasonable" force (this is happening to a 6-year-old child in southern Missouri right now, and in this child's case he was placed on his stomach in a prone restraint with an adult on top of him for things such as kick under a desk and ripping paper).

I can assure you that at one point of time "use of force to protect person or property" would've only conjured up images of a teacher breaking up a fight in the cafeteria, but I have seen and heard other unfortunate interpretations that are unsafe for the staff and children. I also believe that teachers and staff need to be assured training and support to prevent and de-escalate situations rather than relying on "use of force" as the first line of intervention.

Please watch this quick video of Congressman George Miller discussing this issue during the mark up of HR 4247: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dADmiyJNU34&feature=youtube_gdata to get a quick understanding of how serious and widespread this issue is.

I am not asking that the provision "use of force to protect person or property" be removed as much as I am asking that it be clarified and narrowed down. Restraint (i.e., limiting an individual’s body movement to prevent or manage out-of-control behavior) is a type of "use of force", and data supports that restraints and other "uses of force" are being misused and abused in our schools, disproportionally on children with disabilities. For more information regarding this bill (and how it compares to other state and federal efforts), please see below. [included similar information from here: http://nomoseclusion.blogspot.com/2010/02/take-action-now-missouri-hb-1543-and.html]

If you are interested in meeting with me and others on this issue, I am willing to arrange something.

Sincerely,

Ange Hemmer

Take Action Now: Missouri HB 1543 and Federal Legislation HR 4247 and SB 2860

2010-02-10T20:27:00.006-06:00

February 10, 2010

**Please note, once I get the emails out, I will return to this post and try to improve the readability!**

Missouri HB 1543, a proposed state omnibus bill dealing in part to improve school safety, is continuing the use of corporal punishment in schools and adding the vague language “use of force to protect persons or property”. This bill is far from the minimal standards set forth by proposed federal legislation HR 4247 and SB 2860.

• HB 1543 (state): http://www.house.mo.gov/content.aspx?info=/bills101/bills/hb1543.htm
• HR 4247 (federal): http://edlabor.house.gov/documents/111/pdf/markup/FC/HR4247-PreventingHarmfulRestraintandSeclusioninSchoolsAct/MILLCA_171_xml.pdf

The proposed language in Missouri HB 1543 does not protect teachers or students in several ways:

• Does not define “use of force,” “to protect persons or property,” “reasonable,” or “certificated personnel”

• Does not require notification to parents if schools apply “use of force” or “spanking”

• Does allow any school personnel to apply “use of force” but only allows “certificated personnel” to apply “spanking” (certificated in what?)

• Does not require any follow up (such as a visit to school nurse) to ensure applying “use of force” or “spanking” was in fact “reasonable” nor any methods as to avoid future applying of “use of force” or “spanking”

• Does not ban proven deadly “use of force” (restraints) such as those that restrict breathing (e.g., prone restraint)

• Does not ban “spanking”. There was an amendment to ban spanking of special education students, but this has been withdrawn as of 2/10/2010

• Does not allow Children's services to conduct an investigation if abuse allegations are due to “spanking” or “use of force to protect persons or property”. (To understand more about the convoluted investigation process, go here http://dss.mo.gov/cd/pdf/guidelines_can_reports.pdf.)

Who determines what is “reasonable”?

We would like to believe that school districts and school personnel can determine, with good judgment, what constitutes what is “reasonable”, but even stories over the past month show this not to be the case (see below). Not all schools or teachers are bad and many, if not most, have good judgment and intent; however, this bill does not protect those students who are attending schools or who have teachers that are using poor judgment and are abusing corporal punishment and/or use of force nor does it protect students or personnel when personnel hasn’t had access to adequate training and support.

• Feb. 2, 2010: Queens girl Alexa Gonzalez hauled out of school in handcuffs after getting caught doodling on desk: http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/education/2010/02/05/2010-02-05_cuffed_for_doodling_on_a_desk.html

• Feb. 4, 2010: Two-inch LEGO gun gets 4th-grader in trouble: http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/35234742/ns/today-today_people/

• Feb. 8, 2010: Mom upset with corporal punishment at son’s New Mexico school (note pictures): http://bit.ly/dsuFWH

• Current and ongoing: Missouri mom’s testimony regarding extensive use of force on 6 year old with disability: http://nomoseclusion.blogspot.com/2010/01/young-boys-story.html

Corporal punishment/use of force

• According to The Center for Effective Discipline, Missouri is one of only 20 states that still allows corporal punishment (in Missouri’s case “spanking” is allowed) in schools: http://www.stophitting.com/index.php?page=statesbanning

• Corporal punishment and “use of force” is used much more often on poor children, minorities, children with disabilities, and boys: http://www.aclu.org/human-rights/impairing-education-html#toc19

• Schools are the only institutions in America in which striking another person is legally sanctioned. It is not allowed in prisons, in the military or in mental hospitals. Schools are also the only place where use of restraint and seclusion remains mostly unregulated: http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d09719t.pdf

Missouri model policy in progress

Experts in the state of Missouri (designated as such by DESE in agreement with Missouri statute) agree that the use of force such as restraint and seclusion should only be used in cases of imminent harm and that certain forms of restraint should not be used (e.g., prone restraint). Local, state, and national experts in the fields of education and behavior management agree that focus should be on de-escalation and positive methods of preventing behavior.

• Current statute in Missouri: http://nomoseclusion.blogspot.com/2009/11/current-statutes-in-missouri.html

• Official minutes of DESE meeting regarding restraint (use of force) and seclusion: http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=0AcxWbMnTyx1iZGc1ZDh2ZGdfNWh0bXo5emY5&hl=en

• Crisis Prevention Institute, Inc. Presents to Missouri Department of Education: http://www.crisisprevention.com/whatsnew/ (3rd article down)

Federal legislation in progress

The federal government is currently working on legislation to avoid the misuse and abuse of seclusion and restraint (a type of “use of force”) in part because states and local school districts have failed to do so. The federal bills in progress (HR 4247 and SB 2860) are consistent with the Children’s Health Act of 2000 and federal protections already in place in other settings.

• Bill text: http://edlabor.house.gov/documents/111/pdf/markup/FC/HR4247-PreventingHarmfulRestraintandSeclusioninSchoolsAct/MILLCA_171_xml.pdf

• General information: http://edlabor.house.gov/blog/2009/12/preventing-harmful-restraint-a.shtml

Take action: protect the teachers and the students

• Call your state representatives and senators and tell them that the provision regarding “spanking” and “use of force” in HB 1543 does not protect teachers, students, or school districts. At a minimum, Missouri should:

 Ban deadly “use of force” (i.e., restraints) such as those that restrict breathing (e.g., prone restraint)

 Define what is “reasonable”, for example in other areas as of HB 1543 “acts of violence” is used and in federal bill “imminent harm” is used

 Ban corporal punishment

 Require parent notification when “use of force” or “spanking” (if left in bill) is applied

 Require minimal training in positive interventions, de-escalation, and safe methods of “use of force”

• Call your federal representatives and tell them to support HR 4247 and SB 2860. We need a minimal federal baseline to keep students and school staff safe. It is clear that even with current information, states such as Missouri are missing the point!

Government contacts

• Missouri House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee (state): http://house.mo.gov/content.aspx?info=/bills101/commit/com455.htm
• Missouri Joint Committee on Education (state): http://www.senate.mo.gov/jced/index.htm
• Missouri Senate Education Committee (state): http://www.senate.mo.gov/10info/comm/educ.htm
• Missouri Governor Jay Nixon (state): http://governor.mo.gov/contact/
• Missouri congressional members (federal): http://nomoseclusion.blogspot.com/2009/12/how-to-contact-congress.html

Ange Hemmer
Missouri: Families Against Seclusion and Restraint

Girl, 6, Handcuffed, Committed Because of Classroom Behavior

2010-02-10T11:57:00.000-06:00

Florida, February 10, 2010

A Port St. Lucie first-grade student was handcuffed and committed to a mental health facility because of her classroom behavior, and her parents are furious that the school took such extreme measures.

Mickey Shalansky explained Wednesday what he said happened to his 6-year-old daughter at Parkway Elementary.

"She couldn't put her in two handcuffs because her wrists are that small, so she put them both in the same handcuff and left marks on my daughter's arms," Shalansky told WPBF 25 News' Bob Kaple.

But a St. Lucie County Sheriff's Office report paints a much different picture.

Deputies said his daughter, Haley, got upset and stormed out her classroom when her teacher asked her to do something. The report said it then escalated into a temper tantrum in the principal's office.

Read/view the rest of the story here.

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://www.wpbf.com/news/22526263/detail.html

Private School Perspective: House Poised to Regulate Private Schools

2010-02-09T20:35:00.000-06:00

Council for American Private Education, February 9, 2010

The U.S. House of Representatives is set to vote soon on legislation governing elements of a school’s disciplinary policy and practice. The House Education and Labor Committee cleared the measure February 4 by a vote of 34 to 10.

The bill (HR 4247), which deals with the seclusion and restraint of students, would affect all public schools as well as private schools whose students or teachers benefit from any federal education program (about 80 percent of Catholic schools, for example). Here are a few of the measure’s troubling provisions:

establishes detailed conditions surrounding the use of physical restraint and seclusion in schools that, ironically, could ultimately serve to harm students (see CAPE’s letter on the bill);
relates to activities as commonplace as holding back two students in a schoolyard scuffle;
requires an undetermined number of private school teachers to have special training and certification in the use of physical restraint and seclusion;
requires annual disaggregated demographic reports on the instances of the use of physical restraint and seclusion in a school.

Read the rest of the article here.
Read CAPE's Letter to the House Education and Labor Committee here.

*****

Copy and paste URLs:
Article: http://www.capenet.org/new.html
CAPE's Letter to the House Education and Labor Committee: http://www.capenet.org/pdf/CAPEHR4247.pdf

3 Acquitted in Ohio Teen's Restraint Death

2010-02-09T12:17:00.000-06:00

Ohio, February 9, 2010

A jury on Tuesday acquitted three former employees of an Ohio treatment center for troubled teens of involuntary manslaughter in the death of a 17-year-old girl who suffocated and choked on her own vomit after being restrained facedown on the floor.

Cynthia King, Lazarita Menendez and Ebony Ray were also found not guilty of child endangering in the December 2008 death of Faith Finley. Menendez was also found not guilty of felonious assault and inciting to violence.

Menendez faced additional charges because she initiated the incident by taking Finley's CD player, which the disruptive 17-year-old used to calm herself, and shoved the girl's hand under her as she lay on the floor, prosecutors said.

The women, who pleaded not guilty, were fired from the Parmadale Family Services center after Finley's death. The Cuyahoga County coroner ruled Finley's death a homicide.

The type of restraint prosecutors say the women used was later banned by Gov. Ted Strickland at the recommendation of state agencies that said the technique carries a high risk of serious injury or death.

Ray, of Broadview Heights, and Menendez, of Bedford Heights, were accused of wrestling Finley to the ground on her chest and applying pressure to her back — a technique known as prone restraint — while King watched.

Read the rest of the story here.

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hb8wtsD0sfXtqdk2Pd3dR4-m5nFwD9DOTN280

Request for Another Hearing Filed in Special Education Lawsuit

2010-02-09T12:12:00.000-06:00

Minnesota, February 9, 2010

A federal lawsuit against the Willmar School District isn’t finished yet.

An attorney for a former Willmar student has asked the entire Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals to hear arguments about whether the child may sue the district.

A three-judge panel said in January that Jackie Nelson, the child’s mother, did not have a valid claim against the school district.

The judges said that Nelson should have filed a complaint before she transferred her child to another district. Since she complained later, she no longer had a valid claim to seek compensatory educational services for her child, according to the panel’s opinion filed in January.

Read the rest of the story here.

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://www.wctrib.com/event/article/id/63411/

Clarification, Answer Your Questions Regarding Misuse and Abuse of Restraint and Seclusion

2010-02-08T16:50:00.003-06:00

February 8, 2010

There seems to be some confusion as to what is going on regarding state and federal law/policy as it applies to the misuse and abuse of seclusion and restraint. Maybe these links will help explain some of the misunderstandings.

STATE

Current statute in Missouri: http://nomoseclusion.blogspot.com/2009/11/current-statutes-in-missouri.html

Update on situation in Missouri: http://nomoseclusion.blogspot.com/2010/02/update-but-not-much-progress-at-state.html

Please read the minutes from the November 2009 DESE meeting and you will see that even in Missouri, representatives from SSD and Touchpoint agree with the definitions and reasons for restraint and seclusion, similar, yet somewhat more restrictive than what's in the currently proposed federal bill.

FEDERAL

HR 4247 w/ amendments: http://edlabor.house.gov/markups/2010/02/preventing-harmful-restraint-a.shtml

HR 4247 Basics: http://edlabor.house.gov/blog/2009/12/preventing-harmful-restraint-a.shtml

Myths and facts: http://edlabor.house.gov/blog/2010/02/myth-vs-fact-preventing-harmfu.shtml

Supporters: http://edlabor.house.gov/blog/2010/01/supporters-of-the-preventing-h.shtml

NEW PUBLICATIONS

TASH: http://nomoseclusion.blogspot.com/2010/02/tash-releases-survey-results-on.html

NDRN: http://nomoseclusion.blogspot.com/2010/02/school-is-not-supposed-to-hurt-update.html

I encourage you all to voice your opinions and concerns to your legislators, but please research and understand the facts before you do so.

Ange Hemmer
Missouri: Families Against Seclusion and Restraint

Blog: http://nomoseclusion.blogspot.com/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Missouri-Families-Against-Seclusion-and-Restraint/192579456768
Twitter: @nomoseclusion

TASH Releases Survey Results on Restraint and Seclusion Use in Schools

2010-02-07T15:05:00.004-06:00

February 7, 2010

Abstract:

A survey of parents and caretakers of children with disabilities was undertaken to document the use of restraints, seclusion, and aversive procedures. A 23 item survey was presented using a web-based program. Participants were informed of the survey by different advocacy organizations. Within 2 weeks, 1300 individuals opened the survey and 1293 answered the first question which asked if their child had been subjected to the procedures. Of the 1293, 837 (64.7%) said “yes” and continued with the survey. According to the responses, children with disabilities were often exposed to restraints, seclusion and aversive procedures and most of the time the parents had not approved of the procedures beforehand. Implications for national, state, and local policies and practices are discussed.

Read the publication here (PDF).

Please contact Barbara Trader, TASH – Executive Director with any questions or comments. She can be reached at: btrader@tash.org or (202) 540-9013.

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://www.tash.org/dev/tashcms/ewebeditpro5/upload/APRAIS_Survey_Exec__Summary_Media.pdf

Update but Not Much Progress at State Level

2010-02-05T12:47:00.009-06:00

Missouri law states that DESE must develop a model policy regarding "comprehensively addresses the use of restrictive behavioral interventions as a form of discipline or behavior management technique." School districts must adopt a written policy as well, but they are not mandated to follow the guidelines set forth by DESE.

Last week, upon request, I was told that at this time there are no additional meetings scheduled regarding the DESE model policy in Missouri. It appears that the policy is still in the "formulation stage" with research being done on policies in other states. I hope that there is also research being done regarding the ineffectiveness of model policies (Kansas and Michigan for example) and also on the movement of the federal legislation recently passed through Committee.

It is "anticipated" that the first draft of the Missouri model policy will be put in writing sometime during the month of February. Please get your comments in soon. Local school boards are not mandated to adopt or follow this model policy. Please advocate at the local school board level as well.

Personal minutes: http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=0AcxWbMnTyx1iZGc1ZDh2ZGdfNHRtajlia2du&hl=en

Official minutes: http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=0AcxWbMnTyx1iZGc1ZDh2ZGdfNWh0bXo5emY5&hl=en

Ways to comment: MPACT and DESE (webreplyseclusionrestraint@dese.mo.gov).

If you want you comments to be made public or if you have any further information to share, please do so in the comments section.

Personal Letter: Thank You/HB1810/HB1543

2010-02-05T11:58:00.002-06:00

Representative Smith,

Thank you for supporting autism insurance reform. I hope that this can springboard into equal health care for all those with developmental/neurological disabilities in the near future. Have you seen HB1810?

Also, I have spoken to you before regarding the abuse of restraint and seclusion in schools (Did you hear federal legislation passed committee yesterday?), and you will be hearing more from me soon regarding the "use of force to protect person or property" provision in HB1543 (http://nomoseclusion.blogspot.com/2010/01/corporal-punishment-and-use-of-force-in.html) and how I think this language will indirectly allow the continuing misuse and abuse of restraint (as what is happening to this Missouri child right now: http://nomoseclusion.blogspot.com/2010/01/young-boys-story.html).

These issues, along with other repeated failures of the school system, are the reason why I homeschool my children with disabilities; however, I understand the need to preserve teacher rights and the responsibility to ensure a quality and safe education for children. This is one of the reasons I am still advocating on the issue of restraint and seclusion even though it no longer directly effects my children.

Legislation can have negative unintended consequences, as I believe will be the case with the "use of force to protect person or property" provision in HB1543. The misuse of restraint and seclusion is a serious and widespread issue. The law passed last year in Missouri only bans locked seclusion; however, it leaves it up to individual school districts to decide how, when, and why to use dangerous, life threatening forms of restraint. I wouldn't be concerned with local school district's regulating and monitoring themselves on this serious issue if there wasn't already proof of this type of abuse happening for over a decade all over the country.

Regulating the use of seclusion and restraint not only protects student, it protects teachers and staff. It would be a serious disservice to children and schools to continue using the provision "use of force to protect persons or property". As in last year's HB96, "use of force" and "property destruction" are not defined, and since Missouri does not ban harmful methods of "force" (restraint), a child could be legally held face down for property destruction as minor as ripping up paper. I know this sounds inconceivable, but it is happening repeatedly to a small child right now (http://nomoseclusion.blogspot.com/2010/01/young-boys-story.html) and will continue happening if something is not changed.

Please let me know if you would like to discuss any of these issues, otherwise I will be contacting your office to discuss my concerns regarding "use of force to protect person or property" provision in HB1543 in the near future.

Sincerely,
Ange Hemmer

Personal Letter: Thank You/Autism Insurance Reform/Homeschool/Use of Force

2010-02-05T11:32:00.003-06:00

Representative Lampe,

Autism Insurance Reform
While I am not in your district, I wanted to thank you for supporting autism insurance reform, and hope that this can springboard into equal insurance for all those with developmental/neurological disabilities (Have you seen HB1810?). After reading another news item from the House that made my two boys with autism sound like they were near death's door (or might as well be), I was very pleased with the kind and realistic language you used in your newsletter.

Homeschooling/HB1543
I believe in the right to do what we, as parents, think is best for our children, but I also believe in the responsibility of the government to allow this right to come to fruition. Not everyone homeschools or believes that homeschooling is the best for his or her child, which means we as a society have a responsibility to look at the whole regarding quality and safe education and just not one group.

I have spoken to you before regarding the abuse of restraint and seclusion in schools (Did you hear federal legislation passed committee yesterday?), and you will be hearing more from me soon regarding the "use of force to protect person or property" provision in HB1543 (http://nomoseclusion.blogspot.com/2010/01/corporal-punishment-and-use-of-force-in.html) and how I think this language will indirectly allow the continuing misuse and abuse of restraint (as what is happening to this Missouri child right now: http://nomoseclusion.blogspot.com/2010/01/young-boys-story.html).

These issues, along with other repeated failures of the school system, are the reason why I homeschool my children with disabilities; however, I am dismayed at the tone of the e-mails circulating in the homeschool community right now. I understand the need to preserve parental rights, but I also understand the responsibility to ensure a quality and safe education for all children. This is one of the reasons I am still advocating on the issue of restraint and seclusion even though it no longer directly effects my children.

In talking with you in the past (I didn't homeschool at that time), I believe you also understand this balance and will try to achieve a respectful balance as to the rights of all children and families in any future amendments. I'm not sure if I am the only one in the homeschool community who feels this way, but I don't think you are out to take away my rights to homeschool my children as I see fit. I do, however, think it is a good lesson as to how legislation can have negative unintended consequences, as I also believe will be the case with the "use of force to protect person or property" provision in this same bill.

Please let me know if you would like to discuss any of these issues, otherwise I will be contacting your office to discuss my concerns regarding "use of force to protect person or property" provision in HB1543 in the near future.

Sincerely,

Ange Hemmer

Press Release: Bipartisan Legislation to Prevent Abuse in Schools Clears House Committee

2010-02-04T16:44:00.003-06:00

UNITED STATES CONGRESS

Thursday, February 4, 2010
Melissa Salmanowitz (Miller) 202.226.0853
Todd Weiner (McMorris Rodgers) 202.225.2006

Bipartisan Legislation to Prevent Abuse in Schools Clears House Committee

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The House Education and Labor Committee today passed bipartisan legislation to make classrooms safer for students and school staff by preventing the misuse of restraint and seclusion. The Committee passed the Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act (H.R. 4247) by a vote of 34 to 10.

A U.S. Government Accountability Office report released last spring exposed hundreds of cases of schoolchildren being abused as a result of inappropriate uses of restraint and seclusion, often involving untrained staff. In some cases, children died. A disproportionate number of these victims were students with disabilities. In some of the cases GAO investigated, ropes, duct tape, chairs with straps and bungee cords were used to restrain or isolate young children.

“This bill makes clear that there is no place in our schools for abuse and torture,” said U.S. Rep. George Miller (D-CA), chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee. “The egregious abuse of a child should not be considered less criminal because it happens in a classroom -- it should be the opposite. I’m proud that this bill has bipartisan support and I hope the full House will vote on it soon.”

“I’m pleased that H.R. 4247, the Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act, was reported out of Committee today. This is a victory for students, parents, families, educators, and advocates who have worked tirelessly to ensure the health and safety of children in schools,” said U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), a member of the House Education and Labor Committee and vice chair of the House Republican Conference. “When I send my son Cole to school, I send him with the expectation that he is safe from danger. Yet, there have been hundreds of cases in which schoolchildren were harmed as a result of inappropriate uses of restraint and seclusion. Our bill is a long stride forward in ensuring that our tax dollars are not used to abuse children. I look forward to working with Chairman Miller and my colleagues to pass this bill through Congress this year, and have it signed into law.”

Unlike in hospitals and other medical and community-based facilities that receive federal health funding, there are currently no federal laws addressing restraint and seclusion in schools. While the Children’s Health Act of 2000 regulates how and when restraint and seclusion can be used on children in these other settings, this bill would cover schools for the first time. State regulation and oversight varies greatly; many states provide no guidance or assistance regarding these behavioral interventions.

The Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act will, for the first time, put in place minimum safety standards to prevent abusive restraint and seclusion in schools across the country, similar to protections already in place in medical and community based facilities. After two years, states will need to have their own policies in place to meet these minimum standards. It would apply to public schools, private schools and preschools receiving federal education support.

Specifically the legislation would:
· Limit physical restraint and locked seclusion, allowing these interventions only when there is imminent danger of injury, and only when imposed by trained staff;
· Outlaw mechanical restraints, such as strapping kids to chairs, and prohibit restraints that restrict breathing;
· Require schools to notify parents after incidents when restraint or seclusion was used;
· Encourage states to provide support and training to better protect students and prevent the need for emergency behavioral interventions; and
· Increase transparency, oversight and enforcement tools to prevent future abuse.

The legislation embodies principles outlined by the Obama administration in December. It has the support of nearly 100 organizations, including the National School Boards Association, the National Education Association, and the American Federation of Teachers. See a full list of supporters here: http://edlabor.house.gov/blog/2010/01/supporters-of-the-preventing-h.shtml

Miller first requested the GAO investigation in January 2009, after the National Disability Rights Network released a report highlighting these abuses.

For more information about the bill, click here.

To learn more about definitions in the bill, click here.

To learn more about the myths/facts in regards to this bill, click here.

School Restraint, Seclusion Bill Clears House Committee

2010-02-04T12:40:00.003-06:00

The House Education and Labor Committee voted Thursday to pass the bill known as the Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act by a vote of 34 to 10. Now, the measure must be considered by the full House and it must be taken up in the Senate before it can become law.

YouTube video -- H.R. 4247 - Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act: G... http://youtu.be/dADmiyJNU34?a

DisabilityScoop story: http://www.disabilityscoop.com/2010/02/04/restraint-bill-house-committee/6902/

Kline Statement (unfavorable): Markup of H.R. 4247, the Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act: http://twurl.nl/qffk7u

More to come...

Worker Seeks Damages Over Restraint Death Trauma

2010-02-03T22:30:00.000-06:00

United Kingdom, February 3, 2010

A TRAUMATISED worker at a secure training centre where a 15-year-old boy died after being restrained is seeking compensation from the Ministry of Justice.
Diana Smith was involved in restraining Stoke-on-Trent teenager, Gareth Myatt, at Rainsbrook Secure Training Centre, near Daventry, Northants, in April 2004.
The 15-year-old from Abbey Hulton died from "positional asphyxia" after choking on his own vomit as he was held down using a technique known as the Seated Double Embrace (SDE).
Inquest jurors later returned a verdict of accidental death, but were critical of the Youth Justice Board's failure to review the safety of the restraint.

Read the complete story here.

******

Copy and paste URL: http://www.thisisstaffordshire.co.uk/news/Worker-seeks-damages-restraint-death-trauma/article-1798693-detail/article.html

Time Sensitive: Help Needed on Federal Bill

2010-02-03T17:24:00.002-06:00

URGENT - Your help is needed on the federal bill!

Dear Advocates,

Trouble looms with the minority members on the Education and Labor Committee regarding the Seclusion and Restraints Bill that is scheduled for mark up tomorrow morning. Please call the Republican Committee members below tomorrow morning Thursday 02/04/2010 and ask them to please support the Restraint and Seclusion Bill (H.R. 4247).

Please pass this information on to other advocates, friends and family members and ask them to please help make calls tomorrow morning.

John Kline (Minnesota)
Washington, D.C. Office
1210 Longworth HOB
Washington, DC 20515
Phone: (202) 225-2271
Fax: (202) 225-2595

Michael Castle (Delaware)
Washington Office 1233 Longworth HOB
Washington, DC 20515
p: 202.225.4165
f: 202.225.2291

Brett Guthrie (Kentucky)
Washington, DC Office
510 Cannon H.O.B.
Washington, DC 20515
Phone: (202) 225-3501
Fax: (202) 226-2019

Bill Cassidy (Louisiana)
Washington DC Office
506 Cannon HOB
Washington, D.C. 20515
Phone: (202) 225-3901
Fax: (202) 225-7313

Vernon Ehlers (Michigan)
Washington Office
2182 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
voice (202) 225-3831
fax (202) 225-5144

Judy Biggert (Illinois)
Washington, DC Office
1034 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
Phone: 202-225-3515
Fax: 202-225-9420

Thank you!

Regards,

Phyllis Musumeci
Parent Advocate and mom to Christian
Families Against Restraint and Seclusion

Rep. Joe Courtney: Congress Must Make Schools Safe Havens for Children

2010-02-03T14:47:00.001-06:00

February 3, 2010

In 1998, the Hartford Courant earned a Pulitzer Prize for a series of stories on the use of restraint and seclusion tactics on students with disabilities in treatment facilities. The tales of children who were injured, or in some cases, died, shocked parents and educators across the country. As a parent of two, I was among those who were horrified. While previous Congresses passed legislation to reduce this abuse in treatment facilities, no federal laws were ever created to protect children from dangerous physical restraint in schools.

In 2009, the House Committee on Education and Labor, of which I am a member, held hearings on the use of seclusion and restraint. The testimony we heard from various experts was disturbing and signaled that Congress must act expeditiously to end once and for all seclusion and restraint. The most powerful testimony came from parents whose children were killed or severely injured as a result of dangerous restraint techniques.

In response to those stories, and the countless cases in which children have been injured or died, Education and Labor Chairman George Miller introduced the Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act. I am a proud cosponsor of this bipartisan bill, which I believe will accomplish a number of important goals.

Read the rest of Rep. Courtney's post here.

If you are interested in talking more with Mr. Courtney about this bill, please contact Brian Farber (Deputy Chief of Staff/Communications Director) at brian.farber@mail.house.gov

*****

Copy and paste URL here: http://edlabor.house.gov/blog/2010/02/rep-joe-courtney-congress-must.shtml

The Story Behind the Bill: Rep. Miller Finds School Discipline too Extreme

2010-02-03T14:42:00.001-06:00

Washington D.C., February 2, 2010

Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act (H.R. 4247 — Rep. George Miller, D-Calif.): a bill that would prevent and reduce the use of physical restraint and seclusion in schools.

Status: Referred to the House Education and Labor Committee’s Early Childhood, Elementary and Secondary Education subcommittee, Jan. 4.

Curtis Decker, the executive director of the National Disability Rights Network (NDRN), remembers when he first heard about children being secluded and restrained in schools. The parents of an American Indian girl with Down syndrome found out their daughter was being tied to her chair at school when they went to pick her up one day.

That was six or seven years ago, Decker recalled, and he and his staff discussed it in a meeting as an isolated case.

Then they started hearing other, similar stories. School employees sat on a girl in Wisconsin as a punishment for blowing bubbles in her milk. A child in Michigan had an epileptic seizure on the first day of school and died after school officials sat on him. A school in Tennessee had metal-door-enclosed seclusion rooms that looked like “prison cells from World War II,” NDRN senior staff attorney Jane Hudson said.

Read the full post here.

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Copy and paste URL: http://thehill.com/component/content/article/705-the-story-behind-the-bill/79349-the-story-behind-the-bill-rep-miller-finds-school-discipline-too-extreme

Letter Regarding H.R. 4247/ S. 2860

2010-02-03T14:35:00.003-06:00

I write many letters, copy and pasting from different information and past letters. On occasion (i.e., when I have time and/or remember!) I try to post some of my personal letters here so that anyone can take whatever information they need to make advocating for this issue easier.

I am a parent of a child who experienced the misuse of seclusion and restraint in public school and founder of Missouri: Families Against Seclusion and Restraint.

I encourage you to take H.R. 4247/ S. 2860 The Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act seriously as a federal issue and responsibility. The states are failing. Children are not safe. Until recently, Missouri had no laws guiding restraint and seclusion. The law passed in 2009 only bans placing a child in a locked room and does not address restraint. Otherwise it loosely mandates that the local school districts develop their own policies that address “the use of restrictive behavioral interventions as a form of discipline or behavior management technique” but does NOT require data collecting, reporting, monitoring, or accountability. There has also been state legislation introduced (HB 1543) that allows “use of force to protect persons or property”, yet there are no definitions or restrictions. This same bill does not allow Children’s services to conduct an investigation until the school district conducts its own investigation and, then, only if the school district finds itself liable for abuse.

My son Zach was denied appropriate evaluations, services and accommodations for months after transition from preschool to kindergarten. Shortly after he turned 6 years old it was clear he was suffering and not coping well with lack of support. Out of confusion, desperation, misguidance, and lack of information, Zach’s father and I agreed to allow restraint and seclusion in the crisis plan of Zach’s behavioral intervention plan. We were assured that it would never be used unless there was imminent harm to himself or others.

He was restrained and secluded three times in one day for behaviors such as squeezing his paraprofessional’s hand. We was also placed in the seclusion room quiet for no documented reason and left in there 20 minutes. I was unaware of how the room was being used until I requested logs. I was shocked at what I read and immediately demanded that seclusion and restraint be removed from his education plan. He was placed in the seclusion room at least one more time after that request. Due to continued and repeated failure to support Zach, we are now homeschooling Zach and his 6 year old brother.

I do not believe a system's failure is justification to abuse or mistreat individuals, especially those with disabilities. I encourage you to support this legislation and also suggest the following changes:

• The bill should not only apply to locked seclusion but to situations where children are forced into other spaces from which they cannot exit. A door may be unlocked but blocked by furniture or a teacher may be holding it shut, which is the case when my son was placed in a seclusion room at 6 years old.
• The bill should also protect a child’s entire body against harmful restraint, including restraints to the chest, abdomen, or other body parts that don’t affect the arms, legs, and head (e.g., prone and supine restraint).

Also, please DO NOT remove the section where it is prohibited to include restraint or seclusion as planned interventions in student’s education plans, including Individualized Education Programs (IEPs). These procedures are NOT interventions, but proof of failed treatment.

Please respond with your viewpoint and intentions. If you require any further information, please contact me; I would love to discuss this serious issue with you regarding the abuse of children in our schools.

Sincerely,

Ange Hemmer

School is Not Supposed to Hurt: Update on Progress in 2009 to Prevent and Reduce Restraint and Seclusion in Schools

2010-02-02T12:57:00.006-06:00

February 2, 2010

Please read the NDRN report here (PDF).

A couple of clarifications

NDRN states that "Missouri allows the use of restraint and seclusion only to ensure the immediate physical safety of the student or others" (p. 4); however, the law only states that locking a student in a confined space is not allowed unless waiting for law enforcement in emergency situation. While this meets the current federal definition of seclusion, it does not prohibit blocking a door, holding a student into a confined space, or otherwise preventing a student from leaving a confined area. Restraint is not regulated at the state level at all, again left up to the school districts already failing in this area to define and regulate. Please note that if MO HB1543 passes with the vague "use of force to protect persons or property" language, things are about to get much worse for students in Missouri, so please contact your Representatives--especially if you have a story of misused restraint (force)--to prevent this language from staying in the bill.

The committee creating the model policy did somewhat agree to the above NDRN statement (see meeting minutes), but school districts are not mandated to adopt any or all of the model policy once it is developed.

The NDRN report also states that "The final version of the law, while not banning the use of restraint and seclusion rooms outright, does require restrictions on use and requires accountability" (p. 46). I am unaware of any accountability tied to this law, other than schools must have a policy or they are out of compliance. Especially since this law is tied to the Safe Schools Act, there's no recourse a family can take if their child is inappropriately restrained/secluded (unless the door is mechanically locked).

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://www.ndrn.org/sr/srjan10/Schoo-%20is-Not-Supposed-to-Hurt-(NDRN).pdf

Few States Take Action on Restraint and Seclusion, Report Finds

2010-02-02T12:52:00.002-06:00

disabilityscoop, February 2, 2010

A year after an advocacy group report revealed widespread incidents of abusive and even deadly restraint and seclusion tactics in schools, states have been slow to respond, a new report indicates.

In the last year just two states — Minnesota and Missouri — passed laws limiting use of restraint and seclusion in schools, while departments of education in six states created or bolstered rules governing the practices.

Read the rest here.

*****

Copy and paste URLS:
Story: http://www.disabilityscoop.com/2010/02/02/follow-up-restraint-report/6858/
NDRN Update report: http://www.disabilityscoop.com/reports/100202_NDRN_Restraint_Seclusion.pdf

Educators Question School Restraint Practices

2010-02-01T22:27:00.000-06:00

Georgia, February 1, 2010

Seclusion rooms, or time-out rooms, have been used across the country and generally are meant for students with severe disabilities who can't be calmed down or are in danger of hurting themselves.
Few states have laws regarding their use, and only 24 have written guidelines, according to a 2007 study conducted by a Clemson University researcher.
The state Department of Education in 2008 began to draft new guidelines and rules that would prohibit the use of seclusion rooms, mechanical devices, unprescribed medication and some forms of physical restraint.
The education department is holding a forum on the proposed change at the University of Georgia's Institute on Human Development and Disability in Athens from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. today.

Read the full story here.

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://www.onlineathens.com/stories/020110/new_557313114.shtml

Forum Tackles School Restraint

2010-02-01T22:21:00.000-06:00

Georgia, February 1, 2010

Should any schools in Georgia be allowed to discipline students by restraining them or placing them in seclusion? A group of people at a forum today at UGA say the practice should not be allowed without regulation. An incident in Hall county is the case that was the centerpiece of Monday's forum.

Six years ago, thirteen-year-old Jonathan King, a student at a special education school in Hall County, hung himself with a rope after his teacher left him in a seclusion room for hours.
Jonathan's parents say this never would have happened had they known something was going on.

Read the rest of the story here.

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://www.wneg32.tv/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2324:forum-tackles-school-restraint&catid=1:latest-news&Itemid=18

Advisory: House Education Committee to Consider Legislation to Protect Children From Abuse in Schools

2010-02-01T14:07:00.003-06:00

WASHINGTON, D.C., February 1, 2010

On Thursday, February 4th, the House Education and Labor Committee will consider legislation that will protect schoolchildren from harmful uses of restraint and seclusion in their classrooms.

A recent investigation by the U.S. Government Accountability Office found hundreds of allegations that children have been abused, and some even died, as a result of misuses of restraint and seclusion in public and private schools, often at the hands of untrained staff. Unlike in hospitals and other medical and community-based facilities that receive federal health funding, there are currently no federal laws addressing restraint and seclusion in schools.

The Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act (H.R. 4247) is the first national effort to address this troubling problem and ensure the safety of everyone involved – both students and school staff. It would establish minimum safety standards in schools and increase transparency, oversight and enforcement to prevent future abuse, among other things. Learn more here: http://edlabor.house.gov/blog/2009/12/preventing-harmful-restraint-a.shtml.

WHAT: Full Committee Mark-Up of H.R. 4247 “The Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act”

WHEN: Thursday, February 4, 2009
11:00 a.m. ET

WHERE: House Education and Labor Committee Hearing Room
2175 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, D.C.

Note: This hearing will be webcast live from the Education and Labor Committee website. You can access the webcast when the hearing begins at 11:00 am Eastern here.

Committee members are listed here: http://edlabor.house.gov/about/members/. There are no committee members from Missouri, but if you are a constituent from another state, please contact your Congress person before Thursday. Let them know how important this piece of legislation is to you, and also bring up any items in the bill that you would like changed or strengthened.

Go here for general information on areas that can be improved: http://www.wrightslaw.com/info/restraint.hr4247.butler.htm

COPAA’s Position on the Pending Congressional Bills on the Use of Seclusion and Restraint in Schools

2010-01-30T21:39:00.002-06:00

Specifically, COPAA supports S. 2860 and H.R. 4247 because the following provisions are included:
Prohibition against restraint or seclusion unless a student’s behavior poses imminent danger of physical injury to self or others and less restrictive interventions would be ineffective in stopping such imminent danger;
Prohibition against the use of aversive interventions that compromise health and safety;
Prohibition against mechanical and chemical restraints and interventions that restrict airflow;
Requirement for face-to-face monitoring to quickly detect physical or psychological distress if restraint or seclusion is employed, except in circumstances where staff safety is significantly compromised , requiring direct visual monitoring;
Prohibition against placement of restraint or seclusion in a child’s Individual Education Program, behavioral plan, or other educational planning document;
Requirement that restraint or seclusion be implemented only by trained personnel;
Requirement that the technique cease when there is no longer a threat of harm;
Requirement that notice be provided to parents within 24 hours of the use of restraint and/or seclusion;
Requirement for the collection and public reporting of data;
Protection of parents’ and children’s existing rights under federal and state law, including existing state health codes and safety regulations; and
Reinforcing State Protection & Advocacy programs’ authority to investigate and obtain legal remedies for students who are subject to violations under the provisions of the proposed bills.
We believe these provisions are critical to provide a minimum floor of protection

Read the entire statement here.

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://www.copaa.org/news/position%20on%20HR4247%20and%20S2860.html

Wisconsin Legislative Proposal Would Limit Use of Restraints and Seclusion Rooms in Schools

2010-01-29T12:51:00.001-06:00

Wisconsin, January 28, 2010

Two bills for regulating the use of restraints and seclusion rooms in Wisconsin schools have been introduced in the legislature.

The Senate and Assembly education committees are reviewing their respective versions of the bills. Both would prohibit isolating and locking away an unruly student. Faculty and staff would also be trained in early intervention techniques, similar to training used by Milwaukee police officers in calming down agitated people in potentially violent situations.

Representative Sandy Pasch drafted the Assembly version of the bill. She says there have been cases where children with mental health issues have been injured or traumatized by educators sitting on them, tying them up, or putting them alone in a room for hours at a time. Pasch says there’s been no intent to harm a student, but many schools don’t know how to handle a child’s behavior, and children can be harmed. She says the bills aren’t an attempt to take away a teacher’s ability to protect themselves, but rather change the way they intervene, so no one gets hurt.

Read the rest of the story here.

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://www.northlandsnewscenter.com/news/local/82935897.html

Corporal Punishment and "Use of Force" in Missouri

2010-01-29T12:09:00.004-06:00

HB 1543, an omnibus bill dealing in part to improve school safety, is currently moving its way through the Missouri House of Representatives. It is my understanding that this bill, which looks a lot like HB 96 from last year, was discussed in the Education Committee last Wednesday.

Among the amendments adopted was one that bans corporal punishment of special education (IEP) students. This is great news for those who have been identified as special educated students, but is Missouri going to continue to fight to keep corporal punishment legal in Missouri schools?

Besides that issue, there is the continuing problem where school districts are left to conduct their own investigations if there are abuse allegations after spanking or use of force to protect persons or property. Children's services would not be allowed to conduct an investigation unless the school district finds itself liable for abuse.

As in last year's bill, "use of force" and "property destruction" are not defined, and since Missouri does not ban prone restraint (or other harmful methods of "force"), a child can legally be held face down for property destruction as minor as ripping up paper. In other words, what is happening currently to this child will continue to be LEGAL.

(4) Adds the use of force to protect persons or property by
school district personnel to the provisions regarding spanking.
Neither act is to be considered as abuse that would be
investigated by the Children's Division within the Department of
Social Services as long as the spanking or use of force does not
give rise to an allegation of sexual misconduct and another
employee is present as a witness at a spanking;

Your help is urgently needed to push for real reform for the safety of children attending school.

Consider contacting the Missouri House Special Standing Committee on Children and Families :
http://house.mo.gov/content.aspx?info=/bills101/commit/com488.htm and Elementary and Secondary Education Committee: http://house.mo.gov/content.aspx?info=/bills101/commit/com455.htm

And the Missouri Senate Education Committee: http://www.senate.mo.gov/10info/comm/educ.htm and the Joint Committee on Education: http://www.senate.mo.gov/10info/comm/statutory/jced.htm

*****

Copy and paste URLs:

HB 1543: http://www.house.mo.gov/content.aspx?info=/bills101/bills/hb1543.htm
HB 96: http://nomoseclusion.blogspot.com/search?q=HB%2096

Ending Seclusion and Restraints in Georgia Schools

2010-01-26T21:23:00.001-06:00

Georgia, January 26, 2010

Lipson says, "Currently in Georgia it is a wild west. There is no requirement or rules or limitations whatsoever. It is bad because it's a dangerous practice."

Georgia's Department of Education will vote later this year on a proposal to end seclusion and restraints in school, a practice most often used with students with special needs.

"We're looking for the Department of Education to put safeguards forth that make this practice greatly reduced and eventually eliminated."

Forums are being held across the state on the topic, from Valdosta to Athens to Macon to Atlanta.

The Department of Education could vote on a proposal as early as May.

Read the full story here.

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://www.11alive.com/news/education/story.aspx?storyid=140131&catid=11

Under Pressure, Duncan to Release States’ Restraint and Seclusion Policies

2010-01-26T15:45:00.001-06:00

DisabilityScoop, January 26, 2010

Secretary of Education Arne Duncan pledged to have a “real clear plan” in place in every state for handling restraint and seclusion at the start of the school year. Now, halfway through the year, officials say information will be released in the coming weeks.

Last May, a Government Accountability Office report found hundreds of cases of abusive and even deadly incidents of restraint and seclusion in the nation’s schools, most of which involved students with disabilities.

Within days, Duncan told members of the House Education and Labor Committee that safety was a top priority. “I want to make sure that at the start of the next school year that every state has a real clear plan as to how to do this in a way that makes sense and that doesn’t jeopardize, doesn’t endanger children,” he said regarding restraint and seclusion.

Read the rest here.

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Copy and paste URL: http://www.disabilityscoop.com/2010/01/26/duncan-restraint/6758/

Bill Targets Use of 'Seclusion and Restraint' in Schools

2010-01-25T19:14:00.001-06:00

Wisconsin, January 25, 2010

A bill working its way through the state Legislature would restrict the use of restraints and seclusion in schools.
After a decade with no success, members of a state disability rights group hope their effort has enough momentum this time around.
A growing list of states are putting laws on the books intended to reduce the use of seclusion and restraints with students, which can often have dangerous consequences, according to Jeff Spitzer-Resnick, managing attorney for Disability Rights Wisconsin, which helped write the bill that was introduced on Friday.

Read the rest of the story here.

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://www.journaltimes.com/news/local/article_be9dc2ea-09f7-11df-b888-001cc4c03286.html?mode=story

Supporters of the Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in the Schools Act

2010-01-25T19:07:00.002-06:00

Go here to see the list of supporting organizations with a link to their written correspondence indicating such.

Access Living
Access to Living of Chicago
ADAPT Montana
Advocates for Children of New York (NY, NY)
Alliance to Prevent Restraint, Aversive Interventions and Seclusion
American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
American Academy of Pediatrics
American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy
American Association of People with Disabilities
American Association on Health and Disability
American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities
American Counseling Association
American Federation of Teachers
American Group Psychotherapy Association
American Humane
American Psychiatric Nurses Association
Association of University Centers on Disabilities
Autism Society
Autism Speaks
Autistic Self Advocacy Network
Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law
Burton Blatt Institute
Center for Self-Determination
Children and Adults with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder
Coalition for Community Integration
Community Parent Resource Center of New Mexico (Bernalillo, NM)
Congress of the Statewide Independent Living Councils
Council for Exceptional Children
Council for Learning Disabilities
Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates
Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance
Division for Learning Disabilities
Easter Seals
Epilepsy Foundation
Families Against Restraint and Seclusion
Families Together, Inc.
Family Alliance to Stop Abuse and Neglect
Family to Family Health Information Center (New Jersey)
Family Voices
Family Voices (New Jersey Chapters)
Family Voices of Tennessee
Higher Education Consortium for Special Education
Justice for All Action Network
Learning Disabilities Association of America
Little People of America
Maine Parent Federation
Mental Health America
National Alliance on Mental Illness
National Association for Children’s Behavioral Health
National Association of Councils on Developmental Disabilities
National Association of County Behavioral Health and Developmental Disability Directors
National Association of School Psychologists
National Association of State Directors of Special Education
National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors
National Association of the Deaf
National Autism Association
National Center for Environmental Health Strategies
National Coalition of Mental Health Consumers/Survivor Organizations
National Council on Independent Living
National Disability Rights Network
National Down Syndrome Congress
National Down Syndrome Society
National Education Association
National Federation of Families for Children’s Mental Health
National Parent Teacher Association
National Rehabilitation Association
National Respite Coalition
National School Boards Association
National Spinal Cord Injury Association
National Youth Leadership Network
New Jersey’s Parent Training and Information Center
New York Association of Psychiatric Rehabilitation Services (NYAPRS)
Northwest Arkansas Community Parent Resource Center (Springdale, AR)
Not Dead Yet
PACER Center
Parent to Parent of Georgia (Atlanta, GA)
Pennsylvania TASH
Pyramid Community Parent Resource Center (New Orleans, LA)
Resources for Children with Special Needs, Inc.
Respect ABILITY Law Center
School Social Work Association of America
South Dakota Parent Connection (Sioux Falls, SD)
Statewide Parent Advocacy Network of New Jersey (Newark, NJ)
Statewide Parent to Parent (NJ)
TASH
Teacher Education Division of the Council for Exceptional Children
The Advocacy Institute
The Arc of the United States
Therapeutic Communities of America
Tourette Syndrome Association
United Cerebral Palsy
United Spinal Association
U.S. Psychiatric Rehabilitation Association
Witness Justice

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://edlabor.house.gov/blog/2010/01/supporters-of-the-preventing-h.shtml

Your Guide To Restraint and Seclusion

2010-01-19T14:03:00.001-06:00

Disability Scoop, January 19, 2009

A scathing report released one year ago brought unprecedented attention to the use of restraint and seclusion tactics in schools, documenting rampant examples of abusive and even deadly practices primarily involving special education students.

Now Congress is set to consider legislation this year to institute the first-ever federal oversight regulating these tactics. Meanwhile, a handful of states have made changes in an effort to promote student safety. (Read all of Disability Scoop’s coverage of restraint and seclusion >>)

Yet, for students who enter classrooms everyday, the battle is far more personal. Relatively few protections are in place in most states and consideration of the pending federal legislation will take time. That means parents and students themselves must be on the watch, says Curt Decker, executive director of the National Disability Rights Network, which issued the initial report last January and is currently preparing a follow up report.

Read the rest of the story here.

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://www.disabilityscoop.com/2010/01/19/restraint-seclusion-guide/6690/

Restraint & Seclusion National Call-In Day - Contact Your Members of Congress

2010-01-19T10:25:00.000-06:00

Take quick action on Thursday, January 21st! See specific Missouri contacts after letter.

Please repost and distribute the announcement below, which explains how to contact your members of Congress on Thursday, January 21st, to ask for their support in preventing abusive restraint and seclusion in the schools.

Dear Friends, Advocates and Community Members,

In one week, Congress will come back in session. The Autistic Self Advocacy Network (ASAN), in conjunction with the Alliance to Prevent Restraint, Aversive Interventions and Seclusion (APRAIS), is asking you to join us in a National Call-In Day on Thursday, January 21st to tell your members of Congress to support the Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act (H.R. 4247/S.2860) introduced last month by Representatives George Miller (D-CA) and Cathy McMorris-Rodgers (R-WA) and Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT). This legislation would provide students with and without disabilities vital protections against abuse in schools. We are providing details on how to contact your members of Congress -- please distribute this announcement widely.

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

Please call this coming Thursday and encourage your friends, family and coworkers to participate by dialing the Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121 and asking for your Congressional representative to Co-Sponsor H.R. 4247, and your senators to Co-Sponsor S. 2860.

• To find out the names of your US Senators and Representative, click here (link to www.congress.org)
• Ask for the offices of your US Senators and Representative
• Ask to speak to the person working on education issues
• Identify yourself as a constituent and the organization that you represent (if any)

Message: “ I am calling to urge (Senator y) to cosponsor S.2860, legislation preventing harmful use of restraint and seclusion in schools.”

Message: “I am calling to urge (Representative z) to cosponsor HR 4247, legislation preventing harmful use of restraint and seclusion in schools.”

Thanks for your advocacy. Increasing congressional support for these bills will help move them through the legislative process towards enactment. Please call on January 21, 2010 and tell your friends and family to join you. If you are interested in doing more, please e-mail us at info@autisticadvocacy.org for information about how you can arrange a meeting with your representatives to explain why this bill is essential or visit www.tash.org/aprais to learn more.

Regards,
The Autistic Self Advocacy Network and the APRAIS Coalition

Missouri Congressional Representatives:
Akin, Todd, Missouri, 2nd
Blunt, Roy, Missouri 7th
Carnahan, Russ, Missouri, 3rd
Clay Jr., William "Lacy" , Missouri, 1st
Cleaver, Emanuel, Missouri, 5th
Emerson, Jo Ann, Missouri, 8th
Graves, Sam, Missouri, 6th
Luetkemeyer, Blaine, Missouri, 9th
Skelton, Ike, Missouri, 4th

Missouri Senators:
Bond, Christopher S.
274 RUSSELL SENATE OFFICE BUILDING WASHINGTON DC 20510
(202) 224-5721
Web Form

McCaskill, Claire
717 HART SENATE OFFICE BUILDING WASHINGTON DC 20510
(202) 224-6154
Web Form

A Young Boy's Story

2010-01-14T21:55:00.004-06:00

Story provided by parent.

2008 through Present

Parent took her 6-year-old son (on the autism spectrum) to school around 9AM after taking him to the doctor for an earache. Parent walked him to his class and explained to two of the paras that he didn't feel well and had an ear infection. Parent also explained that she wasn't sure if he would make it all day or be able to attend a class party, but if there were any problems at all to call her. Parent called to check on her son at 11:30 and he was fine. At 12:11 the school called and asked parent to come right away.

When parent arrived at the school, the school police officer’s car was parked out front and she could hear her son screaming from outside. She got to the door that leads to the secretary’s desk, which is next to the window where another parent was signing her child out of school. There was a teacher at each arm of her child and the police officer at his feet. Parent walked in and picked up her child. His teacher went to get his things from his class and parent and child met her down the hall. The boy was holding his back crying and his teacher said "Well he did have some red spots on his back".

Parent returned home with her son, questioning him for information. She asked what happened and why he got so mad. The boy said they were being mean, and when asked who, he replied that it was the teachers. Parent asked for clarification and her son stated that he was made me set outside and he was cold. When asked who was outside with him, he replied nobody. With further questioning it became clear he was made to sit outside of the classroom trailer by the door, alone, for a “time out”. Because he was cold, the boy asked for his coat and they wouldn't let him have it

When parent and son arrive home, she looks at his back only to discover that he has carpet burns. Both parents decide to take the child to the emergency room to make sure there are no serious injuries. Parent contacted the Department of Children’s services and parent and child met with representative at the local office. The investigator left a message for the superintendent--the school chose to conduct its own investigation and Children’s Services is not doing a report.

A couple weeks prior to this the boy was restrained because he was hungry, and when parent went to pick up child he kept holding his neck. He had a red ring around his neck where he said they had been pulling on his hoody.

This family has have been struggling with this since the beginning of the child’s kindergarten year—parent has not seen a functional behavioral assessment although the school says one has been in the works. He was restrained all of the time and parent had to pick him up half way through the day almost every day. The last six weeks of his Kindergarten year, the boy was home bound and a teacher came to the house THREE hours a week. During that time the parent got the medication evaluation that the school had requested and hoped that he child could attend summer school; however, they wouldn't allow him to. The family started this year out hoping for a better year but thus far it hasn't been.

At the beginning of the school year parent requested a copy of his behavior record from last year and the beginning of this one, and there were only two things in his record from last year even though he was homebound. Although parent had been called to the school nearly everyday the first two weeks of school only one thing had been documented. A note from the teacher reads that the child had two tantrums after not complying with directions and was restrained both times for 45 minutes each instance. That same afternoon the note reads that the child had to be held/restrained in a chair because he kept tearing his spelling work that they were doing. After completing his spelling he lay down and slept about an hour. The student has an individualized education plan, but there is noncompliance.

Updated: Parent was requested to sign a blanket consent to allow anyone to restrain her child. SHe did not sign. The child is continuing to be restrained weekly, if not daily, for noncompliance issues. Parent has walked in on child being restrained face down on floor with large teacher laying on top of him.

Parents: Ban Schools from Restraining Students with Autism, Other Disabilities

2010-01-13T22:42:00.001-06:00

Florida, January 13, 2010

For a third straight year, Florida parents and special-education advocates are trying to get a law passed that would prevent school employees from holding students with disabilities face-down or shutting them in rooms to try to control behaviors associated with their conditions.

This year, proponents have the backing of the National Autism Association, Autism Speaks and 26 state organizations, primarily involved in medical or disabilities issues.

There's also a federal push to limit the use of such practices after a U.S. Government Accountability Office report revealed hundreds of cases of alleged abuse and several children killed when school and treatment center staffers used the methods.

Read the rest of the story here.

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/schools/parents-ban-schools-from-restraining-students-with-autism-177665.html

Still Restrained

2010-01-12T17:10:00.001-06:00

Texas, January 12, 2010

Texas educators forcibly pinned down students with disabilities as many times in 2009 as they did in 2008, despite efforts to curb the practice in public schools.

The static numbers hide dramatic drops in restraints in many large school districts. Because many smaller school districts reported restraints for the first time in 2009, statewide numbers remained virtually unchanged.

Read more here.

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://www.texastribune.org/stories/2010/jan/12/still-restrained/#ixzz0cRUeYiAu

Protecting Students from Excessive/Improper Restraint

2010-01-12T12:18:00.003-06:00

Webinar on Jan. 29, 2010

What:

Attorney Calvin Luker and Tricia Luker, presenters from The Respect ABILITY Law Center and Alliance to Prevent Restraint, Aversive Interventions and Seclusion. Both are long time activists to eliminate the use of seclusion, restraints and aversive interventions in public and charter schools. They'll provide strategies and skills for reducing excessive/improper use of restraints in schools.

When:
11 am - 1 pm. $40.00 to register.

To Register:
Reserve your attendance On-line, E-mail or Call:
Camille Skipper Watkins at The Training Institute
cwatkins@jaynolan.org or call (818) 361-6400, #140.

For more information and to register, please go here.

Failing Zakhqurey Price

2010-01-12T00:25:00.009-06:00

Dear Readers,

Chances are you don’t know who Zakhqurey Price is or why it matters to you that this 11 year old boy was charged with a felony. And most likely, if you did see his name fly by as you scanned Facebook while drinking your morning coffee, the words “autism” “injured teacher” and “felony” alluded to a story that was disconcerting but not applicable enough to your own life to garner any further investigation. Besides, a lost virtual cow needed you now. If Zakhqurey Price was real news--important news--you’d catch it on your favorite newsmedia outlet, right?

Wrong. Although barraged by information and leads, larger media has yet to tackle Zakhqurey’s troubling story. This isn’t surprising since abusing children with disabilities is tolerated and justified by the general public. If you don’t believe me, peruse the online comments of the relatively few local and national stories dealing with the abuse of students with disabilities. If you need more evidence, take a look at the recently introduced federal legislation that is aimed at protecting school children from being involuntarily locked in rooms and restricted from moving. Yes, as evident by hundreds of stories of the misuse and abuse of seclusion rooms and restraint procedures in our public schools, we need a federal law to keep public schools from locking children with disabilities up in padded rooms, strapping them down in chairs, and pinning them onto the ground until they are no longer able to breathe.

I know where your mind is going now, at least if you are the general public. It’s the same place that will quietly beckon you once you read Zakhqurey’s story: These kids are dangerous. These practices are needed to keep everyone safe. Teachers shouldn’t have to put up with these kids. It’s a sad situation all around, but these kids aren’t my problem. And with these beliefs also come the less obvious but no less common opinions: Children with disabilities don’t belong in public schools. They aren’t capable of learning. These kids are a drain on the system.

Wrong again. Unfortunately children with disabilities, children like Zakhqurey Price, are all too often not given a chance to achieve their potential. They are instead intentionally set up to fail. These children are denied evaluations and refused adequate services, support, and accommodations. And when these children reach crisis after repeated systemic failure, unsafe methods such as seclusion and restraint are used as a first line intervention rather than as a last resort. As what happened in Zakhqurey’s case, these methods often escalate already distraught situations as children respond out of desperation, fear, and confusion. And finally, the “fight or flight” reactions of these frightened children then “justify” the schools’ responses of dangerous physical interventions in the name of treatment and/or safety. This perpetual cycle of failure and abuse at a minimum leaves children traumatized but also leads to injury, arrest, or death.

Unfortunately, Zakhqurey Price’s story does not end with the abuse of seclusion and restraint methods, but continues with unrelenting systemic failure and abuse. So what happens now? Will you tend to your virtual farm or will you instead pay attention to Zakhqurey Price, realizing that his story is happening everyday in our own backyards? We could stop this abuse from happening especially if we just took the time to notice it.

Ange Hemmer

Representative Hukill to Hold Press Conference on Restraint and Seclusion Bill

2010-01-11T11:00:00.000-06:00

Florida, January 12, 2010

On Wednesday, January 13th, State Representative Dorothy L. Hukill (R-Port Orange) will hold a press conference on House Bill 81, which restricts the use of restraint and seclusion on students with disabilities. The legislation would ban the use of seclusion rooms and restrict the use of manual physical restraint to emergency situations as well as require incidents to be reported and tracked. Florida currently has no regulations in place on the use of restraint or seclusion.

While under supervision or due to lack of proper supervision, there have been many instances of students dying or being severely traumatized from being restrained or placed in seclusion. Some children do to their physical limitations are unable to speak out against this type of treatment. This bill serves to create a safe environment for all students and school personnel. House Bill 81 has been endorsed by numerous disability rights groups, many of whom will have representatives join Representative Hukill in speaking. The press conference will be on Wednesday January 13th, on the 4th floor rotunda of The Capitol building, 400 South Monroe Street, Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1300.

WHO: State Representative Dorothy L. Hukill
Parents of children restrained or placed into seclusion rooms.
Representatives of disability rights groups.

WHAT: Press Conference on House Bill 81

WHEN: Wednesday January 13th, 2010 at 11:00am

WHERE: 4th Floor Rotunda, Capitol Building, Tallahassee, Florida.

2010 COPAA Conference in St. Louis, MO, March 11-14th

2010-01-08T16:33:00.003-06:00

Make your plans now to be in St. Louis for the 2010 COPAA Conference. The conference includes in-depth pre-conference skill building sessions, 40 breakouts, exhibitors, The Second Annual COPAA Fun Run/Walk, the Annual Silent Auction to benefit the Beth Goodman Scholarship Fund, the Diane Lipton Award for Excellence in Advocacy and invaluable time to network with experienced and knowledgeable special education attorneys, advocates, and parents.

Sessions promote excellence in special education advocacy and litigation. Participants gain information and strategies to deal with such issues as placement, educational methodology, effective IEPs, evaluation, dispute resolution, compensatory education, due process hearings, litigation matters, and much more.

Please go here for more information and to register.

The following sessions will be dealing with the restraint and seclusion issue:

Thursday, March 11, 2010
One day Preconference 9:00 am - 5:00 pm

Assuring Every Child is Safe in the Schoolhouse
Denise Marshall, MS, Kristine Sullivan, Esq.

COPAA is at the forefront of the national advocacy effort to expose the extent of abuse and ensure that federal legislation be enacted and every available measure taken to stop the use of unnecessary and abusive restraint, seclusion rooms, and all forms of dangerous interventions used on children in our nation's schools. No child should be subjected to neglect, abuse, or physical harm in the name of treatment or under the guise of providing educational or therapeutic services. Restraints, seclusion, and abuse are neither effective nor educational. This session provides specific information regarding the depth and nature of the current issues relating to aversive interventions gleaned from the COPAA report Unsafe in the Schoolhouse, and other recent national reports and research. Participants are also provided with specific information on: 1) the current status of legislation and implications for practice, 2) relevant case history review, and 3) specific strategies to prepare attorneys and advocates to represent families to ensure that children with disabilities receive effective educational services and combat the restraint, seclusion, and abuse of students with disabilities.

Saturday, March 13, 2010
9:00 am - 10:00 am

General Session
Dr. Joseph B. Ryan, Clemson University.

Dr. Ryan is a nationally recognized researcher and speaker on behavior management and seclusion & restraint policies for schools.

Saturday, March 13, 2010 10:30 - 11:45 am

In-depth Discussion and Q&A on the use of Aversives, Restraint and Seclusion in Schools
Joe Ryan, PhD

This session provides opportunity for small group discussion with General Session speaker Joe Ryan and a panel of COPAA members regarding current research, state regulations and statute, and legislative efforts to prevent the use of restraint, seclusion and aversive interventions in all educational programs.

There are also many other great break out sessions such as:

*Introduction to System Policy Advocacy from School Boards to the Capitol

*Suspension & Expulsion Hearings: Strategies & Potential Pitfalls

*Individual Advocacy and Systems Reform to change school culture and behavioral approaches to students with disabilities

State Rejects Greenfield Seclusion Rooms for Students with Disabilities

2010-01-08T10:26:00.000-06:00

Wisconsin, January 8, 2010

The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction has rejected the Greenfield School District's plan to use federal stimulus dollars to construct seclusion areas for students with disabilities and informed districts statewide that federal special-education funds should not be used for such purposes.

The Greenfield School Board in December approved a plan that would have used $131,000 of the more than $1 million it received from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to construct seclusion and segregation areas at its elementary and middle schools. Part of the money also would have gone to construct a life-skills classroom at the middle school to prepare cognitively disabled students for life after high school.

Read the rest of the story here. (Previous story here.)

*****

Copy and paste URL:

Current story: http://www.jsonline.com/news/education/81049867.html
Previous story: http://nomoseclusion.blogspot.com/2009/12/school-district-taps-stimulus-funds-to.html

Federal Appeals Court Says Teacher Can’t be Sued by Child Who Left School District

2010-01-08T10:20:00.001-06:00

Minnesota, January 8, 2010

A federal appeals court has said a child and her mother did not have standing to sue the Willmar School District over alleged mistreatment by a special education teacher.

Because Jackie Nelson filed a complaint after she had transferred her child to another district in the fall of 2006, she no longer had a valid claim against the Willmar district, according to an opinion issued Thursday by the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Using previous decisions as a precedent, the three-judge appeals court panel ruled that the claim against the school district under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act must have been filed before the child was transferred.

The court also dismissed several constitutional claims.

Read the rest of the story here.

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://www.wctrib.com/event/article/id/61988/

Could Training in Restraint Use Have Averted this Tragedy?

2010-01-07T22:59:00.002-06:00

Minnesota, January 7, 2010

Nancy Aleshire is fighting mad. Her son, Timothy Aleshire, 27, was near death Wednesday, after being physically restrained by four people at his state-operated workplace in Eden Prairie.

Aleshire isn't making excuses for her son, who has struggled for years with schizophrenia, developmental disabilities and Asperger syndrome, a form of autism. She is candid about his violent history, including coming at his 4-foot-10 mother with a knife on a few occasions, and nearly strangling her on another. The key word, though, is "history."

Read the rest of the story here.

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://www.startribune.com/local/west/80869037.html

Missouri Autism Summit 2010

2010-01-07T20:49:00.003-06:00

Missouri, January 2010

The following is a good way to get updated on and advocate for legislation including autism and restraint and seclusion.

Missouri Autism Summit 2010
Interested in autism policy & advocacy?

Join us Jan 13 for the Missouri Autism Summit

Features updates/discussions of autism legislation, initiatives, and advocacy strategies. Visit with legislators at Capitol in the afternoon.

Cost:$10 per person covers lunch & printed materials (Cash at door, please!)

Respond by Jan 10 if you plan to attend.

Date:
January 13th, 2010, 9am
Location:
Jefferson City, Missouri
Address:
Truman Building
Room 490
301 W. High Street
Jefferson City, MO 65101

More information and RSVP here.

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://event.pingg.com/2010MOAutismSummit

Personal Minutes Regarding Missouri Restraint & Seclusion Model Policy Meeting

2010-01-07T18:04:00.005-06:00

My personal minutes regarding the November 19, 2009 Missouri (DESE) restraint & seclusion model policy meeting are located here: http://bit.ly/705x7k. Please let me know if you want the original Word document as the Google document formatting is a little wonky.

Please note there was much discussion regaing Michigan's model policy at this meeting, but as posted before, there is now evidence coming forth that model policies are not working. Not that this is a surprise to anyone passionate about this issue, but it is something to include in your letters to your legislators so they see data on how leaving this issue up to local school districts has not worked and will not work to stop the misuse and abuse of seclusion and restraint. Legislation needs to be readressed at the state level as we continue to fight for legislation at the federal level.

I had an e-mail address from DESE for comments, but lost it in my piles of paperwork. For now, please send commments via MPACT or feel free to contact DESE at the general e-mail/address/number.

NY Accused of Abusing Troubled Teens

2010-01-06T14:31:00.001-06:00

New York, January 6, 2010

The New York State Office of Children and Family Services subjected 500 troubled youths in state detention to violent physical restraint, and routinely denied them legally required mental health care services, nine children and their parents claim in a federal class action.

Among other wanton acts, state employees regularly employ a dangerous form of control known as prone restraint - having two adults hold the youth face-down on the floor while his hands are held or cuffed behind him. Prone restraint exposes the victim to risk of cardiac and respiratory arrest, back, arm and neck injuries, abrasions, strained muscles and head injuries, according to the complaint.

Read the rest of the post here.

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://www.courthousenews.com/2010/01/06/23394.htm

Corporal Punishment Restrictions Introduced

2010-01-06T10:31:00.000-06:00

Michigan, January 6, 2010

The state House has been asked to consider a proposed amendment to the school code that would further protect students from being subjected to corporal punishment.

House Bill (HB) 5639 especially targets punishment in the forms of restraints and seclusion of students, where physical as well as emotional trauma can take place.

State Rep. Eileen Kowall (R-White Lake, Highland) is a co-sponsor of the bill. She said its purpose is focused on "instances where kids have been locked in closets, or restrained where they have been hurt, or restrained on the floor where they couldn't breathe."

Read the rest of the story here.

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://www.spinalcolumnonline.com/Articles-i-2010-01-06-72040.113117_Corporal_punishment_restrictions_introduced.html

Interview Regarding 11-year-old Autistic Zakhquery Price Being Charged with a Felony

2010-01-05T20:35:00.001-06:00

Embracing Autism, January 5, 2009

Please go here to listen to audio or here to read the transcript of Tricia Kenney at Embrace Autism’s interview with Carole Reynolds, whose 11-year-old autistic grandson Zakhquery Price is facing felony charges as a result of a meltdown he had in school. He also experienced restraint and seclusion along with other abuse.

*****

Copy and paste URLS:
Audio: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/embraceautismnow/2010/01/05/saving-zakhqurey
Transcript: http://sweetperdition.wordpress.com/2010/01/07/zakh-price-interview/

Clayton Professor Describes “Forgotten Rooms” and Children in Alternative Schools

2010-01-02T15:00:00.000-06:00

Georgia, January 2, 2010

Education researcher Mary Hollowell spent months chronicling an alternative high school in rural Georgia before she discovered the awful secret that continues to haunt her today.

Walking with the principal down a hall, Hollowell heard a loud pounding. She followed the principal into a room and then through a connecting doorway that led to a solitary confinement cell double bolted from the outside.

“The cell was dark inside and had a small, square window,” she said. “It was the kind of set-up you saw in a mental institution, not a school.”
Inside the cell was a boy Hollowell recognized; she had tutored him in reading and even had artwork from him.

“I felt like I had been punched in the stomach when I realized what I was seeing,” she says. “The principal’s comment to me was that most people didn’t know this room was there.”

Hollowell hopes to make more people aware of such rooms — which she estimates are in use in 50 schools in Georgia — through her new book about her year in the alternative school, “The Forgotten Room.”

Read the rest of the story here.

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://blogs.ajc.com/get-schooled-blog/2010/01/02/clayton-professor-describes-forgotten-rooms-and-children-in-alternative-schools/?cxntfid=blogs_get_schooled_blog

Protect Children by Supporting the Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act

2010-01-01T19:33:00.000-06:00

Students with and without disabilities have for too long faced a situation where they must fear physical violence, injury and even death as a result of aversives, restraint and seclusion at school. We believe that school should be a place of learning, not a place of fear. This action alert is to promote the Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act, which represents a crucial step forward for students with disabilities in particular, who are the most vulnerable to these practices, and fulfills a key provision of the Justice for All Action Network Joint Campaign Agenda, calling on Congress to pass comprehensive legislation addressing the use of restraint, seclusion and aversives. Amongst the valuable provisions of this legislation are:

* A prohibition on the use of restraint and seclusion in schools unless a student’s behavior poses an immediate danger of physical injury and less restrictive interventions would be ineffective.
* A prohibition on the use of any mechanical restraint, chemical restraint, or physical restraint that restricts air flow to the lungs, and any other aversive behavioral intervention that compromises health and safety.
* A requirement for adequate training for school personnel imposing restraint and seclusion.
* A requirement for immediate parental notification and a school debriefing following each incident of restraint or seclusion.
* A requirement for states to create a state plan that incorporates the minimum standards and report annually on the number of incidents of restraint and seclusion.

or, Start a Petition

Interview with Ari Ne’eman about the Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act

2009-12-28T20:23:00.000-06:00

Autism Women’s Network, December 28, 2009

You can listen to the recorded show here.

Please go here to access a transcript of Sharon daVanport’s interview with Ari Ne’eman about seclusion and restraints in schools, and the Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion Act.

*****

Copy and paste URLs:
Audio: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/autism-womens-network/2009/12/29/asan-president-ari-neeman-is-taking-your-questions
Transcript: http://sweetperdition.wordpress.com/2009/12/31/restraints-and-seclusion/#more-755

Policy Guidance for Use of Seclusion and Restraints In Schools

2009-12-26T11:13:00.003-06:00

Indiana, December 2009

Background
In a letter to all Chief State Schools officers dated July 31, 2009, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan asked that “each State … review its current policies and guidelines regarding the use of restraints and seclusion in schools to ensure every student is safe and protected, and if appropriate, develop or revise its policies and guidelines.” This request comes after a hearing held on May 19, 2009, by the U.S. House Education and Labor Committee to examine misapplication of seclusion and restraint techniques in schools. On the day of the hearing, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued a copy of the testimony of Gregory D. Kutz,
entitled "Seclusions and Restraints: Selected Cases of Death and Abuse at Public and Private Schools and Treatment Centers."

Based on this federal directive, the Indiana Department of Education has reviewed all state statutes, regulations and policies, and concluded that Indiana has no statewide policy regarding restraint and seclusion of students. This document was developed after reviewing other states’statutes, regulations, and policies, as well as the position papers of organizations such as the Council for Exceptional Children. As a guiding principle, the Department recommends that schools and school corporations address the use of student seclusion and restraint as part of the
school’s written discipline rules.

Read the policy GUIDELINES here.

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://www.doe.in.gov/super/2009/12-December/121109/documents/seclusion_restraint_policy.pdf

Restraint and Seclusion Remain Unregulated and Underreported in Michigan Schools

2009-12-26T11:01:00.003-06:00

Michigan, December 2009

This is a report on the use of restraint and seclusion in schools throughout Michigan. It concludes that, while some intermediate school districts (ISDs) have tried to apply the voluntary Board policy, most have not. It concludes further that the Michigan Department of Education and the state of Michigan have taken few actions to make the policy mandatory or effective, or to even gather and report information about restraint, seclusion, or use of the policy. This inaction means that Michigan schools remain the one service sector in the state where restraint and seclusion are virtually unregulated and are not subject to any reporting requirements. As a result, children remain at risk.

The current voluntary Board policy is not adequate to protect children from restraint and seclusion. For this reason, Michigan Protection and Advocacy Service (MPAS) and its partners make recommendations for change, to be enacted through legislation or other mandatory policy action, included at the end of this report. The time to stop these dangerous practices – the time to ensure that our children are “safe and protected” – is now.

Read the rest of the report here.

NOTE: Michigan and Kansas are perfect examples of why model policies DO NOT WORK.

*****

Copy and paste URLs:
Report:
http://www.mpas.org/DocumentWithArticles.asp?TOPIC=11087
Press release: http://www.mpas.org/Article.asp?TOPIC=10956

National Autism Association - We Got a Problem (video)

2009-12-22T14:41:00.002-06:00

School District Taps Stimulus Funds To Build Seclusion Rooms

2009-12-22T14:09:00.002-06:00

Wisconsin, December 22, 2009

As Congress works to limit the use of restraint and seclusion in schools, a Wisconsin district is planning to use federal stimulus dollars to build new seclusion areas.

The Greenfield, Wis. school board voted earlier this month to spend $131,000 in stimulus funds to construct seclusion and segregation areas intended to be used with special education students who need a quiet space to calm down. But the proposal is drawing concern from the state’s Department of Public Instruction and legislators who are worried that this could be the wrong use for much-needed education funding.

The school district’s plan caps a year when a federal government report uncovered hundreds of cases of abusive and even deadly uses of restraint and seclusion tactics with special education students. Legislation was introduced in Congress earlier this month intended to curb these practices.

Read the rest of the story here and here.

*****

Copy and paste URLs:
disabilityscoop: http://www.disabilityscoop.com/2009/12/22/seclusion-room/6547/
Journal Sentinel: http://www.jsonline.com/news/education/79775112.html

Opinions on Recently Introduced Federal Legislation

2009-12-18T15:45:00.005-06:00

December 18, 2009

Here are some personal opinions regarding the recently introduced federal legislation. Have an opinion posted somewhere? Send me a link and I'll add it here.

Autism, Seclusion and Restraint: http://www.aspieweb.net/autism-seclusion-restraint/

Do We Really Need to tell People not to hurt kids?????: http://www.iue.edu/blogs/integrate/?p=108

Seclusion and Restraint- An Update: http://crackedmirrorinshalott.blogspot.com/2009/12/seclusion-and-restraint-update.html

Prevent Harmful Seclusion and Restraint in Schools: http://astridvanwoerkom.wordpress.com/2009/12/10/prevent-harmful-seclusion-and-restraint-in-schools/

Proposed Law!: http://homeschoolnetc.blogspot.com/2009/12/proposed-law.html

How To Contact Congress

2009-12-18T12:21:00.004-06:00

The following information--other than information specific to Missouri--was pulled from Wrightslaw.

PLEASE contact your Congressmen/women. Write one letter and then print multiple copies to mail and also copy and paste the letter into the web forms listed below. A little effort today can protect so many children in the near future.

*****

The Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act (H.R. 4247 and S. 2860) are important bills that seek to provide a minimal floor of protection for all children in all states.

Chairman Miller would like to mark up the bill early next year. You should contact your Congressional Representatives and Senators and share your views on the bills. If they do not hear from you, they cannot know what you are thinking.

Be sure to include the bill’s name, “The Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act,” and its number (H.R. 4247 in the House and S.2860 in the Senate) in your email, phone messages, and correspondence.

Telephone/TTY: Call your Congressional Representative and Senators at 202-224-3121 (TTY 202-225-1904). This is the switchboard, so you will need to know your Representative’s and Senators' names. When you are connected, ask for the aide who handles education or disability. If you get voicemail, please leave a detailed message.

You can also find direct dial numbers for your Representative and Senators (including local numbers and fax numbers) on your Representative’s webpage at http://www.house.gov and Senators’ webpages at http://www.senate.gov/ (click on Senators).

Email: If you need to use email, go to http://www.house.gov/writerep for the House. For the Senate, go to http://www.senate.gov/ and click on Senators and then “Choose a State.” Click on the webforms to send email.

Members of the Committees: It is particularly important to call or email if your Representative is on the House Education and Labor Committee (see http://edlabor.house.gov/about/members/ for a list of members) or the Senate Health Education Labor and Pension Committee (see http://help.senate.gov/About.html for a list of members). These are the members who will mark up, or edit, the bill before the Committee votes on it. Even if you’re not in one of these districts, it is still important to share your thoughts with your Representatives and Senators.

Find Out Who Your Congressional Representative is: If you do not know who your Congressional Representative is, go to http://www.house.gov and put your zip code into the box in the upper left corner. (You usually only need your five digit zip code.) You can find your Senators through http://www.senate.gov/ and clicking on Senators and then ““Choose a State.” You have one Representative and two Senators.

Missouri Congressional Representatives:
Akin, Todd, Missouri, 2nd
Blunt, Roy, Missouri 7th
Carnahan, Russ, Missouri, 3rd
Clay Jr., William "Lacy" , Missouri, 1st
Cleaver, Emanuel, Missouri, 5th
Emerson, Jo Ann, Missouri, 8th
Graves, Sam, Missouri, 6th
Luetkemeyer, Blaine, Missouri, 9th
Skelton, Ike, Missouri, 4th

Missouri Senators:
Bond, Christopher S.
274 RUSSELL SENATE OFFICE BUILDING WASHINGTON DC 20510
(202) 224-5721
Web Form

McCaskill, Claire
717 HART SENATE OFFICE BUILDING WASHINGTON DC 20510
(202) 224-6154
Web Form

If you wish to Contact Congressman Miller’s office directly about H.R. 4247:
Email: [Web Form] or fax: 202-225-5609
On email, select Education as the topic, and be sure to write “H.R.4247” in the body of your email. At times, there has been a special email box in the Committee office for restraint and seclusion emails. If you choose to use it, please also send an email through the contact form above. And even if you contact Chairman Miller, please also contact your own Representative. Your own Representative needs to hear from you.

Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act: What Does it Mean For Children with Disabilities?

2009-12-18T12:03:00.004-06:00

12/14/09

Jessica Butler, a mother of a child with autism and an attorney, has written a very detailed analysis of The Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act (H.R. 4247) and its companion bill S.2860. This analysis includes an overview of the bill, questions to consider, definitions of what is referred to in the bill, as well as features of the bill.

I encourage everyone to read this and to use this information when contacting members of congress. If you are required to enter your e-mail address to register for the Wrightslaw Newsletter in order to see this piece, it is very much worth it.

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://www.wrightslaw.com/info/restraint.hr4247.butler.htm

Proposed Restraint Bill Contentious But Has Few Ties to Transportation

2009-12-18T10:54:00.000-06:00

School Transportation News, December 18, 2009

New federal legislation that would limit the use of restraint and seclusion in schools has been ruffling a few feathers, but, according to industry insiders, it has little or no effect on transportation.

The Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act (H.R. 4247) was introduced by Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.) on Dec. 9, and although it mentions the use of restraints while transporting students, it calls for an exemption from prohibiting the use of passenger vehicle safety restraints for students.

But, some groups are on the defensive concerning another aspect of the proposed legislation, specifically, section 5 (a) (4), which states that the “use of physical restraint or seclusion as a planned intervention shall not be written into a student’s education plan, individual safety plan, behavioral plan, or individualized education program.”

Read the rest of the story here.

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Copy and paste URL: http://www.stnonline.com/home/latest-news/1774-proposed-restraint-bill-contentious-but-has-few-ties-to-transportation

American Association of School Administrators: Restraint and Seclusion

2009-12-17T12:19:00.001-06:00

December 17, 2009

Earlier this week, AASA worked to compile and share a list of concerns in response to restraint and seclusion legislation introduced in the House. While we support the idea of proper training of teachers and school staff in using seclusion and restraint, we are concerned with unintended consequences of new legislation in this area.

Our key concerns related to the inclusion private schools in the bill, the prohibition of including seclusion/restraint in a student's IEP, the fact that schools--who do involve police to diffuse some situations--cannot be responsible for all actions of the police, the inclusion of chemical restraint and whether it really warrants federal legislation, and the likelihood of school districts being able to collect required data as proposed in the legislation.

Read the rest of the post here.

NOTE:
17.1 AASA believes that monitored seclusion and restraints should be used as a last resort but must be an option for staff working with students who are out of control and pose a danger to themselves and others. [My comment: Legislation as currently proposed does not take this option away.]

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Copy and paste URLs:
http://www.aasa.org/aasablog.aspx?id=11118&blogid=286
http://www.aasa.org/uploadedFiles/Policy_and_Advocacy/files/AASALegislativeAgenda2009.pdf

NCD in Houston to Listen to Issues Affecting People with Disabilities

2009-12-17T11:43:00.000-06:00

Washington DC, December 17, 2009

The National Council on Disability (NCD) will conduct its next quarterly meeting at the JW Marriott Houston...Tuesday, January 19, 2010 [to] Thursday, January 21, 2010. This meeting is open to the public...

A public comment session will be held Wednesday, January 20, from 11:30 a.m. until Noon, CST. The toll-free call-in number is (888) 790-6568, and the pass code is "NCD Meeting." Written comments on disability-related issues of concern or interest can also be emailed to mquigley@ncd.gov at any time

Read more here.

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://jfactivist.typepad.com/jfactivist/2009/12/ncd-in-houston-to-listen-to-issues-affecting-people-with-disabilities.html

What You Can Do if This is Happening to Your Child

2009-12-16T18:44:00.000-06:00

In order to create change, we must all band together to fight this as a group. We cannot do this alone. If you or someone you love has been restrained or placed in seclusion, or if you want the overuse and abuse of restraint and seclusion to stop, here are some things you can do:

1. Join the Yahoo group http://groups.yahoo.com/group/RESTRAINT_INFO/ to find information, support, and how you can sign up to be a state leader, co-leader, or helper.

2. Write a letter and try to obtain at least 6-8 signatures requesting your State Protection and Advocacy agency to open an investigation on public schools in regards to the over-use and unnecessary use of restraint and seclusion. Address the letter to the person in charge of your state State Protection and Advocacy group.

3. If your child has been physically restrained in school, file written complaints with your state Department of Education about your situation in regards to your child being restrained or put in seclusion. This may not do much but at least it will be documented and on file. This will create a paper trail.

4. If your state does not have real policies, make a request to the Department of Education to create policies and procedures for all public schools in your state to follow. Make sure you request a monitoring system be created as part of the policy.

5. If your state has policies in place (Missouri) and the schools are not following them, write a letter to the State Protection and Advocacy agency and your local legislators (copy the Department of Education) requesting their help in getting the Department of Education to follow the state policy.

6. Work with legislators (see side bar for links) to help you make the policies part of state statutes.

7. Contact your local legislatures (see side bar for links) and educate them about what is going on in the public school system. Work with your legislatures to change current laws and create new laws to protect children with disabilities in the public school system. WE ALL HAVE THE POWER TO CHANGE AND CREATE NEW LAWS.

8. Contact the media and share your story. If you are afraid of retaliation, there are a number of ways your identity can be protected.

9. Report abuse to your local Child Protection Agency if your child has been injured physically or mentally.

10. Encourage parents to follow these tips for what to do if their child has been or is suspected to have been restrained or placed in seclusion at school.

Please remember, if you do nothing then nothing will ever change.

NAA Action Alert: HR 4247‏

2009-12-16T15:58:00.003-06:00

Originally sent through e-mail. If you do not wish to send communication through the National Autism Association, I will soon post addresses and phone numbers of key members of Congress.

Mailing Address:
National Autism Association
1330 W. Schatz Lane
Nixa, MO 65714
US

Contact Name: Wendy Fournier
Telephone Number: (877) 622-2884

Fellow parents at the National Autism Association feel the introduction of HR 4247, the Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act, by Chairman George Miller (D-CA) and Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) is a critical and necessary start to ending dangerous, even deadly, restraint and seclusion practices in our special education classrooms.

A May 2009 government report revealed that our schoolchildren, most of whom are diagnosed with autism, were tied up, hand-cuffed to desks, duct-taped, locked in small closets and bathrooms for hours at a time, beaten, taunted, chemically and mechanically restrained and even smothered to death. Many of the children are or were nonverbal. Many of their parents were not notified of repeated incidents, until it was too late.

It’s extremely difficult to believe such abuse would be happening in this day and age. It’s even more disturbing to know that federal regulations currently do not exist to protect our children.

ALL PROGRESS MADE WITH ABA, SPEECH THERAPY, OT AND BIOMEDICAL INTERVENTIONS COULD BE DRASTICALLY REDUCED WITH JUST ONE ACT OF ABUSE.

WE NEED TO WORK TOGETHER AND ACT RIGHT NOW.

Please take two minutes to support long-overdue federal legislation that will serve to protect our most vulnerable schoolchildren.

Click here to ask committee members for their support – it’s quick and simple!

Also, if you are a constituent or have a relationship with Republican members on the Education and Labor Committee, please reach out to them and ask for their support in cosponsoring this bill.

If signed into law, the Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act would:

*Prevent and reduce the use of physical restraint and seclusion in schools
*Protect students from physical or mental abuse
*Protect students from aversive behavioral interventions that compromise health and safety, including restraints that restrict airflow
*Prohibit any physical restraint or seclusion imposed solely for purposes of discipline or convenience
*Require parent notification within 24 hours
*Assist States, local educational agencies and schools in the areas of establishing policy; gaining tools, proper training & support; collecting and analyzing data; identifying and implementing effective evidence-based models to prevent and reduce physical restraint and seclusion in schools

Please click here to take this simple measure and ask for the support of HR 4247. You’ll make a substantial difference in protecting the lives of special needs children in their learning environment.

Sincerely,

The NAA Team

Since Hearing, States Take Little Action on Restraint in schools

2009-12-14T21:59:00.002-06:00

USA Today, December 14, 2009

A handful of states have moved to restrict or regulate school staff members who restrain or seclude hard-to-handle children against their will in the wake of abuses exposed by congressional investigators seven months ago. But many more states have done little or nothing, advocates say.

"There has been a lot of attention, a lot of advocacy, a lot of family members involved, but it's slow going," says Jane Hudson, an attorney for the National Disability Rights Network, based in Washington, D.C.

Read the rest of the story here.

NOTE: Missouri, although not mentioned in the article, also passed a [loose] law [without any teeth] this year, which was in the works prior to the GAO hearing.

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2009-12-14-kidrestraint14_st_N.htm?loc=interstitialskip

Q&A with Rep. Miller on Restraints on Kids

2009-12-14T21:47:00.001-06:00

USA Today, December 13, 2009

U.S. Rep. George Miller, D-Calif., who chairs the House Education and Labor Committee, is co-sponsoring legislation that prohibits or limits restraint and seclusion of students except in rare cases, when there is "imminent danger of injury." USA TODAY education writer Greg Toppo asked Miller about the proposal.

Read Greg Toppo's questions and Congressman Miller's answers here.

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Copy and paste URL: http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2009-12-14-kid-restraints-law_N.htm

Can It Still Be True: Child Abuse at School?

2009-12-13T21:40:00.000-06:00

December 13, 2009

Until now, there have been no federal laws to prevent this child abuse at schools. The Children's Health Act of 2000 regulates how and when restraint and seclusion can be used in medical settings and community facilities, but classrooms are not covered. And state protections for students are all over the map. Education in the U.S. has been largely a matter for individual states, not a federal issue.

Astonishingly, twenty states in the U.S. still allow paddling of children with a wooden paddle for discipline in school.

What's wrong with the education system in this country? Every industrialized country in the world now prohibits school corporal punishment, except the U.S. and Australia. (In Outback regions only) Yet here, not only do twenty states permit corporal punishment in public schools, but in the 2006 - 2007 school year, 223,190 school children in the U.S. were subjected to physical punishment. And that's just the cases that were reported.

Read the rest here.

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Copy and paste URL: http://www.care2.com/causes/education/blog/child-abuse-at-school/

Comparison: Federal and Colorado’s Limits on Use of Restraints and Seclusion in Schools

2009-12-12T15:32:00.000-06:00

Colorado, December 12, 2009

Comparing the federal “Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act (HR 4247)” to Colorado’s "Protection of Persons from Restraint Act" and its subsequent rules limiting and regulating similar practices; the two measures have more in common than differences.

Basically, each approach limits the use of such interventions to instances where the student is at “imminent” risk of harming him/herself, staff or other students, only for as long as absolutely necessary and they must cease their use immediately when it is clear the risk is no longer present.

Read the rest of the story here.

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Copy and paste URL: http://www.examiner.com/x-9484-Denver-Special-Education-Examiner~y2009m12d12-Comparison-federal-and-Colorados-limits-on-use-of-restraints-and-seclusion-in-schools

Crisis Prevention Institute Encouraged by Legislation to Address Misuse of Restraint and Seclusion

2009-12-11T11:07:00.002-06:00

Wisconsin, December 11, 2009

Brookfield, WI (PRWEB) December 11, 2009 -- Crisis Prevention Institute (CPI), the world's leading training organization specializing in the safe management of disruptive and assaultive behavior, today expressed support for legislation introduced by U.S. Reps. George Miller (CA) and Cathy McMorris Rodgers (WA) and companion legislation by Sen. Chris Dodd (CT) to protect children from harmful uses of restraint and seclusion in schools.

“This legislation is a major stride forward in establishing federal policies to protect students and guide school personnel in ensuring classrooms are safe places for all,” said Tony Jace, CEO, Crisis Prevention Institute. “We look forward to working with Congressional leaders to bolster the proposed legislation to ensure that it establishes clear and effective accountability measures and outcomes and provides for ongoing professional development, training, and support.”

Read the rest of the story here.

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Copy and paste URL: http://www.prweb.com/releases/2009/12/prweb3329634.htm

Autism Groups Supporting Newly Introduced Restraint and Seclusion Legislation

2009-12-11T10:25:00.004-06:00

The following are some of the autism organizations that have released statements in support of the federal legislation recently introduced:

Autism Speaks Endorses New Federal Legislation to Prevent Abuse Of Children With Autism And Other Disabilities At School

National Autism Association Supports New Federal Legislation to End Abusive Restraint and Seclusion in Schools

The Justice for All Action Network

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Copy and paste URLS:

Autism Speaks Endorses New Federal Legislation to Prevent Abuse Of Children With Autism And Other Disabilities At School: http://www.autismvotes.org/site/c.frKNI3PCImE/b.5687043/k.9EEC/Preventing_Restrain_and_Seclusion_Act.htm

National Autism Association Supports New Federal Legislation to End Abusive Restraint and Seclusion in Schools: http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/national-autism-association-supports-new-federal-legislation-to-end-abusive-restraint-and-seclusion-in-schools-78967507.html

The Justice for All Action Network: http://www.autisticadvocacy.org/modules/smartsection/print.php?itemid=6

NSBA: New Legislation Would Guide Use of Restraints and Seclusion for Disruptive Students

2009-12-10T20:43:00.000-06:00

National School Boards Association, December 10, 2009

NSBA supports the measure because it clarifies appropriate and inappropriate uses of restraint and seclusion for school officials, and it includes all students, not only those with disabilities.

“The goal of school boards in this area is to promote the health, safety, and dignity of the nation’s school children – and teachers – and provide an environment that is conducive to learning,” NSBA Associate Executive Director Michael A. Resnick said at the ceremony. “We do believe this legislation will meet our safety and other goals for students and school personnel while providing sufficient authority and flexibility to schools and school districts in training school personnel based on their unique needs.”

The bill would encourage states to provide better training and support on the emergency use of restraints.

Read the rest of the NSBA statement here.

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Copy and paste URL: http://www.nsba.org/HPC/Features/AboutSBN/SBN-Online-Only-Articles/New-legislation-would-guide-use-of-restraints-and-seclusion-for-disruptive-students-Dec-10.aspx

News of the Day: Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in the Schools Act

2009-12-10T10:38:00.002-06:00

Please take a look at a compilation of media links created by Mike Kruger related to the introduction of HR 4247, the Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in the Schools Act.

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Copy and paste URL: http://edlabor.house.gov/blog/2009/12/news-of-the-day-preventing-har.shtml

Federal Legislation Introduced in House

2009-12-09T13:42:00.004-06:00

Washington DC, December 9, 2009

U.S. Reps. George Miller (D-CA) and Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) today introduced legislation that would, for the first time, protect all children in schools from harmful uses of restraint and seclusion. The legislation embodies principles outlined in a letter U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan sent to Miller today. U.S. Sen. Chris Dodd (D-CT) is also expected to introduce companion legislation today in the Senate. The lawmakers unveiled the bill at a press conference this morning.

A U.S. Government Accountability Office report released last spring exposed hundreds of cases of schoolchildren being abused as a result of inappropriate uses of restraint and seclusion, often involving untrained staff. In some cases, children died. A disproportionate number of these victims were students with disabilities.

Read more, including pictures and video of press conference, here.

Link to full bill.

Fact sheet on the legislation.

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Copy and paste URLs:

Story: http://edlabor.house.gov/newsroom/2009/12/lawmakers-introduce-bipartisan.shtml

Link to full bill: http://edlabor.house.gov/documents/111/pdf/legislation/HR4247Seclusion_Restraint.pdf

Fact sheet on the legislation: http://edlabor.house.gov/blog/2009/12/preventing-harmful-restraint-a.shtml

NEA Backs New Bills to Create Federal School Safety Guidelines

2009-12-09T12:39:00.000-06:00

Washington DC, December 9, 2009

The National Education Association applauds lawmakers for introducing legislation that would create federal standards around restraint and seclusion in schools. Bills introduced today in both the House and Senate would set minimum safety standards in schools, ban mechanical restraints, limit physical restraints and seclusion to situations involving imminent danger, require parental notification of such situations and mandate professional training for staff.

“Safe school environments have always been a priority for the NEA,” said Dennis Van Roekel, president of NEA. “NEA has been advocating for federal guidelines around this issue. We worked with a coalition of disability groups and other education organizations to provide input on the current House and Senate bills. We must work together to ensure the safety of all students and educators and create supports that provide proper training for school staff.”

Read the rest here.

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Copy and paste URL: https://www.nea.org/home/37278.htm

Federal Legislation Introduced in Senate

2009-12-09T11:12:00.002-06:00

Washington DC, December 9, 2009

Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT) today introduced legislation to prevent the harmful use of seclusion and restraint on students. The Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act would help ensure the safety and security of both teachers and students by preventing and reducing the use of restraint and seclusion techniques in schools. The legislation, which was also introduced in the House of Representatives today by Congressman George Miller (D-CA), would also provide proper training for school personnel who impose these techniques, in order to ensure the safety of students and educators alike.

Dodd wrote and helped pass legislation to protect children from the misuse of restraint and seclusion in most hospitals and residential facilities after an 11-year-old boy from Portland, CT died from being improperly restrained in a psychiatric hospital in 1998.

Read the rest of the story here.

Follow SB2860 here.

*****

Copy and paste URL:

Story: http://dodd.senate.gov/?q=node/5368

Bill tracking: http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/D?d111:2:./temp/~bdw7Kj::|/bss/d111query.html|

ADVISORY FOR 12/9 -- Bipartisan Lawmakers to Introduce Legislation to Protect All Children in Schools from Abuse

2009-12-07T18:45:00.001-06:00

[Copied from e-mail attachment, formatting and seal are not displaying.]

UNITED STATES CONGRESS

ADVISORY for Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Melissa Salmanowitz (Miller) 202.226.0853

Kimberly Betz (McMorris Rodgers) 202.225.2006

Bipartisan Lawmakers to Introduce Legislation to Protect All Children in Schools from Abuse

Legislation will, for the first time, prevent harmful restraint and seclusion in classrooms

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Wednesday, December 9, U.S. Reps. George Miller (D-CA) and Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) will hold a press conference to introduce new legislation to protect all children in schools from misuse of restraint and seclusion. Miller is the chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee and a member of Democratic leadership, McMorris Rodgers is a member of the Committee and the Vice Chair of the House Republican Conference.

This legislation is the first national effort to prevent and reduce harmful restraint and seclusion in schools. A recent U.S. Government Accountability Office investigation found hundreds of allegations that schoolchildren have been abused, and some even died, as a result of the inappropriate use of restraint and seclusion in classrooms; a disproportionate number of them were children with disabilities. Yet unlike in hospitals, and other medical and community-based facilities that receive federal funding, there are currently no federal policies that prevent the misuse of restraint and seclusion in schools. State regulation and oversight varies greatly; many states provide no guidance or assistance regarding these behavioral interventions.

WHO: U.S. Rep. George Miller (D-CA), chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee

U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), a member of the House Education and Labor Committee and Vice Chair of the House Republican Conference

Families of children who have been the victims of harmful restraint and seclusion in classrooms

Additional participants TBA

WHAT: Press Conference to Introduce Legislation to Prevent Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools

WHEN: Wednesday, December 9, 2009

11:00AM EST

WHERE: Education and Labor Committee Hearing Room

2175 Rayburn House Office Building

Washington, D.C.

NOTE TO MEDIA: Members of the press interested in attending this event must RSVP to Melissa Salmanowitz at Melissa.Salmanowitz@mail.house.gov or 202-226-0853. Television cameras planning to cover the event must arrive no later than 10:30 am for setup.

This press conference will be webcast live from the Education and Labor Committee website at http://edlabor.house.gov

###

List of Materials to Ask Your District for re “CPI-Certified/Trained Staff”

2009-12-07T16:17:00.000-06:00

The Coalition for Positive Behavioral Interventions & Supports, December 6, 2009

CPI does not train in seclusion! So if your district is using/has used seclusion and/or seclusion rooms, and if they are claiming to be following “CPI training” for seclusion/seclusion rooms, then they are lying to you and should be reported to CPI at info@crisisprevention.com and/or us at tcfpbis@gmail.com immediately!

CPI also does not train restraint as discipline, punishment, nor convenience of staff; CPI is about avoiding restraint and seclusion! So if your district is using/has used restraint as discipline, punishment, or for staff’s convenience, please contact CPI at info@crisisprevention.com and/or us at tcfpbis@gmail.com immediately!

Read the entire list here.

*****

Copy and paste URL: http://tcfpbis.blogspot.com/2009/12/list-of-materials-to-ask-your-district.html