Thank you!
IMPORTANT ACTION ALERT:
PLEASE EMAIL YOUR SENATORS AND ASK THEM TO COSPONSOR THE KEEPING ALL STUDENTS SAFE ACT (S.2020). This bill will protect children nationwide from restraint and seclusion in schools.
The need for this legislation is exemplified yet again in a horrific a situation regarding the use of school seclusion rooms, this time in Middletown, CT – See one of many stories on this situation here: http://www.wfsb.com/story/16490795/middletown
The situation described by parents and students in this report is horrific and abusive. Aptly termed “scream rooms” by students in this media report, such seclusion rooms are exactly what the Federal bill, S. 2020, pending in the Senate seeks to eliminate. The use of a seclusion room for any student is contrary to accepted educational and behavioral standards and has no place in the education setting. Any student who has such a technique imposed upon them and all students and staff who are a witness to such abuse are at substantial risk of harm. Every time a child is forced into an isolated room the risk of injury, death or trauma is exceedingly high, much higher in fact than the alleged danger of their actions. This story also is illustrative of the critical need for the bill’s provision that prohibits writing restraint and seclusion into an IEP.
For more than a decade, the Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates, Inc. (COPAA) has protected the rights of students with disabilities and demonstrated a commitment to ensuring that children with disabilities receive the same high-quality education as all children. COPAA has voiced concern over the improper use of restraints, seclusion and aversive interventions in our nation’s schools. We have reported extensively on the abuse of such interventions and been alarmed by the tragic results, including death, that have resulted from these acts. The use of restraint and seclusion continues to disproportionately affect students with disabilities. This past week COPAA members have filed an OCR complaint with the US Department of Education regarding the Middletown CT situation. Tragically, the use of such rooms in schools is happening nationwide.
COPAA is advocating for this federal legislation to prohibit the use of seclusion in schools and establish minimum standards for the use of physical intervention as a necessary step to ensure the safety of children in our schools.
Our sincere thanks to Senator Tom Harkin (Chair, Health Education Labor and Pension Committee) who introduced S. 2020 in December. The bill would ban physical restraint except in emergency situations when there is an immediate threat of serious bodily injury. The bill bans seclusion (confinement) of children in locked rooms or rooms from which they cannot exit. It bans life-threatening restraint that interferes with breathing or the ability to communicate, and mechanical and chemical restraints. It requires schools to notify parents within 24 hours of restraint.
Please email your two Senators and ask them to COSPONSOR the Keeping All Students Safe Act. Ask your friends, family members, and colleagues to send emails. The Senate needs to get emails from many, many parents, self-advocates, advocates, family, friends, and the wider community. Every person is a voter. Be sure you ask them to “cosponsor” the bill.
SEND AN EMAIL MESSAGE TO CONGRESS. You can email your Senators through their Senate website forms. Go to http://1.usa.gov/Senate or http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
You can find your State’s Senators by choosing your state at the top. Every State has two Senator’s PLEASE EMAIL BOTH OF YOUR SENATORS. Please copy govrelations@copaa.org so we can track volume of correspondence and follow-up with Senate offices. Letters mailed through regular mail to the U.S. Congress are delayed for anthrax screening. So, please use EMAIL.
SAMPLE EMAIL.
Here is a sample email you can send your Senators. Feel free to change it as you like. IF YOUR CHILD OR A FAMILY MEMBER/ FRIEND/ FELLOW STUDENT was restrained or secluded, please include that in your email, and tell their story briefly. It is important to write even if you don’t know someone personally, or have not been affected personally, by the use of seclusion and restraint in schools. Include a statement of why this issue is of concern to you.
Dear Senator,
Please COSPONSOR the Keeping All Students Safe Act, S. 2020. It will create minimum standards to protect all children nationwide from restraint and seclusion.
PERSONALIZE YOUR STORY HERE – Explain why this bill is needed or how it will help your family or students in your district, etc.
S.2020 will ban physical restraint except in emergencies when there is an immediate threat of serious bodily injury. The bill bans seclusion of children. This means that schools cannot lock children in rooms or closets or put them in other rooms or spaces they cannot leave (such as blocking the door with furniture). Far too often, children have been restrained or secluded for not doing assignments, being noisy, behavioral control, discipline, or punishment. A Government Accountability Office study found hundreds of cases of alleged abuse and death from restraint and seclusion in school. They included a young teen who hanged himself in a seclusion room while a teacher sat outside and a 7 year old who was restrained face down and died because she could not breathe.
The bill bans life-threatening restraints, such as those that interfere with breathing. It bans chemical and mechanical restraint, like locking children into devices and chairs, and tying and duct-taping them to furniture. It requires schools to notify parents within 24 hours of restraint. Many parents never find out their child was abused, or find out months and years later. It requires the collection of data to improve decision-making and provide the public with information. While the bill bans seclusion of students, it does not prevent schools from using time out where staff can help calm a student.
While some states have laws protecting children, many do not, and some state laws are not very strong. Please COSPONSOR THE KEEPING ALL STUDENTS SAFE ACT, S.2020, to ensure that all children nationwide are protected from these abuses.
Sincerely yours,
Your name here
For more information on S. 2020 visit http://www.copaa.org/public-policy/chairman-tom-harkin-introduces-keeping-all-students-safe-act/
National, State and Local groups are urged to sign on in support of the Act at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/KeepingAllStudentsSafeAct
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