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Procedure for 3246 Isolation and Restraint Policy

Isolation and Restraint of StudentsApplication

These procedures apply to the use of isolation, restraint, and restraint devices on all students—including those with IEPs and Section 504 plans—while participating in school-sponsored instruction or activities.

Definitions

The following definitions apply:

1.      Imminent. State or condition of being likely to occur at any moment or near at hand, rather than remote or distant.

2.      Isolation. Restricting the student alone within a room or any other form of enclosure, from which the student may not leave. Does not include a student’s voluntary use of a quiet space for self- calming, the temporary removal of a student from his/her regular instructional area to an unlocked area for purposes of carrying out an appropriate positive behavioral intervention plan.

3.      Likelihood of Serious Harm.

a.      Substantial risk that physical harm will be inflicted by a person upon him/herself, upon another person, or upon someone else’s property; or

b.     Person has threatened the physical safety of another and has a history of one or more violent acts.

4.      Positive Behavioral Interventions. Strategies and instruction that can be implemented in a systematic manner in order to provide alternatives to challenging behaviors, reinforce desired behaviors, and reduce or eliminate the frequency and severity of challenging behaviors.

5.      Restraint. Physical intervention or force used to control a student, including the use of a restraint device to restrict a student’s freedom of movement. Does not include the appropriate use of a prescribed medical, orthopedic, or therapeutic device when used as intended, such as to achieve proper body position, balance, or alignment, or to permit a student to safely participate in activities.

6.      Restraint Device. Device used to assist in controlling a student, including but not limited to metal handcuffs, plastic ties, ankle restraints, leather cuffs, other hospital-type restraints, pepper spray, tasers, or batons. Does not include the use of a seat harness to safely transport students. This section is not intended to endorse or encourage the use of such devices with district students.

Authorized Use of Isolation, Restraint, or a Restraint Device

The district seeks to promote positive behavioral interventions and to use the least amount of isolation and restraint possible to protect the safety of its students and staff. To that end, district staff members may only use isolation or restraint when:

1.     It is reasonably necessary to control spontaneous behavior that poses an imminent likelihood of serious harm to the student, to another person, or to someone else’s property; or

2.     It is specified in a student’s IEP or Section 504 plan, and then only if it has been determined

that the student requires more specific advance educational planning and if the parents/guardians agree.

Any use of isolation and restraint will be closely monitored by trained staff to prevent harm to the student and will be discontinued as soon as the likelihood for serious harm has dissipated.” Under no circumstances will isolation and restraint ever be used as a form of discipline or punishment.

Prohibited practices involving restraint, use of force, and discipline specifically for students eligible for special education (consistent with WAC 392-172A-02076):

The following practices are prohibited with students eligible for special education services:

  • District personnel are prohibited from using aversive interventions with a student;
  • District personnel are prohibited from physically restraining or isolating any student, except when the student’s behavior poses an imminent likelihood of serious harm as defined above;
  • No student may be stimulated by contact with electric current, including, but not limited to, tasers;
  • A student may not be denied or subjected to an unreasonable delay in the provision of food or liquid from when the food or liquid is customarily served as a form of punishment;
  • A student may not be the recipient of force or restraint that is either unreasonable under the circumstances or deemed to be an unreasonable form of corporal punishment as a matter of state law;
  • A student must not be denied or subjected to an unreasonable delay in the provision of common hygiene care;
  • A student must not be denied or subjected to an unreasonable delay in the provision of medication;
  • A student may not be excluded from his or her regular instructional or service area and isolated within a room or any other form of enclosure, except under the conditions set forth in WAC 392-172A-02110;
  • A student must not be forced to listen to noise or sound that the student finds painful;
  • A student must not be forced to smell or be sprayed in the face with a noxious or potentially harmful substance;
  • A student must not be forced to taste or ingest a substance which is not commonly consumed or which is not commonly consumed in its existing form or concentration;
  • A student must not be subjected to the use of prone (lying face-down) or supine (lying face-up) restraint, wall restraint, or any restraint that interferes with the student’s breathing.

Procedures for Incident Review

Following the release of any student from the use of isolation or restraint, the school will implement follow-up procedures. These procedures will include:

1.      Reviewing the incident with the student and the parent/guardian to address the behavior that precipitated the use of isolation or restraint and the appropriateness of the response; and

2.      Reviewing the incident with the staff member(s) who administered the isolation or restraint to discuss whether proper procedures were followed and what training or support the staff member(s) need(s) to help the student avoid similar incidents.

Requirements for Reporting

The following requirements will apply when any student is subjected to any isolation or restraint event during school-sponsored instruction or activities.

1.      Incident Report from School to District Office. Any school employee, school resource officer, or school security officer who isolates or restrains any student will inform the building administrator or designee as soon as possible and will submit a written incident report to the district office within two business days of the incident. The report must include, at a minimum, the following information:

a.     The date and time of the incident;

b.     The name and job title of the individual who administered the isolation or restraint;

c.      The description of the activity that led to the isolation or restraint;

d.     The duration and type of isolation or restraint used;

e.     Whether the student or staff member was physically injured during the isolation or restraint incident and whether any medical care was provided; and

f.      Any recommendations for changing the nature or amount of resources available to the student and staff member in order to avoid similar incidents.

2.      Incident Report from District Office to Office for Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI). Each year by January 1st, the district will summarize the above-mentioned written reports it receives and submit them to OSPI. For each school, the district will include the:

a.      Number of individual incidents of isolation and restraint;

b.     Number of students involved in the incidents;

c.      Number of injuries to students and staff; and

d.     Types of isolation and restraint used.

Requirements for Notifying All Parents/Guardians:

After any incident of isolation or restraint at his/her school, the principal or designee will:

1.      Make a reasonable effort to verbally inform the student’s parent/guardian of the incident within 24 hours of its occurrence; and

2.      Send written notification of the incident to the student’s parent/guardian as soon as possible, but postmarked no later than five business days, after its occurrence.

If the school customarily provides the student’s parent/guardian with school-related information in a language other than English, the written notification will be provided to the parent in that language.

Additional Requirements for Notifying Parents/Guardians of Students with IEPs/Section 504 Plans

In addition to the above notification requirements, which apply to all students, parents/guardians of students with IEPs or Section 504 Plans will also receive a copy of the district’s policy on the use of isolation and restraint at the time the IEP or Section 504 Plan is created. All IEPs will include the district’s procedures for notifying parents/guardians of the use of isolation or restraint.

 

First enacted: 12.15.15

Stanwood-Camano School District

Revised: 4.13.22