Santa Fe New Mexican New Mexico lawmakers are taking another pass at two measures that have stalled in previous years but that, supporters say, are critical to protecting vulnerable children and fixing the state’s special education system. Senate Bill 64...
Restraint & Seclusion
DOJ Tells St. Louis Special School District that Seclusion and Restraint Practices Violate Federal Law
This week, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that it has notified the Special School District of St. Louis, Missouri (District) that the District’s seclusion and restraint practices violate Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The District is...
NM: Bill refining allowable restraint and seclusion practices in schools advances out of House committee
Yahoo News Members of the House Education Committee on Monday advanced a bill that would refine definitions of allowable physical discipline practices in public schools, limit those practices, and require expanded training for K-12 school personnel. House Bill 120,...
NY: ‘That is unacceptable’: Lawmaker pushes for new safeguards after shocking school incidents
CBS 6 News The proposed bill creates enforceable statewide standards and strengthens protections against the use of physical restraint as a behavioral intervention, such as what happened at Lincoln Elementary School in Schenectady. In northern New York, parents of an...
Act Now! Tell Congress to End the Use of Seclusion & Restraint and Target Resources to Train School Teams
In December, the bipartisan Keeping All Students Safe Act (H.R. 6617/S. 3448) (KASSA) was introduced by Rep. Beyer (D-VA), Rep. Hamadeh (R-AZ), Ranking Member Scott (D-VA), Sen. Murphy (D-CT), Sen. Murray (D-WA), and Sen. Sanders (I-VT). COPAA endorsed the bill...
Time out box for special needs students sparks outrage
MSN.com Photos of a structure resembling a shipping container with four wooden exterior panels and a padded interior appeared on Facebook on Dec. 15. But what, or rather who, was in the containers continues to spark outrage due to claims that special needs children...
‘Let me go!’: Judge sides with black middle schooler with disabilities who was cuffed four times by school police, issues scathing order to California school district
Atlanta Black Star The parents of a Black middle school student who was repeatedly physically restrained and handcuffed by school police for misbehavior related to his disabilities have won out after a precedent-setting five-year legal battle with the local school...
COPAA Applauds Bipartisan Introduction of the Keeping All Students Safe Act
In response to the introduction of the Keeping All Students Safe Act H.R. 6617/S. 3448 (KASSA) in the U.S. Congress, COPAA CEO Denise Marshall issued a statement endorsing the bill and reiterating COPAA’s deep commitment to ensuring that “no child is subjected to...
NY: NY schools say students restrained, put in time out over 20,000 times
Times Union More than 3,600 New York public school students were physically restrained or isolated in “timeouts” in at least 20,000 incidents last year, including some cases that violated state regulations. That’s according to the New York State Education Department,...
