CEC Endorses Legislation to Protect Students from Restraint and Seclusion
Yesterday, lead members of Congress on the House Committee on Education and Labor and Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions reintroduced the Keeping All Students Safe Act (KASSA), a bill endorsed by the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC).
The bill, introduced by Chair Scott (D-VA), Rep. Beyer (D-VA), Rep. McEachin (D-VA), Chair Murray (D-WA), and Sen. Murphy (D-CT), would prohibit any school receiving federal taxpayer money from secluding children, ban dangerous restraint practices that restrict breathing including prone and supine restraint, and prohibit physical restraint in all but the most extreme cases. The bill supports evidence-based, proactive, and strategic training for school personnel.
Upon introduction, Chairman Scott remarked, “Despite evidence that seclusion and restraint practices make schools less safe, thousands of students are still subjected to these dangerous discipline methods… [KASSA] would establish nationwide requirements and provide states and teachers the support they need to improve their schools’ culture by using evidence-based interventions."