Our mission is to inform changes in policy and practice to reduce and eliminate the use of punitive discipline and outdated behavioral management approaches and end the school-to-prison pipeline.
About seclusion and restraint
Restraint and seclusion are crisis management strategies that are used in many schools across the nation and the world. Physical Restraint, is exactly what it sounds like, it is a personal restriction that immobilizes or reduces the ability of a student to move his or her torso, arms, legs or head freely. Seclusion is the involuntary confinement of a student alone in a room or area from which the student is physically prevented from leaving. These interventions are dangerous and have led to serious injuries and even death in students, teachers and staff.
According to federal guidance restraint and/or seclusion should never be used except in situations where a child’s behavior poses an imminent danger of serious physical harm to self or others, and restraint and seclusion should be avoided to the greatest extent possible without endangering the safety of students and staff.
Latest Stories
Supporting Youth in Residential Care: Healing Through Relational Safety Â
Residential care for youth in the child welfare system is one of the longest-existing systems of care in the United States. Residential programs in the US offer systems of caring professionals that support youth that have been removed from their homes for a variety of reasons, most through no fault of their own. Youth in…
Harwood Union Unified School District Bans Prone Restraint and Seclusion
About a year ago, an educator, Brian Dalla Mura, began sounding the alarm about the use of prone restraint and seclusion in the Harwood Union Unified School District (HUUSD). Over the last year, Brian has repeatedly spoken at HUUSD Board of Education meetings and talked to the press about the need for change. In July…
The Dark Side of Rewards, Part 2: Why Incentives Do More Harm Than Good in the Classroom
In far too many schools today, the use of incentive programs to motivate students has become common practice. However, many research studies have shed light on the potential negative consequences of such programs, raising concerns about their impact on students’ long-term success. By examining the overlap between physical and social pain as well as the…
National Education Association remains neutral on the Keeping All Students Safe Act
The National Education Association (NEA) has said they remain neutral on the Keeping All Students Safe Act. It is disappointing to see an organization whose vision is a great public school for every student standing on the sidelines while children suffer. Sadly today, there are many students who are not experiencing a great public school…
The Keeping All Students Safe Act (2023): Now it’s time to get it passed
Today the Keeping All Students Act was re-introduced by Ranking Member Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (D-VA-03) and Representative Don Beyer (D-VA-08)—alongside Senators Chris Murphy (D-CT), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Chair of the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, and Patty Murray (D-WA). The legislation aims to protect students from dangerous seclusion and restraint discipline…
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