Minnesota made historic progress in 2023 by passing legislation that banned the use of seclusion for K-3 students. This legislation was a critical step in creating safer, more inclusive schools and ensuring that our youngest learners, especially students with disabilities, Black and brown students, and students with a trauma history, are treated with dignity and respect and free from abuse. But now, that progress is under threat.
A new proposal in the Minnesota legislature (SF1740, Article 5, Sec. 6) would allow IEP teams to add seclusion as an option in a student’s Individualized Education Program (IEP). This amendment would roll back the protections advocates and families fought so hard for and open the door for the use of seclusion on young children—children who need support and accommodations, not isolation and abuse.
Seclusion is not a therapeutic intervention; it is forced isolation. It is a traumatic, exclusionary practice that research shows can cause lasting harm and trauma. Allowing IEP teams to write seclusion into a student’s plan does not make it safer or more appropriate. In fact, it puts our most vulnerable students at even greater risk and undermines efforts by the Minnesota Department of Education to eliminate seclusion entirely by 2026.
We need better supports, more training, and trauma-informed, neuroscience-aligned, neurodiversity-affirming, relationship-driven, and collaborative strategies—not a return to punitive practices that have been proven ineffective and harmful.
We need your help to stop this rollback and protect Minnesota’s children. Contact Minnesota legislative leadership today and urge them to vote “NO” on SF1740, Article 5, Sec. 6, and any amendment that would weaken the ban on seclusion for young students.
Let’s continue to build on the progress that has been made, not reverse it. Let’s invest in trauma-informed, neuroscience-aligned, neurodiversity-affirming, relationship-driven, and collaborative supports and proven strategies that help all students thrive. Please stand up for Minnesota’s children—your voice matters.
