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Reflections on my childhood: Locked in the principal’s office
Today’s guest author is Jennifer Abbanat. Jennifer is a wife and mom to 3 kids ages 18, 16, and 13. Jennifer is an advocate and voice for her neurodiverse children. She and her family live in Northern California.
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Advocating for change in Billerica Massachusetts
Today’s guest author is Carole Reardon. Carole is an advocate and parent from Billerica Massachusetts. Currently, she is a stay at home mother, however, she spent over 20 years in the education field and has an undergraduate degree in human development, with a minor in early childhood education. Additionally, Carole has a Master’s degree in curriculum and…
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Autism isn’t a crime
Autistic, especially non-speaking children, are one of the largest groups to be subjected to restraint and seclusion. Restraint and seclusion are the inevitable outcome of the failures of behaviorism. Autism isn’t a “behavioral problem.” It only becomes one when autistic people are denied appropriate accommodations and mistreated. The behaviors schools are trying to modify are…
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Statement on George Floyd’s Death by Police Restraint
The Alliance Against Seclusion and Restraint (AASR) viewed the video of the last moments of George Floyd’s life with horror, fury, and unbearable sadness. We feel deep sorrow for George Floyd and his family as well as unrelenting sadness and despair for the black community and our country. It is incumbent on our leaders and…
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The power of believing in children
Today’s guest author is Amy Welch. Amy is a paraprofessional who has experience working with students on the Autism spectrum and those with behavior disorders. A lot of what she does with her students comes from her own personal experiences with her son. She was forced to become a well-educated advocate for him after facing…
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What is the school-to-prison pipeline?
The school to prison pipeline is a term coined early in the early twenty-first century to refer to the policies and practices that directly and indirectly push students out of school and on a pathway to prison. These policies and practices include overuse of harsh school disciplinary procedures including suspension, seclusion, restraint, and expulsion; increased…
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Facebook Live: Training Series
I wanted to share that we are doing a Facebook Live training series. The idea began because of the challenges during the current COVID-19 crisis. Given the current situation across the world, many parents and caregivers now find themselves suddenly acting as educators for their behaviorally challenging children. We have heard from many parents, especially…
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Introducing Cheryl Poe
Join me in welcoming Cheryl Poe to the Alliance Against Seclusion and Restraint team. Cheryl is an amazing advocate, teacher and parent with a tremendous background in special education.
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Seclusion Changed Me Forever
365 days ago, I laid awake most of the night worried about the reverberations of the day ahead. I pulled myself out of bed and awakened my 13 year old son Quentin who was peacefully sleeping between my husband and I. I turned on our local NPR station, WAMU. As I went about the mundanities…
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Making Positive Change Through Negative Experiences
The Story of Sam Maloney Today’s guest author is Debra Pierce Bellare. Debra has a background in education with a focus on alternative learning. Over the last ten years, she has been advocating to stop the harmful practice of restraint and seclusion used in the public and private school systems in New York State. Her son Sam,…
