Columbia Board of Education votes to update seclusion and restraint policy

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Columbia Board of Education met Monday night and voted to update its seclusion and restraint policy.

The changes to the current policy are required under a new law that passed in May 2021. Under the new law, all school districts in Missouri must make the changes by July 1.

Lawmakers passed HB 432 banning schools from using seclusion and restraint as a punishment. CPS's previous and current policy prohibits seclusion and restraint as a punishment.

The updated policy says secluding and restraining students is limited to when there is imminent danger of physical harm to the student or others. For students with disabilities, it can be used in an emergency, when all other options have been exhausted or as defined by a child's individual needs plan known as IEP.

The biggest change is an update to specific limits on restraint. State law says schools can't use any mechanical, physical or prone restraint that obstructs views of a student's face, blocks a student's airway or obstructs the student's blood flow. The previous and updated policy does not allow pressure or weight on a student's chest, lungs, sternum, diaphragm, back, neck or throat that restricts breathing.

One of the most important components of the amended law is the definition of seclusion. In previous versions of the law, schools had fewer written rules when secluding children without supervision. Under the new law, schools can only use rooms that meet building codes when secluding students. 

A former teacher at CPS, Angela Jolley is currently suing the district citing claims of retaliation when she exposed images over the district's isolation rooms. Jolley said in her lawsuit, the rooms were violating district policy and hurting children as they were allegedly confined in dangerous plywood boxes at times, for over an hour.