Restraint / Isolation


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  • Dear Colleague Letter re: Restraint and Seclusion of Students with Disabilities

    Issued by the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights on December 28, 2016. This letter explains the limits that Federal civil rights laws enforced by the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) impose on the use of restraint and seclusion by public elementary and secondary school districts. In particular, this guidance informs school districts how the use of restraint and seclusion may result in discrimination against students with disabilities, thereby violating Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 504) and Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (Title II).



  • Fact Sheet: Restraint and Seclusion of Students with Disabilities

    The guidance letter and series of questions and answers, issued by the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) on December 28, 2016, inform school districts how the use of restraint and seclusion may result in discrimination against students with disabilities in violation of Federal laws that prohibit disability discrimination, including Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.



  • OSEP Dear Colleague Letter on Ensuring Equity and Providing Behavioral Supports to Students with Disabilities (PDF)

    This guidance was issued by the U.S. Department of Education Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSEP) to clarify that the failure to consider and provide for needed behavioral supports through the IEP process is likely to result in a child not receiving a meaningful educational benefit or FAPE. Additionally, this letter provides alternatives to disciplinary removal which schools can apply instead of exclusionary disciplinary measures. A Summary for Stakeholders is also available.



  • Restraint and Seclusion: Resource Document

    The U.S. Department of Education developed this document that describes 15 principles for States, school districts, schools, parents, and other stakeholders to consider when developing or revising policies and procedures on the use of restraint and seclusion. These principles stress that every effort should be made to prevent the need for the use of restraint and seclusion and that any behavioral intervention must be consistent with the child’s rights to be treated with dignity and to be free from abuse. The principles make clear that restraint 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.

  • Washington Administrative Code relating to Restraint and Isolation:


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