I. DEFINITIONS

“Emergency situation” means that a student's behavior poses a threat to the physical safety of the student or others nearby;

“Isolation” or “Seclusion”: (A) Means the confinement of a student alone in a room with or without a door, or other enclosed area or structure pursuant to T.C.A. § 49-10-1305(g) where the student is physically prevented from leaving; and (B) Does not include time out, a behavior management procedure in which the opportunity for positive reinforcement is withheld, contingent upon the demonstration of undesired behavior; provided, time-out may involve the voluntary separation of an individual student from others.

“Physical Holding Restraint” means the use of body contact by school personnel with a student to restrict freedom of movement or normal access to the student's body.

“Extended Isolation” means isolation which lasts longer than one (1) minute per year of the student's age or isolation which lasts longer than the time provided in the child's individualized education program (IEP).

“Extended Restraint” means a physical holding restraint lasting longer than five (5) minutes or physical holding restraint which lasts longer than the time provided in the child's IEP.

“Positive Behavioral Supports” means a systematic approach using evidence-based practices to improve school environments, and to prevent and respond to problem behavior that:

(A) Is proactive and instructional, rather than reactive and punitive;
(B) Operates on the following three (3) levels:

(i) Individual;
(ii) Group or classroom; and
(iii) The whole school.

(C) Includes a system of continual data collection;
(D) Utilizes data-based decision-making;
(E) Applies research-validated positive behavioral interventions; and
(F) Improves academic and social outcomes for all students, including those with the most complex and intensive behavioral needs.

II. STANDARDS FOR ISOLATING/RESTRAINING STUDENTS

(a) A student receiving special education services, as defined by T.C.A. § 49-10-102, may be restrained or isolated only in emergency situations.

(b) IEPs that provide for the use of restraint or isolation in emergency situations shall contain a data driven functional behavior assessment and a plan for modification of the behavior developed and implemented by a qualified team of professionals. When the use of restraint or isolation is proposed at an IEP meeting, parents/guardians shall be advised of the provisions of T.C.A. § 49-10-1301, et seq. Tennessee Board of Education Rule 0520-01-09-.23 and the IDEA procedural safeguards.

(c) In the event that restraint or isolation is imposed on a student, it shall be imposed by:
(1) School personnel who have been certified for completing a behavior intervention training program; or
(2) Other school personnel when trained personnel are not immediately available; provided that said personnel shall, prior to imposing restraint or isolation, obtain permission to restrain or isolate from a trained administrator. 1 2

(d) If restraints or isolation are used in an emergency situation, the school personnel imposing the restraint or isolation shall immediately contact the school Principal, Vice-Principal or Assistant Principal. The school Principal, Vice-Principal or Assistant Principal shall see and evaluate the student's condition within a reasonable time after the intervention and the student's parent or guardian shall be notified, orally or by written or printed communication, the same day the isolation or restraint was used. The school Principal, Vice-Principal or Assistant Principal to whom the restraint or seclusion was reported shall record the use of the isolation or restraint and the facts surrounding such use. School personnel shall be held harmless for failure to notify if reasonable effort has been made to notify the student's parent or guardian as provided above.

(e) School personnel should report a suspected crime by calling a law enforcement official. School personnel may file a juvenile petition against a student receiving special education services only after conducting a manifestation determination that results in a determination that the behavior that resulted in the act requiring disciplinary action was not caused by the student's disability. A school resource officer may upon witnessing an offense, take the student into custody.

(f) If the student's IEP does not provide for the use of isolation or restraint for the behavior precipitating such action or if school personnel are required to use isolation or restraint over an extended period of time as determined by Tennessee Department of Education Rules, then an IEP meeting shall be convened within ten (10) days following the use of the isolation or restraint.

(g) The use of isolation or physical holding restraint as a means of coercion, punishment, convenience or retaliation on any student receiving special education services is prohibited.

(h) Removing or disabling any equipment or device that a student requires, including, but not limited to, a power wheelchair, brace, augmentative communication device, or walker, as a means of coercion, punishment, convenience, or retaliation on any student receiving special education services is prohibited.

(i) The use of physical holding restraint in the following circumstances is not prohibited and school Principals, Vice Principals and/or Assistant Principals are not required to notify the student's parent or guardian if the physical holding restraint is made in the following circumstances: a) the brief holding by an adult in order to calm or comfort;

(ii) The minimum contact necessary to physically escort a student from one area to another;

(iii) Assisting a student in completing a task or response if the student does not resist, or resistance is minimal in intensity or duration; or

(iv) Holding a student for a brief time in order to prevent any impulsive behavior that threatens the student's immediate safety. The use of a locked door, or any physical structure, mechanism, or device that substantially accomplishes the function of locking a student in a room, structure, or area, is prohibited. (j) Any space used as an isolation room shall be:

(1) Unlocked and incapable of being locked;

(2) Well ventilated and temperature controlled;

(3) Sufficiently lighted for the comfort and well-being of the student;

(4) Where school personnel are in continuous direct visual contact with the student at all times;

(5) At lease forty square feet; and

(6) In compliance with all applicable state and local fire, health, and safety codes.

(k) Actions undertaken by school personnel to break up a fight or to take a weapon from a student are not prohibited; however, these acts shall be reported to the school Principal, Vice-Principal or Assistant Principal.

III. TRAINING REQUIREMENTS

Training certification shall include but not be limited to the following components:

1. Training in evidence-based techniques shown to be effective in the prevention of isolation and physical restraint;

2. Training in evidence-based techniques shown to be effective in keeping both school personnel and students safe when imposing physical restrain or isolation;

3. Evidence-based skills training on positive behavioral interventions and supports, conflict prevention, functional behavior assessments, de-escalation, and conflict management;

4. Information describing state statutes, policies, rules, and procedures on restraint and isolation;

5. Training in the identification and reporting of abuse and neglect in the school setting; and

6. Evidence-based training on understanding the warning signs of early-onset mental illness in children and adolescents.

Certifications for school personnel who have completed a behavior intervention training program shall be renewed on a periodic basis as determined by the Shelby County Board of Education's Executive Director of the Department of Exceptional Children.

IV. RECORD KEEPING

Each School Principal shall maintain all records of isolation and restraint in a manner prescribed by T.C.A. § 49-10-1306.

V. RESTRICTIONS ON THE ADMINISTRATION OF, OR USE OF ISOLATIONS OR RESTRAINTS

The restrictions on the administration of, or use of, isolations or restraints set forth in T.C.A. § 49-10-1305 shall be followed.

1 Whenever possible, an additional school staff member should serve as an observer to any act of physical restraint performed on a student.

2 School personnel shall maintain a continuous direct line of sight to a student who is in isolation.