Alaska Statutes 14.33.125 – Student restraint or seclusion; limitations

(a) A public school disciplinary and safety program must

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Terms Used In Alaska Statutes 14.33.125

action: includes any matter or proceeding in a court, civil or criminal. See Alaska Statutes 01.10.060
department: means the Department of Education and Early Development. See Alaska Statutes 14.60.010
person: includes a corporation, company, partnership, firm, association, organization, business trust, or society, as well as a natural person. See Alaska Statutes 01.10.060

(1) prohibit restraint or seclusion of a student except as provided in (b) of this section;

(2) be annually reviewed with school personnel;

(3) include a written report of each incident that is maintained in the student’s record as described in (d) of this section; and

(4) include a review of each incident in which restraint or seclusion is used as provided in (e) of this section.

(b) A teacher, teacher’s assistant, or other person responsible for students may physically restrain or seclude a student only if

(1) the student’s behavior poses an imminent danger of physical injury to the student or another person;

(2) less restrictive interventions would be ineffective to stop the imminent danger to the student or another person;

(3) the person continuously monitors the student in face-to-face contact or, if face-to-face contact is unsafe, by continuous direct visual contact with the student;

(4) the person has received training in crisis intervention and de-escalation and restraint techniques that has been approved by the department under AS 14.33.127, unless a trained person is not immediately available and the circumstances are rare and present an unavoidable and unforeseen emergency; and

(5) the restraint or seclusion is discontinued immediately when the student no longer poses an imminent danger of physical injury to the student or another person or when a less restrictive intervention is effective to stop the danger of physical injury.

(c) A teacher, teacher’s assistant, or other person responsible for students may not

(1) use chemical restraint;

(2) use mechanical restraint; or

(3) physically restrain a student by placing the student on the student’s back or stomach or in a manner that restricts the student’s breathing.

(d) School personnel who restrain or seclude a student shall provide a written report of the incident to the school administrator. A school shall provide a copy of the report to the student’s parents or legal guardians. The report must include

(1) the date and time of the incident;

(2) the names and job titles of school personnel who participated in or supervised the incident;

(3) a description of the activity that preceded the incident, including efforts and strategies used with the student before the incident;

(4) a description of the incident, including the type and duration of the intervention used;

(5) a description of how the incident ended, including any further action taken.

(e) A school district shall ensure that a review process is established and conducted for each incident that involves restraint or seclusion of a student. The review must be conducted as soon as practicable after the event and include

(1) staff review of the incident;

(2) follow-up communication with the student and the student’s parent or legal guardian;

(3) review of and recommendations for adjusting or amending procedures, strategies, accommodations, individualized education plans, or other student behavior plans, or for additional staff training.

(f) Each school district shall annually report to the department, on a form acceptable to the department, the total number of incidents involving the restraint or seclusion of a student. The report must specify

(1) the number of incidents that resulted in injury or death of students or personnel;

(2) the number of incidents in which school personnel involved in the restraint or seclusion were not trained in an approved crisis intervention training program as described in AS 14.33.127(b); and

(3) the number of incidents involving the restraint or seclusion of a child with a disability under Alaska Stat. § 14.30.350; the report must also include the category of the disability of the child involved in each incident.

(g) In this section,

(1) “chemical restraint” means a psychopharmacologic drug that is used on a student for discipline or convenience and that is not required to treat a medical symptom;

(2) “mechanical restraint” means the use of a device that is not a medical device or protective equipment prescribed by a qualified health care professional to restrict a student’s freedom of movement;

(3) “physically restrain” or “physical restraint” means a personal restriction that immobilizes or reduces the ability of a student to move the student’s arms, legs, or head freely;

(4) “restraint” means physical restraint, chemical restraint, mechanical restraint, or other aversive behavioral interventions that compromise health and safety;

(5) “seclusion” means the involuntary confinement of a student alone in a room or area that the student is physically prevented from leaving; “seclusion” does not include a classroom time-out, supervised detention, or suspension from school under Alaska Stat. § 14.30.045.

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