Tuesday, March 21, 2023

Play

Texas lawmakers consider legislation to prevent cities from self-governance, Connecticut considers policy options to alleviate an eviction crisis, and Ohio residents await community water systems.

Play

Gov. Ron DeSantis breaks his silence on Trump's potential indictment and attacks Manhattan prosecutors, President Biden vetoes his first bill to protect socially conscious retirement investing, and the Supreme Court hears a case on Native American water rights.

Play

The 41st state has opted into Medicaid which could be a lifeline for rural hospitals in North Carolina, homelessness barely rose in the past two years but the work required to hold the numbers increased, and destruction of the "Sagebrush Sea" from Oregon to Wyoming is putting protection efforts for an itty-bitty bunny on the map.

MO Schools' Seclusion, Restraint Incidents Shared for First Time

Play

Monday, January 30, 2023   

Missourians can now see how often their schools use seclusion and restraint to address student behavior.

A 2021 law requires that schools report these incidents to the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, beginning this school year.

State Rep. Ian Mackey, D-St. Louis, said he proposed the original bill after many parents shared their children's school discipline experiences, many of whom qualified for special education services.

He said it allows the use of seclusion or restraint under very limited conditions.

"It cannot be used as a form of punishment," said Mackey. "It cannot be used punitively to teach a child a lesson. It must only be used if a child poses a threat, and as soon as the threat is mitigated, the seclusion and restraint must cease. That is what the law says."

The law also requires that schools notify parents when these interventions are used with their child.

Just over 600 Missouri students were secluded and 1,565 were restrained in the first half of the current school year.

Mackey said he hopes this law promotes the use of more positive approaches to behavior change in Missouri schools.

Amy Gott reported that her son was frequently secluded or restrained from first through fifth grade and that - in the beginning - the school rarely notified her.

In addition to being isolated from peers, Gott said he missed out on what was being taught when he was sent to what was known as the "recovery room."

"He would tell me, 'Well, she would sit me down in front of the same worksheet that they had in the classroom that I didn't understand, and tell me to work on it,'" Gott quoted her son had said. "And he said, 'I just didn't understand it.'"

Gott's son was eventually diagnosed with Asperger's, a high-functioning form of autism.

She began homeschooling him in fifth grade. She said she believes it was the school's misinterpretation of his behavior that led to years of being secluded from the classroom.

"A lot of times, at first especially, it would be like the rest of the day," said Gott. "And I mean from 10 o'clock on. Instead of him having autism and not understanding, he was being defiant."




get more stories like this via email
The VOTES Act also ensures the Commonwealth joins the Electronic Registration Information Center, or ERIC, a multi-state consortium which aims to keep voter registration rolls up to date, encourage voter registration and prevent voter fraud. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

Voting rights advocates in Massachusetts are applauding Governor Maura Healey's budgetary backing of new policies stemming from last year's passage of…


Environment

Climate-change groups are calling attention to the environmental destruction linked to the wood pellet industry - even as California is considering a …

Social Issues

Many Nebraskans know how crucial a family caregiver is to one of their family members. Now AARP research has put a dollar value on that unpaid care - …


Going back generations, many Indigenous cultures developed strong ties with bison and relied upon them for sustenance, shelter, and cultural and religious practices. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

South Dakota is home to one of the nation's largest American Indian reservations, and the area is part of a movement among tribal nations to take …

Health and Wellness

As the cost of food, medicine and rent continues to climb, new data shows the benefits miners receive are now 40% less than what they received in 1969…

Stedman farmer Demi Tucker has been growing mushrooms on her family's land for the past few years. (Demi Tucker)

Environment

With the cost of farmland up by more than 8% percent in North Carolina, the state's Black farmers are struggling to purchase additional acreage or …

Environment

By Zachary Shepherd and Kelsey Paulus for Kent State News Lab.Broadcast version by Nadia Ramlagan reporting for the Kent State-Ohio News Connection Co…

Social Issues

Republican-sponsored bills and amendments in the Legislature would eliminate the Tennessee Commission on Children and Youth. More than 1.5-million …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021