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Bossier Parish board adopts multiple policy revisions to comply with recent state acts, including seclusion, cameras and drug policy updates
Summary
The board approved a package of policy amendments to align district procedures with recent state acts: clarifying seclusion vs. sensory rooms, requiring cameras in self-contained special-education classrooms, adding 'physical' to restraint language, expanding nondiscrimination to military status, widening protection from retaliation to 'school employees', and explicitly banning employee medical marijuana use.
The Bossier Parish School Board approved a set of policy amendments intended to align district procedures with recent state legislative changes, including Act 4 79, Act 100 and Act 4 39 as referenced during the meeting.
A policy presenter explained the revisions distinguishing sensory rooms (used for de-escalation and emotional regulation) from seclusion rooms (used when a student poses an imminent risk of harm). The revisions would also establish a school health designee to conduct post-restraint health checks when a school nurse is not present and limit reporting procedures to incidents lasting longer than three minutes.
The board also approved an amendment to the district's IDDFC policy to reflect a state requirement that self-contained special-education classrooms have audio and video cameras that are required to be turned on; staff said the district had already implemented cameras as a best practice and the policy language now removes a parent-request process. A separate revision to corporal-punishment policy JDA inserts the word "physical" before "restraint" to clarify the policy describes physical restraints and noted staff receive CPI training annually.
Other revisions included adding "military status" to equal education and employment opportunity policies (JAA and GAAA), and expanding the discipline policy (JD) to refer to protections for "school employees" in line with Act 4 39. The board also updated four employee-substance policies (GAMA, GAMD, GAMEB, GAMEA) to explicitly state that medical marijuana obtained by prescription is prohibited for employees.
Motions to approve the package of amendments were moved and seconded in sequence for the items discussed; each motion passed by show of hands and verbal ayes. Staff said some of these changes reflect existing practice (for example, cameras were reported as already in place) and that the amendments were being made to bring policy language into compliance with state law.
