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Board approves revisions to special‑education restraint rules and requires cameras in certain special‑education classrooms
Summary
The committee approved a revision to policy G‑2.4C clarifying crisis intervention, seclusion and restraint reporting and added a separate policy requiring cameras in self‑contained special‑education classrooms (50%+ IEP time). Recordings will be retained about 30 days and are not available as live feeds to parents.
The Education Technology and Policy Committee voted to adopt revisions to policy file G‑2.4C (education of students with exceptionalities) and a related policy requiring cameras in self‑contained special‑education classrooms.
Miss Sandra (chief academic officer and special education lead) said the G‑2.4C revisions clarify that the district does not use seclusion (locked rooms) and that "calming rooms" are always supervised by an adult and are not seclusion. The policy updates formalize CPI (crisis prevention intervention) training for teachers and paraprofessionals and set reporting timelines: staff must report physical restraint incidents that exceed three minutes to state authorities and district administration and notify the parent or legal guardian by the end of the day.
On cameras, the committee approved a change that makes cameras mandatory in self‑contained special‑education classrooms where students with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) comprise 50% or more of the school day. Miss Sandra said IT staff have installed the cameras and they will be activated on Feb. 1 after testing. She told the committee recordings will be retained for about 30 days before being overwritten. "There's not... live access for parents. If there is an issue, administration and law enforcement would be allowed to view the cameras," she said.
Board members debated tradeoffs between documentation and staff autonomy. Mr. Ford said classroom video can reduce he‑said/she‑said disputes; Mr. Lagarde expressed discomfort with CPI physical interventions and said he would not personally perform restraints. The committee passed the motions for both policy revisions.
