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Student‑services director previews updated restraint, timeout and seclusion procedures ahead of August regulatory deadline
Summary
Director Michael Stapleton presented a first read of required updates to local procedures and definitions for physical restraint, timeout and seclusion to align with 603 CMR changes; administrators will finalize procedures and train staff over the summer.
The Cohasset School Committee received a first read on June 24 of proposed updates to the district’s physical restraint, timeout and seclusion policy and procedures required by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.
Michael Stapleton, director of student services, outlined key changes in state regulation (references to 603 CMR 46 and 603 CMR 18) that broadened definitions and added procedural safeguards. Stapleton said the regulatory updates remove a limitation tied to "verbal directives" in the policy definition of physical restraint and add updated definitions of seclusion and timeout, new documentation forms, grievance and investigation procedures, and requirements for any room used for timeout.
Stapleton told the committee the district rarely uses seclusion or timeout rooms and has had very few physical restraints; nonetheless, the district must update written procedures and deliver staff training over the summer so implementation aligns with the DESI/DESE timeline. He recommended the committee take the changes as a first read and return for adoption after the required procedural updates and staff training are complete.
Committee members asked clarifying questions; a small typographical error in the seclusion definition was flagged and will be corrected before adoption. The administration plans to present the revised procedures and a vote at a special meeting or the July joint meeting with the Select Board so the district meets the effective timeline.
