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Parent advocate urges board to expand review of restraint policy, cites DOJ and Department of Education guidance
Summary
A parent-letter read at the meeting asked the board to extend policy review and to strengthen preventive IEP-based behavioral supports; the commenter cited an 08/01/2016 Department of Education 'Dear Colleague' letter and said better prevention aligns with DOJ remedial measures.
A written comment from Jennifer Cocker, read by the board secretary, urged the Special School District of St. Louis County to broaden its planned review of policies responding to a U.S. Department of Justice request concerning exclusion and supine restraint.
"My name is Jennifer Cocker. I parent someone who received services from SSD. I've been involved in disability advocacy for decades," the letter said. Cocker asked that the district's scheduled reviews also include evaluation of the quality of IEP-based behavioral supports, supplementary aids and services, program modifications, and staff supports.
The commenter cited a U.S. Department of Education "Dear Colleague" letter dated 08/01/2016 and said better implementation of preventive measures "would go a long way" toward reducing reliance on reactive practices cited by DOJ. The letter noted that preventive measures align with remedial measures identified in the DOJ findings letter regarding SSD seclusion and restraint practices.
Cocker asked the board to consider expanding monitoring and review practices to include fidelity of interventions and quality of FBAs and BIPs, not just incident-level data.
