Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Preventing Restraint and Seclusion in Schools

Seeking to protect children from dangerous restraint and seclusion in classrooms, U.S. Reps. George Miller (D-CA), the chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee, and Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), a member of that committee and Vice Chair of the House Republican Conference, are introducing new bipartisan legislation in a press conference to be webcast live from the Education and Labor Committee website at http://edlabor.house.gov/ at 11:00 AM EST on Wednesday, December 9, 2009.

A report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office on the inappropriate use of restraint and seclusion in classrooms shows that many students, including a disproportionate number of children with disabilities, have been injured and in some cases killed by these harmful practices. The federal government lacks policies to prevent the misuse of restraint and seclusion in schools, and many states also have failed to ensure adequate regulation and oversight.

ASAN is seeking volunteers to help with our advocacy of legislation to protect students against school abuse. To volunteer, please write to info@autisticadvocacy.org with the subject line "Restraint and seclusion" in your email.

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