DPI has released seclusion and restraint data from the 2022-23 school year. Overall, there was a decrease in incidents of both seclusion and restraint, while students with IEPs continue to make up the vast majority of incidents.
Statewide, schools in the 2022-23 school year reported 5,396 instances of seclusion and 6,366 instances where physical restraint was used – decreases of 8.7% and 8% from the 2021-22 school year, respectively. Among those instances, 1,868 students were involved in seclusion incidents, and 2,763 were involved in physical restraint instances. DPI does not record data on how many times the same student was involved in multiple incidents or whether incidents of seclusion and restraint occurred simultaneously. Students in elementary schools were involved in a higher percentage of instances of seclusion and/or physical restraint than other types of schools. In addition, students with individualized education programs (IEPs) were involved in instances at a higher rate than other students, comprising 80% of all seclusion incidents and 78% of all physical restraint incidents reported for the 2022-23 school year.
At this years Delegate Assembly, our members adopted a resolution that calls on districts to continue best practices and reduce incidents of seclusion and restraint. “The WASB supports continued best practice resources, training, and funding to support school districts reducing incidents of seclusion and restraint with a focus on improving systems and reducing harmful events.” WASB is encouraged to see incidents of seclusion and restraint decreasing, and will continue to seek legislative solutions to help our members receive the resources they need to adequately maintain the safety of both students and staff.
