Fwd: HELP Committee to markup H.R. 4247 Preventing Harmful Restraint and Secl

[Guest guest]

From: denise@...To: RM10@...Sent: 2/3/2010 8:34:33 A.M. Central Standard TimeSubj: RE: HELP Committee to markup H.R. 4247 "Preventing Harmful Restraint and Secl

– you are welcome to forward.

Thanks

From: RM10@... [mailto:RM10@...] Sent: Tuesday, February 02, 2010 10:33 PMdenise@...Subject: Re: HELP Committee to markup H.R. 4247 "Preventing Harmful Restraint and Secl...

,

Would you like me to forward this to the restraint and seclusion group, stop the abuse group and special education battlefield group as well as the IEP group for more wide distribution.

Let me Know,

sincerely,

In a message dated 2/2/2010 6:10:19 P.M. Central Standard Time, denise@... writes:

Do NOT forward COPAA Member Annoucements off-list without prior permission of COPAA.

The Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates, Inc.

A national voice for special education rights and advocacy

House Education and Labor Committee to markup H.R. 4247, the “Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act,†Thursday, February 4, 2010 at 11:00 a.m.

Contact: Debbie Lehrich, COPAA Director of Public Policy, debbie@...

· This Thursday, February 4, 2010 at 11:00 a.m., the House Committee on Education and Labor is scheduled mark up H.R. 4247, the “Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act.†This means that the Committee will consider changes to the bill and vote on whether to send it on to the full House of Representatives for consideration. The bill was introduced on December 9, 2009, Representatives (D-CA) and Mc Rodgers (R-WA) to address the use of restraints, seclusion and aversive interventions in schools. COPAA supports the legislation, and submitted a letter to Chairman urging changes to the bill as outlined in our Jan. 10, 2010 statement: http://www.copaa.org/news/position%20on%20HR4247%20and%20S2860.html

Location: House Education and Labor Committee Hearing Room, 2175 Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, D.C.

Webcast: The mark-up will be webcast live from the Education and Labor Committee website. You can access the webcast when the hearing begins at 11:00 am Eastern here:http://edlabor.house.gov/markups/2010/02/preventing-harmful-restraint-a.shtml

· There is still time to take action!! Please let Congress hear from you about what provisions are important to you, and why they are necessary to protect children from the harms of restraint and seclusion.

· We urge you to tell Congress that you support the current language that prohibits placement of restraint or seclusion in a child’s Individual Education Program, behavioral plan, or other educational planning document. Using an IEP to authorize the use of restraint or seclusion for a student is wholly inappropriate. The Individual with Disabilities Education Act requires public schools to develop an Individualized Education Program (IEP) for every student with a disability who is found eligible under federal and state requirements. The IEP must be designed to provide the child with a free appropriate public education (FAPE). The IEP refers both to the educational program to be provided to a child with a disability and to the written document that describes that educational program. Since restraint and seclusion do not constitute a program, treatment, therapy, or services and may actually deny a student FAPE, restraint and seclusion cannot be included in an IEP. However, the IEP, as well as the Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP) which is part of an IEP, should include positive behavioral supports and other services, supports and assistance to prevent restraint and seclusion and to provide a student with FAPE. In addition, the IEP should include a trauma-informed care plan, if appropriate, which describes what special needs a student may have because of the nature of their disability or prior trauma.

· Ask Congress to amend the bill to include rooms that are unlocked but children are physically prevented from exiting. The bill currently applies only to locked seclusion (Sec. 4; applying definition 42 U.S.C. 290jj(d)(4)). Staff should not be allowed to hold doors shut or block them with furniture to imprison children with no protections. A child who uses a wheelchair but cannot operate it or a child with other motor disabilities may be secluded with the door open. Schools could use cheap child-proofing to prevent children with motor disabilities from opening a door that their peers could easily open. Because the rooms are technically unlocked, the protections in the bill would not apply to them.

· When you call or write, be sure to include the bill’s name, “The Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act,†and its number (H.R. 4247).Telephone/TTY: Call your Congressional Representative at 202-224-3121 (TTY 202-225-1904). This is the switchboard, so you will need to know your Representative’s name. When you are connected, ask for the aide who handles education or disability. If you get voicemail, please leave a message. You can also find direct dial numbers, fax numbers, and local numbers on your Representative’s webpage at http://www.house.gov. Email: If you need to use email, go to http://www.house.gov/writerep for the House of Representatives. A call is always best because it is personal, but email is helpful too.Find Out Who Your Congressional Representative is: If you do not know who your Congressional Representative is, go to http://www.house.gov and put your zip code into the box in the upper left corner. (You usually only need your five digit zip code.)

· Today, the National Disability Rights Network issued an update of its report of last year, “School is Not Supposed to Hurt: Update of Progress in 2009 to Prevent and Reduce Restraint and Seclusion in Schools.†The report, which can be found at www.ndrn.org, documents that, despite the strong beginnings of federal efforts to prevent and reduce restraint and seclusion, states have been slow to respond. Only two states enacted laws over the past year and only six states strengthened their regulations, sometimes in response to attempts to weaken the regulations. The report also summarizes the proposed laws, gives examples of continuing harm and summarizes efforts in each state to reduce restraint and seclusion. Feel free to use this as resource in addition to COPAA’s report of last year , “Unsafe in the Schoolhouse: Abuse of Children with Disabilities ( , 2009),†which can be found at http://www.copaa.org/pdf/UnsafeCOPAAMay_27_2009.pdf.

· A full analysis of H.R. 4247 by , Esq. is available on slaw here: http://www.wrightslaw.com/info/restraint.hr4247.butler.htm

· See www.govtrack.us for full text of the bills, to track bill progress or to see if your Congressman is a cosponsored.

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