The Cedar Rapids School District has reached a settlement with the U.S. Justice Department on the used of use of seclusion and restraint against students with disabilities.
The Justice Department says its investigation found that the school district inappropriately and repeatedly secluded and restrained students with disabilities as early as kindergarten in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
The Department says this affected the behavior of the students instead of helping them — and the school district did not end seclusion where students showed signs of crisis or trauma, or when there was no longer any threat of harm.
The Cedar Rapids District has voluntarily agreed to end the use of seclusion, reform its restraint practices, and improve its staff training to anticipate and appropriately address and de-escalating the disability-related behavior of students
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