The issue of restraint and seclusion of special education students – under growing scrutiny nationally – will flare again in Florida today when parents weigh in on a proposed new Department of Education rule.

The proposal say reasonable force can be used “when necessary to maintain a safe and orderly learning environment” but that “positive interventions and alternatives … should be attempted if circumstances permit.” It says seclusion can be used when “reasonably needed” under certain situations, such as when “a student’s behavior poses a threat of imminent physical harm to self or others.”

Good? No, says Frans van Haaren, who runs an autism clinic in St. Petersburg.

“The proposed rule contains ambiguities and opportunities for subjective interpretations too many to describe,” he writes DOE in an email. It “would certainly not safeguard the rights of most of the students to which the rule would apply (students with development and other disabilities.)”

If restraint or seclusion is used, the proposed rule says principals must attempt to notify a student’s parents by phone on the day of the incident and notify them in writing within two days. All uses of restraint or seclusion must be reported to district staff on at least a monthly basis, it says.

Parents can comment on the proposed rule via conference call from 3:30-5 p.m. The call number is 1-866-304-6786, code 14577631. The Board of Education is scheduled to consider the proposal Sept. 15.

- Ron Matus, state education reporter