In accordance with the requirements set forth in 105 ILCS 5/2-3.130 and Public Act 102-0339, the District created an oversight team that consists of, but is not limited to, teachers, paraprofessionals, school service personnel and administrators to develop District-specific plans that include procedures to reduce and eventually eliminate the use of physical restraint, time out and isolated time out (RTO). The plans must include specific actions set forth in legislation and shall align with the reduction goal set forth by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE).
The plan’s objective shall be to reduce the number of RTO incidents by 10%; reduce the number of students experiencing RTO by 10%; and reduce the number of students with an emotional disability experiencing RTO by 25%.
Per ISBE, the school district’s plan is intended to encompass students for whom the district is the service provider. The district plan does not include students placed in cooperative programs, in nonpublic educational programs, or residential facilities.
A plan is required unless a school district can show that it has not used physical restraint, time out, or isolated time out within the last three years; the district has never engaged in its use; and the district has adopted a policy prohibiting these interventions and can demonstrate enforcement of that policy.
While we will continue to review our policy and practices, the current policy does not have language prohibiting the use of RTO, thus we are required to develop an action plan. The goals of our plan are intent to reduce RTO incidents through professional learning in crisis de-escalation, restorative practices, trauma-informed practices, individualized student behavior support plans, oversight through the committee, and administrative supervision and support.
The Oversight Committee met to develop the initial RTO plan in the spring, 2022. While the action plan is a multi-year plan, progress toward completing the action items is to be reported annually. The plan is reviewed and revised at least annually. The RTO plan has been formally submitted to ISBE in accordance with the required timeline of no later than July 1, 2023.
