Illinois HB 1360 was adopted on August 10, 2015. This act took effect on September 1, 2015 as Public Act 99-0325. This bill applies seclusion and restraint requirements in the Illinois health and safety code for public schools to charter schools. Key rules that now apply to charter schools are:
  • Seclusion and restraint can only be used to preserve the safety of students and others and not as a means for discipline.
  • Any staff who physically restrain students must have had “systemic training” within the last two years.
  • An individual can provide training to others in a method of physical restraint only if they have written evidence of completing training in that technique.
  • The district must serve notice to parents within 24 hours of the seclusion and restraint incident.
  • A student shall not be kept in isolated time out for longer than is therapeutically necessary, which shall not be for more than 30 minutes.
  • A student shall be immediately released from any physical restraint when it is determined they are no longer a threat to themselves or others.

A written record of each episode of isolated time out or physical restraint shall be maintained in the student's temporary record.
 
CPI Training Can Help You Comply With the Rules
Schools throughout the US use our Nonviolent Crisis Intervention® training program because it focuses on prevention, de-escalation techniques, and other alternatives to restraint. Our training identifies underlying causes of student behaviors, and how staff and student behaviors affect each other. The program also includes evaluating risk of harm and signs of distress; documenting incidents; and safer, less restrictive physical interventions to be used only as a last resort.
 
How to Get Training
We can bring the Nonviolent Crisis Intervention® training program on-site to your school, or you can attend training in one of more than 150 public locations throughout the US.
 
More Resources
Get helpful hints for crisis intervention and learn about CPI training and restraint reduction.