SPECIAL SERVICES

Dawn Pitre picture
The Avoyelles Parish School District (APSD) provides a continuum of supports and services for students with disabilities to help them access their education. Special education services are available to students with disabilities who qualify for an Individualized Education Program (IEP). Each student’s program is individually determined to meet their unique needs in the least restrictive environment. Our educators are passionate about supporting students, which is translated into very rich learning environments.  Our District is committed to supporting the needs of the students and families that make up our school district. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact our department.

Sincerely,

Dawn Pitre, Special Education Supervisor

Policies

 

FILE:  IDDF

Cf:  IDDFA, IDDFB, IDDFC


EDUCATION OF STUDENTS WITH EXCEPTIONALITIES

 

The Avoyelles Parish School Board shall make available a free appropriate public education in the least restrictive educational environment to each student with an exceptionality, ages three through twenty-one, who is a resident of the geographical boundaries of the school district.  Special education and related services may be provided by the School Board to eligible children with exceptionalities under three years of age.  Generally, identified children shall be screened and evaluated to determine eligibility to receive special education and related services.  If it is determined through the evaluation process that a child has a disability and, by reason thereof, needs special education and related services, then the child is classified in accordance with Louisiana’s Pupil Appraisal Handbook, Bulletin 1508, and becomes eligible to receive special education services.  All special education services shall be provided to eligible students with exceptionalities in accordance with the regulations outlined in Regulations for the Implementation of the Exceptional Children's Act, Bulletin 1706 and all other applicable federal and state regulations.

 

The School Board shall establish and maintain policies and procedures in accordance with federal and state laws and regulations to ensure that students with exceptionalities and their parents are provided the necessary procedural safeguards with respect to the provision of free appropriate public education by the School Board.

 

NOTIFICATION OF INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS

 

Each school shall provide parents, legal guardians, or tutors of students with exceptionalities written information regarding legal procedures affecting the transfer of individual rights from parent, legal guardian, or tutor to child when the child attains the age of majority, including but not limited to supported decision making, power of attorney, continuing or permanent tutorship, and limited and full interdiction. The document shall inform parents, legal guardians, or tutors and how each option relates to such transfer of rights. 

At the child's first Individualized Education Program (IEP) meeting of the school year, the document shall be provided to a parent, legal guardian, or tutor of each child who is fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, or seventeen years old who participates in alternate assessment pursuant to La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §17:24.4(F)(3) or an alternate pathway to promotion pursuant to La. Rev. Stat. Ann.§17:24.4(H). Parents, legal guardians, or tutors shall be provided a form by which to confirm receipt of the information. 

SECLUSION AND RESTRAINT

 

The School Board recognizes that, in order for students to receive a free appropriate public education, a safe learning environment needs to be provided.  In doing so, the School Board also recognizes that there are circumstances in school under which reasonable and appropriate measures and techniques will need to be employed in dealing with students with exceptionalities who pose an imminent risk of harm to self or others.

 

The School Board fully supports the use of positive behavior interventions and support when addressing student behavior.  The School Board reserves its right, however, to use physical restraint and/or seclusion consistent with state law to address the behavior of a student with an exceptionality when school personnel reasonably believe the behavior poses an imminent risk of harm to the student or others.  The School Board shall not preclude the use of physical restraint and/or seclusion performed consistent with the requirements of a student’s Individualized Education Program (IEP) or behavior intervention/management plan.

 

The provisions regarding seclusion and restraint shall not be applicable to a student who has been deemed to be gifted or talented under Bulletin 1508, unless the student has been identified as also having a disability under Bulletin 1508.

 

Definitions

 

Crisis intervention means the implementation of an action plan for school personnel to implement when a student exhibits disruptive behaviors that prevent him from participating in classroom or daily activities. Crisis intervention may include the following: 

 

The use of positive behavioral supports and sensory rooms or other calming spaces intentionally designed to help comfort and stabilize a student so that he may return to the classroom or daily activities. 

 

In extraordinary circumstances, the use of seclusion and physical restraint as a means to safely de-escalate a situation in which a student poses a risk of imminent risk of harm to self or others. 

 

Information about a school's use of crisis intervention, including the proper use of seclusion and physical restraint, shall be included in a school's student handbook and made available to the parent and legal guardian of each student with an Individualized Education Program or Behavioral Intervention Plan. 

 

Imminent risk of harm shall mean an immediate and impending threat of a person causing substantial physical injury to self or others.


Seclusion shall mean a procedure that isolates and confines a student in a designated separate room or area until he or she is no longer an imminent risk of harm to self or others. Seclusion shall be used only as a last resort when de-escalation and other positive behavioral support attempts have failed and the student continues to pose an imminent risk of harm to self or others. Seclusion shall not be used as a routine school safety, discipline, or intervention measure or to address behaviors such as generalnon-compliance, self-stimulation, academic refusal, and other behaviors that, while disruptive to a classroom setting or other daily school activities, do not present an imminent risk of harm to self or others. School employees shall respond to such behaviors with less strenuous and less restrictive techniques, such as those included in a school's or student's crisis intervention plan or a student's Individualized Education Program or Behavioral Intervention Plan.

 

Seclusion room means a room or other confined area, used on an individual basis, in which a student is removed from the regular classroom setting for a limited time to allow the student the opportunity to regain control in a safe, secure and supervised setting and from which the student is involuntarily prevented from leaving until he/she is no longer at risk of imminent harm to self or others.  A seclusion room shall:

Be free of any object that poses a danger to the student placed in the room.  


  • Have an observation window and be of a size that is appropriate for the student's size, behavior, and chronological and developmental age. 


  • Have a ceiling height and heating, cooling, ventilation, and lighting systems comparable to operating classrooms in the school. 

 

Sensory room means a room or space that is used for the monitored separation of a student in an unlocked setting in which school personnel may use positive behavioral interventions and support to help to calm or stabilize a student's disruptive behavior. A sensory room may also be referred to as a "calming room", “calming space", "comfort room", "comfort space", "sensory space", "timeout room", or "timeout space". The appropriate use of sensory rooms shall not be considered seclusion, which shall only be used for the limited purpose of responding to a student posing an imminent risk of harm to self or others.


Mechanical restraint means the application of any device or object used to limit a person’s movement.  Mechanical restraint does not include: 

 

1. A protective or stabilizing device used in strict accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions for proper use and which is used in compliance with orders issued by an appropriately licensed health care provider; and

 

2.  Any device used by a duly licensed law enforcement officer in the execution of his/her official duties.

 

Physical restraint means the use of manual restraint techniques that involve physical force applied to restrict the movement of all or part of a person's body.  Physical restraint does not include:


  1. Consensual, solicited, or unintentional contact. 


  1. Momentary blocking of a student’s action if the student’s action is likely to result in harm to the student or other person. 


  1. A school employee holding a student for less than three consecutive minutes within any given hour for the protection of the student or others. 


  1. A school employee holding a student for the purpose of calming or comforting the student, provided the student’s freedom of movement or normal access to his or her body is not restricted. 


  1. Minimal physical contact for the purpose of safely escorting a student from one area to another. 

 

6.  Minimal physical contact for the purpose of assisting the student in completing a task or response.


Positive behavioral interventions and support means a systematic approach to embed evidence-based practices and data-driven decision making when addressing student behavior in order to improve school climate and culture.

 

School Employee means a teacher, paraprofessional, administrator, support staff member, or a provider of related services.

 

School health designee means a school employee designated to assess the use of seclusion and physical restraint in the event that a school nurse is not present on a school campus at the time such measure is used. 

 

Written guidelines and procedures means the written guidelines and procedures adopted by the School Board regarding appropriate responses to student behavior which may require intervention.

 

Documentation and Notification

 

Each principal or his/her designee shall notify each parent or legal guardian of a student enrolled at the school with an Individualized Education Program of the prohibition of the use of seclusion and physical restraint if the student has a condition who is known to have any medical or psychological condition that precludes such action, as certified by a pediatrician, neurologist, or mental health provided in a written statement provided to the school in which the student is enrolled. Such notification shall be made annually and be incorporated into the student's Individualized Education Program meeting. 


The parent or other legal guardian of a student who has been placed in seclusion or physically restrained shall be notified by phone as soon as practicable but no later than the end of the same school day. The student’s parent or other legal guardian shall also be notified in writing, as outlined below, of each incident of seclusion or physical restraint. The director or supervisor of special education shall be notified any time a student is placed in seclusion or is physically restrained.

 

A school employee who secluded or physically restrained a student shall document and report the incident in accordance with School Board policies.  The employee shall submit such report to the school principal by the end of the next school day following the incident. The principal or his designee shall submit the report to the parent by the end of the next school day following receipt of the report. At a minimum, the incident report shall include the following: 

 

  1. The name, age, grade, gender, race, and disability of the student secluded or restrained. 


  1. The date, time, location, and duration of the seclusion or physical restraint.  


  1. The name and title of each school employee involved and who was a witness.  


  1. A description of the events requiring the use of seclusion or physical restraint, including a description of the procedures and types of restraint used, any actions taken in an attempt to de-escalate the situation, and the student's behavior that suggest the student posed an imminent risk of harm to self or others. 


  1. A description of any student injuries, visible marks, or medical emergencies that occurred during or after the seclusion or physical restraint. 


  1. A description of the actions taken immediately following the student's release from seclusion or physical restraint, including actions to notify the student's parent or legal guardian. 


  1. A description of the student's actions immediately following the student's release from seclusion or restraint. 

 

All instances where seclusion or physical restraint is used to address student behavior of students with disabilities under Bulletin 1508 shall be reported, in accordance with the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) policy, by the School Board to the Louisiana Department of Education (LDE).

 

Guidelines and Procedures


The School Board shall require the Superintendent and staff to maintain adequate written guidelines and procedures governing the use of seclusion and physical restraint of students in accordance with federal and state law, as well as regulations and guidelines promulgated by BESE. The written guidelines and procedures shall be provided to all school employees and every parent of a student with an exceptionality and shall include reporting requirements and follow-up procedures, including notification requirements for school officials, notification to the student’s parent or legal guardian, and reporting of seclusion and restraint incidents to the LDE.

 

At the beginning of each school year, the written guidelines and procedures adopted by the School Board shall be posted at each school under the jurisdiction of the School Board, and on the School Board’s website.


Follow Up

 

Following any situation resulting in the use of physical seclusion or restraint of a student, a Functional Behavioral Assessment (FBA) should be considered.  If a student subject to the use of seclusion or physical restraint is involved in three (3) such incidents in the school year, the student’s Individualized Education Program (IEP) team shall review and revise the student’s Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP) including any crisis intervention plans, to include any appropriate and necessary behavioral supports. Thereafter, if the student’s challenging behavior continues or escalates, requiring repeated use of seclusion or physical restraint, the special education director or supervisor or his/her designee shall review the student’s plans at least once every three (3) weeks.

 

Employee Training Requirements

 

The Superintendent or his/her designee shall be responsible for conducting or obtaining appropriate training programs for school personnel designed to address the use of seclusion and restraint techniques with students with disabilities.  In addition, positive behavioral intervention strategies, crisis intervention, and de-escalation, as well as other procedures, may also be included in any training.

 

Charter Schools

 

Notwithstanding any state law, rule, or regulation to the contrary and except as may be otherwise specifically provided for in an approved charter, a charter school established and operated in accordance with State law, including its approved charter and the school’s officers and employees, shall be subject to the School Board’s policy and written procedures and guidelines regarding the use of seclusion and restraint with students with exceptionalities.


Revised:  December, 2008     Revised:  November 1, 2016

Revised:  December, 2011     Revised:  November 19, 2024

Revised:  March 6, 2012     Revised:  October, 2025

Revised:  October 1, 2013

FILE:  IDDFC

Cf:  EBCB, IDDF

 

CAMERAS IN SPECIAL EDUCATION CLASSROOMS

 

The Avoyelles Parish School Board shall install and operate cameras that record both video and audio in each special education classroom, as required by state law, and in accordance with procedures promulgated by the Superintendent. The School Board shall verify periodically that the cameras remain in operation. Should a camera be out of operation for more than two (2) consecutive days, the school shall provide notice to parents of students in the affected classrooms via normal school communication channels.

For purposes of this policy, classroom shall mean a self-contained classroom or other special education setting in which a majority of students in regular attendance are provided special education and related services and are assigned to one or more self-contained classrooms or other special education settings for at least fifty percent (50%) of the instructional day. Classroom shall not mean special education classrooms and other special education settings where the only students with exceptionalities receiving special education and related services are those who have been deemed to be gifted or talented and have not been identified as also having a disability.

 

The School Board shall ensure/provide:

 

1.  Proper location and placement of cameras. The recording of the interior of a restroom or any area designated for students to change or remove clothing shall be prohibited. 

 

2.  Written notice of the placement of the cameras shall be provided to persons who enter a classroom where a camera is installed, including teachers and other school employees, students in the classroom, the students' parents and legal guardians, and authorized visitors. 

 

3  Training concerning the provisions of this policy for any teacher or other school employee who provides services in a classroom where cameras are installed. 

 

4. Procedures for proper retention, storage, and disposal of the video and audio data recorded. Recordings shall be retained for at least one month from the recording date.

 

5. Protection of student privacy and development of procedures for determining to whom and under what circumstances the recordings may be disclosed including: 

 

A. Limiting viewing of the recordings to the Superintendent or his/her designee and the parent or legal guardian of a recorded student upon request. 

B. Requiring any person who views a recording and who suspects the recordings show a violation of state or federal law to report the suspected violation to the appropriate law enforcement agency. 

 

6.  Each camera installed shall be in compliance with the National Fire Protection Association's Life Safety Code. 

 

7.  Procedures regarding how a parent or legal guardian may request to review a recording, under what circumstances a request may be made, and any limitations to a request. 

 

Recordings made pursuant to this policy shall be confidential and shall not be public record. However, a recording may be viewed by the Superintendent or his/her designee, the parent or legal guardian of a recorded student, or by law enforcement officials as provided in the policies required by item number 5 above. 

 

The recordings shall not be considered "personally identifiable information" as defined in La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §17:3914. 

 

New policy:  November 1, 2022

Revised:  August, 2025


Special Education Advisory Panel (SEAP)