Restraint and seclusion in Illinois schools: what the law allows now

What was "The Quiet Rooms" investigation?

In November 2019, ProPublica Illinois and the Chicago Tribune published "The Quiet Rooms." Using records from more than 100 Illinois districts, reporters documented more than 20,000 seclusion incidents from the 2017-18 school year through early December 2018. In more than a third of the roughly 12,000 incidents with enough detail to judge, staff recorded no safety reason, even though state law allowed seclusion only for safety.

The day after publication, ISBE issued emergency rules banning locked seclusion and restricting physical restraint, including prone restraint. ProPublica later reported that ISBE relaxed the prone restraint ban in 2020, which set the stage for legislation.

What does Public Act 102-0339 do?

Public Act 102-0339 (House Bill 219) took effect August 13, 2021. It amended the Illinois School Code (105 ILCS 5/2-3.130, 5/10-20.33 and 5/34-18.20) and led to ISBE's permanent rules in 23 Ill. Admin. Code 1.285, last amended effective May 29, 2024.

• Restraint, time out and isolated time out are allowed only when the student's behavior presents an imminent danger of serious physical harm to the student or others, and less restrictive measures have been tried and failed.
• Isolated time out and physical restraint may not be used as discipline or punishment, for staff convenience, as retaliation, or to prevent property damage without imminent danger.
• Prone (face-down) restraint was phased out. The law allowed it only in narrow cases during the 2021-22 school year, and it has been fully prohibited since. ISBE's definition includes holding a student face-first against a wall.
• Mechanical restraint (devices that restrict movement) and chemical restraint (medication to control behavior) are prohibited, except for listed medical and safety uses.
• Locked rooms, rooms with blocked doors, closets and boxes cannot be used for time out. An isolated time-out door cannot have a lock.
• During isolated time out, an adult must stay within two feet of the enclosure and be able to see, hear and talk with the student at all times.
• Supine (face-up) restraint is allowed only under strict conditions and for no more than 30 minutes.
• Staff involved must complete at least eight hours of training each year.

What were the phase-out goals?

The law required ISBE to set goals and benchmarks to reduce and eventually eliminate restraint, time out and isolated time out, and required each district to write a reduction plan and report progress each year for three years. District plans were first due July 1, 2022. Special education cooperatives and nonpublic special education schools were added later and submitted plans starting July 1, 2024.

For 2022-23, the statewide goal was a 25% reduction in students who experienced five or more incidents in 30 days. ISBE reported that number fell from 2,322 students in 2021-22 to 1,657 in 2022-23, a 29% drop. For 2023-24, the goals shifted to a 10% cut in total incidents and a 10% cut in students affected, plus at least one targeted goal chosen by each district.

When must the school tell me?

Illinois sets specific parent notification deadlines after any restraint, time out or isolated time out.

• Same day: the school must make a reasonable attempt to notify you on the day it happened.
• Within 1 business day: the school must send you ISBE Form 11-01 describing the incident, plus required information about your rights and how to file a complaint.
• Within 2 school days: the principal or another administrator must tell you that you can request a meeting about the incident. If you ask, the meeting must be held within 2 school days of your request (you can ask for more time or a phone or video meeting). It is separate from an IEP or 504 meeting.
• After incidents on 3 days within 30 days: school staff must review what is happening, look at your child's functional behavioral assessment, and write a behavior plan. You must get 10 days' notice of the review meeting, which must be held within 20 days of the third day.

Do schools report restraint and time out to the state?

Yes. Within 2 school days of any incident, the school must enter it into ISBE's Student Information System. ISBE says it monitors these reports for any prone, mechanical or chemical restraint and investigates when one appears.

ISBE's only public summary so far is a June 30, 2023 report to the General Assembly with statewide totals. It showed 45,647 incidents involving 5,676 students in 2022-23 (as of June 12, 2023), including 33,590 physical restraints. ISBE warned that reporting rules and definitions changed during those years, so year-to-year comparisons are unreliable. ISBE does not currently publish these counts by district.

How do I get my child's restraint and time-out records?

Form 11-01 and the behavior log must be kept in your child's temporary student record. Under the Illinois School Student Records Act, you can inspect and copy all of your child's school records, and the school must grant your request within 10 business days (it can extend by up to 5 business days for certain reasons).

This is general information, not legal advice. If you believe the rules were broken, you can file a signed written complaint with ISBE about a violation within the past year by emailing RestraintTimeOut@isbe.net, and you can ask for state-sponsored mediation. Equip for Equality can also help.

1. Write to the principal and district records custodian asking for copies of all Forms 11-01, behavior logs and related notes for your child, with the date range.
2. Keep a copy of your request and count 10 business days.
3. Compare the forms with what you were told and when you were notified.
4. If something is missing or wrong, ask for a meeting, and consider an ISBE complaint or an IEP meeting to change your child's behavior supports.

Why is federal restraint and seclusion data so old?

The main federal source is the U.S. Department of Education's Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC). It covers every public school, but it is usually collected every other school year and released a couple of years later. It also uses federal definitions of physical restraint, mechanical restraint and seclusion, which do not match Illinois categories exactly.

The 2021-22 CRDC is not usable for Illinois restraint and seclusion. OCR's user manual says virtual schools and schools offering only virtual instruction were skipped for restraint and seclusion, and that a skip-logic failure let some districts skip required items. In PedsList's review of the public-use file, most Illinois schools' restraint and seclusion fields carry the "Not Applicable/Skipped" code. The 2023-24 CRDC, released in August 2026, is complete for Illinois, and PedsList now uses it: it is the first federal snapshot taken after the 2021 law.