Extension of Certain RTO Rules, Threat Assessment Teams to Special Education Cooperatives

Among the various changes contained in PA 103-175, the statute makes specific changes which extend certain requirements related to restraint/time out and threat assessment teams to special education cooperatives. 

PA 103-175 extends the requirements for RTO oversight teams and plans to special education cooperatives and nonpublic programs located in the State of Illinois. The requirements apply to any special education cooperative that operates separate schools or programs within schools:

For the purpose of this subsection [(e) of Section 2-3.130] and subsection (f), “entity” means a school district, a special education nonpublic school approved under Section 14-7.02 of this Code and located in this State, or a special education cooperative to the extent the cooperative operates separate schools or programs within schools.

Subsection (e) requires school districts (and now also cooperatives and nonpublic programs in Illinois) to create a time out a physical restraint oversight team that includes, but is not limited to, teachers, paraprofessionals, school service personnel, and administrators to develop (i) an entity-specific plan for reducing and eventually eliminating the use of isolated timeout, timeout, and physical restraint in accordance with the goals and benchmarks established by the State Board and (ii) procedures to implement the plan developed by the team.

Also, this statute requires special education cooperatives to implement their own threat assessment teams, which may be in partnership with member districts:

A special education cooperative operating under a joint agreement must implement its own threat assessment procedure in full compliance with the requirements of this Section, including the creation of a threat assessment team, which may consist of individuals employed by the member districts. The procedure must include actions the special education cooperative will take in partnership with its member districts to address a threat.