Vermont School Restraint, Seclusion, and Disability Discrimination: What Parents Can Do

You found out your child was physically restrained at school. Or they spent hours in a room alone — and you weren't notified until after the fact. Or the district is telling you they can't keep your child safe and is suggesting a more restrictive placement. These situations are among the most distressing a parent of a child with a disability can face, and they carry serious legal implications.

Vermont has specific laws governing restraint and seclusion in schools, and federal civil rights law prohibits disability discrimination in educational settings. Here's what the law actually says and what you can do.

Vermont Law on Restraint and Seclusion

Vermont prohibits the use of restraint and seclusion as punishments or as a matter of convenience. Schools may only use physical restraint — hands-on physical intervention — in emergency situations where a student poses an imminent risk of serious harm to themselves or others, and where less restrictive methods have failed or are not available.

Vermont law requires that schools:

• Notify parents as soon as reasonably possible after any restraint or seclusion incident
• Provide written documentation of the incident, including what occurred and the names of staff involved
• Conduct a debrief to understand what triggered the behavior and how to prevent future incidents
• Maintain records of all restraint and seclusion incidents

Seclusion — confining a student alone in a room — faces similar restrictions. Vermont does not permit the use of seclusion as a behavioral intervention or punishment. Any confined space used for seclusion must allow staff to observe the student continuously.

If your child's school is using restraint or seclusion routinely as a behavior management tool — not in genuine emergency situations — that is a significant legal problem.

What to Do If It Happens

Request the incident report in writing immediately. Under Vermont law, you are entitled to documentation of any restraint or seclusion incident involving your child. Do not accept a verbal explanation only. Send a written request to the special education director for the complete incident report, including the names of all staff present, the duration, and what de-escalation attempts were made first.

Review your child's IEP and behavior plan. If your child has a history of behavioral escalation and the school has used restraint more than once, the IEP should include a Functional Behavioral Assessment (FBA) and a Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP). A BIP is a proactive plan — developed by the IEP team — that identifies triggers, de-escalation strategies, and preventive supports. If your child has an IEP and there is no BIP, that is a significant gap.

Request an IEP meeting. Repeated restraint or seclusion incidents are a signal that the current placement and support plan are not working. Request an emergency IEP meeting in writing. At the meeting, push for the development or revision of an FBA and BIP, and ask what additional supports — staff training, behavioral consultation, modified environment — the district is putting in place.

Consider filing a complaint. If you believe restraint or seclusion was used illegally — outside an emergency, as punishment, without notification — you have two complaint avenues:

1. Vermont Agency of Education administrative complaint. File a written complaint alleging that the district violated Vermont special education rules. The AOE must investigate and issue a decision within 60 days.
2. Office for Civil Rights (OCR) complaint. If the use of restraint or seclusion appears to be discriminatory — disproportionately applied to students with disabilities — you can file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights.

Disability Discrimination at School

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act prohibits any school receiving federal funding from discriminating against students on the basis of disability. Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act applies to public schools as well. Disability discrimination in education looks like:

• Denying a student with a disability access to programs, activities, or facilities available to non-disabled peers
• Applying rules or discipline practices differently because of a student's disability
• Failing to provide reasonable accommodations that would enable a student with a disability to access education
• Bullying or harassment based on disability that the school knows about and fails to address adequately

Vermont's Harassment, Hazing, and Bullying policies (Act 1) require schools to notify parents of a bullying complaint within one school day and to investigate promptly. Bullying that is based on a student's disability may simultaneously violate state HHB policy and federal disability discrimination law.

If your child is being bullied or harassed because of their disability and the school is not responding adequately, you can file a complaint with the Office for Civil Rights. OCR investigations are free. You do not need an attorney to file.

Suspension and Removal of Students with Disabilities

Federal law places strict limits on how schools can discipline students with disabilities. Vermont law follows these federal requirements. Key protections include:

10-day rule. A school may suspend a student with a disability for up to 10 cumulative school days in a school year without triggering special procedures. Beyond 10 days, additional protections kick in.

Manifestation determination. Before the 11th day of removal, the district must convene a manifestation determination review — an IEP meeting at which the team determines whether the behavior that led to suspension was caused by, or substantially related to, the child's disability. If it was, the suspension generally cannot proceed unless the situation involves weapons, drugs, or serious bodily injury.

Stay-put protection. If a parent files for due process in response to a proposed disciplinary change in placement, the child has the right to remain in their current educational placement during the proceedings.

If your child with a disability is being repeatedly suspended, or the district is threatening an out-of-placement removal for behavioral reasons, these procedural protections are critical. Each suspension that contributes to the 10-day total must be tracked. A pattern of short suspensions — each just under the threshold that triggers formal review — is a known strategy that parents should document and challenge.

Vermont Resources for Disability Rights

Vermont Legal Aid — Disability Law Project (DLP): Vermont Legal Aid provides free legal representation for income-eligible clients dealing with serious special education, disability discrimination, and civil rights matters. They have handled cases involving restraint and seclusion, systematic denial of services, and discriminatory school practices. Contact them at vtlegalaid.org.

Vermont Family Network (VFN): VFN's advocacy staff can help parents understand their rights and prepare for IEP meetings following restraint incidents. They are not a legal services organization, but they provide substantial parent training and support.

Office for Civil Rights (OCR): For disability discrimination complaints, file online at ed.gov/ocr. There is no cost and no attorney required.

The Vermont IEP & 504 Advocacy Playbook at /us/vermont/advocacy/ includes guidance on documenting restraint and seclusion incidents, requesting FBAs and BIPs, and filing complaints with both the AOE and OCR — formatted for Vermont's specific procedures and the community dynamics that make these conversations especially difficult in small school districts.

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