Adoption Date: 10/18/2007
5000 - Students

Welfare
5144.8 Use of Time Out Rooms

A time out room is an area for a student to safely de-escalate, regain control and prepare to meet expectations to return to his or her education program. Time out rooms are to be used in conjunction with a behavioral intervention plan in which a student is removed to a supervised area in order to facilitate self-control or to remove a student from a potentially dangerous situation.

When a student’s behavior intervention plan includes the use of a time out room, the maximum amount of time a student will need to be in a time out room as a behavioral consequence shall be recommended by the CSE, on an individual basis in consideration of the student’s age and individual needs. Except for unanticipated situations that pose an immediate concern for the physical safety of a student or others, the use of a time out room shall be used only in conjunction with a behavioral intervention plan that is designed to teach and reinforce alternative appropriate behaviors.

The use of time-out rooms in the District shall be governed by the following rules:

1. The physical space used as a time-out room must provide a means for continuous visual and auditory monitoring of the student. 
2. The room shall be of adequate width, length and height to allow the student to move about and recline comfortably
3. Wall and floor coverings should be designed to prevent injury to the student and there shall be adequate lighting and ventilation.
4. The temperature of the room shall be within the normal comfort range and consistent with the rest of the building.   
5. The room shall be clean and free of objects and fixtures that could be potentially dangerous to a student and shall meet all local fire and safety codes.
6. The time out room shall be unlocked and the door must be able to be opened from the inside. The use of locked rooms or spaces for purposes of time out is strictly prohibited.
7. A student’s parents will be informed in writing, prior to the initiation of a behavioral intervention plan that will incorporate the use of a time out room for a student.
8. A student’s parents shall be given an opportunity to see the physical space that will be used as a time out room and shall also be provided with a copy of this policy and its corresponding regulation.

The Superintendent is directed to establish and implement procedures to document the use of time-out rooms and monitor the effectiveness of the use of the time-out room to decrease specified student behaviors

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