Keep Kids in Classrooms, Not Closets (Missouri)

There is a myth that seclusion is necessary to keep kids and school staff safe. There is no research – none – indicating that that is the case. In fact, it is when kids are being restrained and secluded that they and staff are at greatest risk for being hurt. There are many, many schools dealing with equally difficult kids that never use seclusion.

Missouri schools use seclusion at twice the national rate. Since Missouri schools began reporting the use of seclusion to the state in 2022, school staff have secluded kids in solitary confinement more than 23,500 times.

HB 2183 would prohibit the use of seclusion on any student in Missouri public schools and ensure that all Missouri students receive critical protection from this ineffective and harmful practice. However - a key change is needed to ensure all students are protected: the bill contains an exception for "special school districts" - that must be struck. The U.S. Dept. of Justice found in Feb. 2026 that in just one such special school district, every single student had been restrained or secluded, with thousands of these dangerous practices used each year.

Now is the time to support students and educators with effective, evidence-based approaches to addressing concerning behavior and keep kids in classrooms, not closets.