On May 14, the U.S. Department of Education released a resource document on restraint and seclusion. Upon its release, this document was shared with the Mississippi Restraint and Seclusion Committee co-chairs. With this new resource available to states and local school districts, and with the announcement of the retirement of Mississippi's state superintendent, the committee chairs placed additional work on this project on hold for the immediate future.

SECC staff participated in a conference call with the MDE Restraint and Seclusion Policy Committee to gain feedback on the policy crosswalk provided in March. In the time since receiving the crosswalk, the committee co-chairs determined that some additional steps and time would be needed before the committee would be prepared to take a policy to the state board. The committee requested additional time to review the crosswalk and identify portions of policy from other states that might improve the Mississippi draft policy. The committee selected dates for work sessions in May, June, and July. In May, the committee will work to ensure the draft policy addresses all desired components, and establish a timetable for future work and deliverables.

In March, SECC staff completed a crosswalk comparing the Mississippi draft policy to policies and/or guidance from four other states selected by the MDE for comparison. The crosswalk was provided to committee members for their review in advance of a meeting to collect their feedback scheduled for April 9.

This month, SECC staff held a conference call with the MDE Restraint and Seclusion Policy Development Committee to plan next steps in policy development. The team discussed taking a policy to the state board in June 2012. SECC staff will prepare a crosswalk of the current Mississippi draft policy components, comparing them with policies/guidance in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and Kansas, as requested by the committee. SECC will provide the crosswalk by the end of March, and a follow-up conference call will be held in early April to discuss any revisions to the draft based on crosswalk and MDE conversations with internal/external stakeholders.

In January, SECC staff contacted the MDE Restraint and Seclusion Policy Committee leaders regarding scheduling a meeting in February to plan for next steps in the development of a policy and guidance document for Mississippi schools. A draft document containing updates on the progress and completion of policy development in Florida and SECC states was also provided. This project had been placed on hold pending release of non-regulatory guidance from the federal Office of Special Education Programs. This guidance has yet to be provided, and the state desires to reinitiate work on a state policy.