A federal investigation in 2020 found the boy was denied a free appropriate public education because of the school’s excessive use of seclusion.
Tiffany and William Strong, outside their home in Orem on Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023. The Strongs are the parents of a former Spectrum Academy student who in 2020 was the subject of a federal civil rights investigation, which found that the boy was denied a free appropriate public education because of the school's excessive use of seclusion.
One morning in October 2019, when her son was 7 and had started third grade, “I had this crazy gut feeling,” Strong said. She went to the school and found him in a seclusion room, “covered in poop,” she said. “He had soiled himself. He was spreading poop everywhere. We took him out that day and we never brought him back.”
Their 2020 findings mirrored the results of the broader investigation federal officials announced last month.Spectrum Academy teaches K-12+ students at five Utah schools, with campuses in North Salt Lake and Pleasant Grove. The broader, separate federal investigation announced in September focused on all of the academy’s students during its 2017-2018 and 2018-2019 school years.
The letter did not specify the total number of times Strong’s son was secluded before his 2019 school year began, noting only that during a two-week period in April 2019, he had been secluded for a total of 1 hour and 16 minutes. Still, the school agreed to take corrective action to resolve the Strong family’s complaint, pledging to make up instructional time that kids missed during periods of seclusion and update policies and procedures to ensure staff only use physical interventions as a last resort, according to a report summarizing investigators’ findings that was provided to The Tribune. Tiffany and William Strong, outside their Orem home on Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023.
The track is one of three academic paths offered at Spectrum, federal investigators explained in September. It’s specifically designed for students who school staff determine are developmentally delayed and performing significantly below grade level, investigators wrote. Physical restraint is considered anything that limits a student’s ability to freely move their torso, arms, legs or head. Children can be held or secured for no more than 30 minutes at a time., only staff trained in nonviolent crisis intervention are allowed to restrain or seclude students, and they can only do so after they have tried other de-escalation techniques.
Strong said the more her son was secluded, the worse his behavior became. In their emails to school staff, Strong and her husband said their son referred to the seclusion room as a “cage” and perceived himself as a “bad kid” for being placed there. He feared and hated school staff, cried and screamed before school, was not sleeping or eating, and had threatened to kill himself, the Strongs wrote.
“The Strongs were very supportive of Spectrum Academy and we held multiple meetings to discuss behavior and appropriate interventions to implement [with their son],” Spectrum officials said. To ensure children with disabilities receive an appropriate education, schools must develop an Individualized Education Program, or IEP, which guarantees additional, special services.
The child’s BIP separately entitled him to a daily outline of classroom activities, a “break zone” in the classroom with weighted blankets and other stimuli, and cards that he could present to staff to request a break or other needs, the report states.
Malaysia Latest News, Malaysia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Love On The Spectrum US: 10 Things You Need To Know About Steve SpitzLearn about Love On The Spectrum's Steve Spitz.
Read more »
love on the spectrum | ScreenRantLove on the Spectrum is a reality television show streaming on Netflix that follows the dating lives of people on the autism spectrum. The series premiered in 2022, and is based on the Australian show of the same name.
Read more »
This couple dressed up as Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce for Halloween — in 2020“I don’t know any world in which Taylor Swift + Travis Kelce would be in the same room together.”
Read more »
Full-Spectrum Cognitive Development Incorporating AIA Personal Perspective: How AI may become integral to human growth.
Read more »
Over $892M Stolen in Oracle Manipulations Since 2020: Binance ResearchBinance Research's report said that the use of oracles can be a double-edged sword.
Read more »