The Iowa legislature is looking at a bill to end the practice of clearing classrooms of all students when one acts out, and funding for the creation of therapeutic classrooms. The bill proposes a therapeutic classroom incentive grant program fund, which would provide competitive grants to school districts to develop therapeutic rooms. Such classrooms are to provide support for any student “whose emotional, social, or behavioral needs interfere with the student’s ability to be successful in the current educational environment, with or without supports, until the student is able to successfully return to the student’s current education environment.”

The bill also states that student plans “shall not include provisions for clearing all other students out of the regular classroom in order to calm the child requiring special education or the child for whom a behavioral intervention plan has been implemented.” It does state that a teacher may clear students from a classroom only if it is necessary to prevent or terminate an imminent threat of bodily injury. If a classroom is cleared, then the school principal shall have up to 24 hours to notify the parents of all students assigned to that classroom that it was cleared.

Representative Jarad Klein said he wants to look at it more closely, “My wife works in the school, I get it, I hear about it. Let’s see, because there might be some stuff in there that’s good that we can find that everybody can be on board with.”

Senator Kevin Kinney said he wants to hear directly from educators and encourages them to contact him, “I’m sincere that I want to hear what the educators are thinking on this bill.”

Two weeks ago, a Senate committee approved the bill numbered SF2190. On Friday, a House sub-committee recommended it for passage. To read the full bill click here.