Montcalm County Intermediate School District was one of the subjects of a 2022 Detroit Free Press investigation over restraint and seclusion tactics used on students with disabilities.
Schools and Education
While the state Department of Education has made trainings and tools available, researchers say it needs to do more to help districts use them.
Thousands of restraints and seclusions used on students each year reveal fractured interpretation of Maine law.
Even with incomplete data, experts say districts show alarming reliance on practices meant for emergency use.
Alaska’s rural schools face decades-long neglect as state funding lags, leaving Indigenous students in hazardous, overcrowded buildings with few options.
“Anxiety feels like a bomb in my stomach and every second feels like a year and nothing makes it stop,” said one young woman. “Anxiety tastes like bad coffee on an empty stomach. Anxiety feels like something watching me sleep.”
It has been five years since the COVID-19 pandemic hit and despite the difficulties, LAUSD reported that in 2023-2024 the graduation rate reached 87%, the highest of all time.
Emily Schwing investigated Alaska’s crumbling rural schools, finding dangerous conditions, historic funding failures, and state neglect despite urgent community needs.
The school in the small village of Sleetmute is falling apart. Despite years of pleas, limited funding has arrived, leaving students in unsafe conditions.
Many rural Alaska schools lack local funding and rely on the state for repairs. Decades of neglect have led to unsafe schools and costly delays.