Wyoming

"Mechanical Restraints" include devices or equipment used to restrict the free movement of all or a portion of a student's body. The term does not include assistive or protective devices or equipment prescribed by an appropriately trained professional or professional team that are used for the specific and approved purposes for which the devices or equipment were designed and prescribed.

"Restraint" means the use of physical force, with or without the use of any device or material, to restrict the free movement of all or a portion of a student's body. Restraint does not include comforting or calming a student, holding the hand or arm of a student to escort the student if the student is complying, intervening in a fight, or using an assistive or protective device prescribed by an appropriately trained professional or professional team.

Chapter 42 does not define chemical or medication restraint. However, the Wyoming Department of Education's WDE636 Guidebook defines restraint to include "medication restraint used to control behavior in an emergency or any involuntary medication" for data reporting purposes.

"Time-out" means providing the student with a brief opportunity to regain self-control in a setting that does not physically remove the student from peers or the learning environment and the student is now physically prevented from having the time-out area.

"Seclusion" means removing a student from a classroom or other school activity and isolating the student in a separate area. Seclusion occurs when a student is placed in a room or location by school personnel, purposefully separated from peers, and prevented from leaving that location. Separation in an area where the student is prevented from leaving is always considered seclusion. The term does not include a student requested break or in-school suspension, detention, or other appropriate disciplinary measure.

No statutory or regulatory definition of "corporal punishment" or "corporal discipline" was identified.

The dimensions of the room shall be adequate width, length, and height to allow the student to move about and recline comfortably.

Only trained, certified staff consistent with Section 7(a)(ii) above shall be permitted to use restraint as part of a planned behavior intervention unless a bona fide emergency constituting an imminent risk to the health or safety exits. Schools shall not use prohibited practices as part of student restraint at any time. Prohibited practices include aversive interventions, locked seclusion, mechanical restraints, and prone restraints. Restraint shall be used for the minimum amount of time necessary to permit the student to regain control and for staff to restore safety.

Prohibited

Wyoming's school restraint and seclusion regulations do not address the use of chemical restraint.

Seclusion from the Learning Environment may be used as a planned behavior intervention. Isolation Rooms may be used only in emergencies. Continuous visual and auditory monitoring, documentation, school-developed duration guidelines, reentry procedures, and safety requirements are required. (Seclusion: School staff shall be able to see and hear the student in seclusion at all times. Students placed in seclusion shall be permitted access to normal meals and personal hygiene opportunities. Meals and bathroom breaks may be separate and supervised if needed to ensure safety. Schools shall document each occurrence of seclusion consistent with the Mandatory Documentation requirements specified in Section (c) below. Using timeout without seclusion is not regulated by these rules. Seclusion from the Learning Environment may be used as a planned behavior intervention strategy, and schools shall develop seclusion from the learning environment duration guidelines. Isolation Rooms may be used in an emergency. Schools shall develop Isolation Room duration guidelines, including a reentry strategy based on the student's ability to regain control and staff's ability to reestablish safety. Isolation Room seclusion exceeding the durational limits set forth in the school's guidelines shall require immediate administrative review to determine if and under what conditions the Isolation Room seclusion may continue. Schools shall develop an incident review strategy or debriefing strategy to address what, if any, subsequent actions need to be taken. Isolation rooms shall provide a means of continuous visual and auditory monitoring of the student; be adequately lighted with switches to control lighting located outside the room; be adequately ventilated with switches to control fans or other ventilation devices located outside the room; maintain a temperature within the normal human comfort range and consistent with the rest of the building with temperature controls located outside of the room; be clean and free of objects and fixtures that could be potentially dangerous to a student and meet all fire and safety codes; be constructed of materials safe for their intended use, including wall and floor coverings designed to prevent injury to the student; be able to be opened from the inside immediately upon the release of a security mechanism held in place by constant human contact; and have dimensions of adequate width, length, and height to allow the student to move about and recline comfortably.)

Authorized by local school board policy for insubordination, disobedience, and other misconduct.

Wyoming defines time-out but does not regulate its use. Chapter 42 explicitly states that "using timeout without seclusion is not regulated by these rules."

Yes

Parent Notification. The school shall develop a parent notification procedure that includes, at a minimum, written notification within 24 hours, or other timeframe as agreed upon by the school or parent, of using a regulated procedure. Notification shall be complete upon mailing, personal deliver, or electronic transmission of the notice.

Schools shall collect and report annually to the Wyoming Department of Education the number of students involved in the use of regulated intervention, the number of incidents of seclusion and restraint, and the type of regulated intervention utilized.

Annually. Districts report restraint and seclusion data to the Wyoming Department of Education through the WDE636 collection. For the 2026 reporting cycle, the collection window is May 20, 2026–July 31, 202

Schools shall collect and report annually to the Wyoming Department of Education the number of students involved in the use of regulated intervention, the number of incidents of seclusion and restraint, and the type of regulated intervention utilized.

Annual Reporting: Wyoming collects restraint and seclusion data through the WDE636 annual collection. For the 2026 reporting cycle, the collection window is May 20, 2026, through July 31, 2026. Districts are encouraged to upload the completed WDE636 workbook one week before the close of the reporting cycle unless a later deadline is approved by the Collection Steward. All data must be submitted and any corrections completed by the close of the collection window to meet federal reporting requirements. (Wyoming Department of Education, WDE636 Guidebook, Spring Collection Window (2026))

Wyoming does not appear to publish a centralized, public annual restraint and seclusion report. School districts are required to collect and report restraint and seclusion data annually to the Wyoming Department of Education. Since the 2017 amendments to Chapter 42, districts submit aggregated counts rather than student-level data to protect student privacy. The data are collected through the WDE636 reporting process, but no statewide public annual report or dataset could be located.

Not expressly specified.

All staff shall receive training in evidence-based techniques shown to be effective in preventing physical restraint and seclusion, including evidence-based skills training related to positive behavior supports, safe physical escort, conflict prevention, de-escalation, and conflict management.