Locked In, Left Out: How Seclusion Fails Minnesota’s Kids – amplifiED
In this episode of the amplifiED podcast, hosts Margaret Sullivan and Josh Crosson sit down with Jessica Heiser, attorney at the Minnesota Disability Law Center, to talk about what seclusion — the use of solitary confinement on children — actually looks like for Minnesota students.
The discussion covers why seclusion persists: undertrained staff, a compliance-based school culture and a widespread misunderstanding of what seclusion even is. Jessica details why seclusion is neither voluntary nor therapeutic: it’s a child, alone, locked in, with no adult support and no tools to self-regulate.
The episode ends with an update on the push in the Minnesota legislature to roll back the 2023 ban on the use of K-3 seclusions. Margaret, Josh, and Jess break down what’s at stake and what parents, educators and community members can do right now.