Office for Civil Rights Requires Central Valley School District #3 (ND) to Revise Seclusion Policy and Train Staff

OCR identified concerns with how school staff used and documented seclusion, when the IEP team was reconvened, and whether a student’s classroom seating change was made with proper parent notice.

April 30, 2026, U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) issued a letter to Central Valley School District #3 (CVSD) in North Dakota, after investigating a complaint filed on behalf of a student with an IEP.

OCR investigated one allegation:

“[T]he District discriminated against Student A, a [redacted content] student at [redacted content] (School), based on disability when, during the [redacted content] school year, staff at the School denied Student A a free and appropriate public education by inappropriately secluding him.”

Before OCR completed its investigation, CVSD expressed interest in resolving the complaint under Section 302 of OCR’s Case Processing Manual.

April 28, 2026, Central Valley entered into a resolution agreement with OCR.

What Happened