Season 2 Episode 10: MoDE Foundation Director Tracey Bloch on Seclusion, Restraint, and Fighting for Student Safety in Missouri Schools
In this episode, Colleen sits down with Tracey Bloch — Executive Director of the Missouri Disability Empowerment Foundation (MoDE) — for an urgent and unflinching conversation about seclusion and restraint in Missouri schools.
Tracey Bloch brings both lived experience and hard-won expertise to this conversation. Once a self-described uninformed parent lost in a difficult IEP situation with nowhere to turn, she found MoDE, was guided through the process, and dedicated herself to doing the same for others. As Executive Director, she has become a leading voice in Missouri for legislative accountability, data transparency, and systemic change that protects disabled students.
The numbers from the DOJ’s report are staggering. After a 21-month federal investigation, the U.S. Department of Justice found that Special School District — which serves over 23,500 students across 22 school districts in St. Louis County — secluded more than 300 students nearly 4,000 times and restrained almost 150 students 777 times over just two school years.
The DOJ concluded these practices violated Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the district has yet to make any meaningful change.
Missouri already has a law on the books. Senate Bill 152, passed in 2021, established that seclusion and restraint may only be used in the event of imminent danger of physical harm; that parents must be notified within one hour of the end of the school day; that incident reports must reach families within 5 days and the state within 30; and that all personnel must complete annual training on permitted techniques.
Now two more bills are moving through the Missouri legislature — and time is running out
⚠️ THE WINDOW TO ACT CLOSES MAY 15TH, 2026
The Missouri legislative session ends May 15. Both HB 2304 and HB 2933 must move to the Senate before the session adjourns or they die. Contact your Missouri state senator now and tell them these bills matter. Links to both bills are below.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
* What seclusion and restraint mean under Missouri law — and which specific techniques are prohibited under SB 152 (2021)
* The DOJ's findings against Special School District in St. Louis
* What HB 2304 and HB 2933 would change
* Why data transparency is still a critical gap — and how FOIA/Sunshine requests can help parents and advocates expose what districts aren't reporting
* The risks of inadequate or misapplied staff training
* What trauma-informed, humane alternatives to seclusion and restraint look like in practice
* Why advocacy must operate on both levels at once: at the IEP table and at the state capitol
CONNECT WITH TRACEY BLOCH & MoDE
Missouri Disability Empowerment Foundation: https://www.moempower.org
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MoDEfoundation
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mode.foundation/
CONNECT WITH COLLEEN ASHFORD
On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theadvocate.slp/
DISCLAIMER: Colleen is a licensed SLP and special education advocate. Nothing stated in the Unfiltered IEPs Podcast should be taken as medical or legal advice and is her expressed opinion.
