Finding a Winning Solution
to a Lose/Lose Situation

Educators who use physical force to respond to threats within the learning environment risk lawsuit and termination for causing injury to the student(s). Educators who do not respond to threats within the learning environment (for whatever reason) risk lawsuit and termination for allowing injury to the student(s) to occur.

This lose/lose situation is the reality for educational staff across the nation.

Educational staff without the proper training lack the necessary tools to perform their job of maintaining a safe learning environment to the best of their ability.

Kaneland School District 302 Seeks Viable Solutions

On February 29, 2008 Kaneland School District 302 in Northern Illinois took steps to find a viable solution to the problem of using physical force to respond to threats within the learning environment.

During its Teacher’s Institute Day, Kaneland School District invited teachers from throughout the Chicagoland area to participate in a ground-breaking subject control training delivered by Controlled F.O.R.C.E. The purpose of the training was to help educational staff collectively define what is considered an appropriate response to violence within the learning environment.

Participating staff reviewed a spectrum of responses to violent situations, going from one extreme (punching a student) to another (no response at all). As staff reviewed different responses to different types of threats, they began to agree on what kinds of force were acceptable and what were not.

Once staff started to formulate a definition of appropriateness, Controlled F.O.R.C.E. brought all participants out onto the mats to teach them basic M.A.C.H. subject control skills.

M.A.C.H., or Mechanical Advantage Control Holds, is the foundation of the Controlled F.O.R.C.E. system already in wide use by juvenile services and campus police departments.

The M.A.C.H. system provides educational staff with a set of tools for controlling, detaining, and escorting non-compliant youth. As participants discovered, the system, which is simple to learn and easy to remember, allows a staff member to control a non-compliant student without causing injury or applying pain, even if the techniques fail or are applied incorrectly.

The response from the participating staff was encouraging. Everyone agreed that there is a need for a program that shows them how they can respond in any given situation and provides them with skills to handle potential threats appropriately. The general consensus of the participants was “we all know what we cannot do, but we don’t really know what we can do.”

Now the first step toward establishing a viable force response training has been taken. Controlled F.O.R.C.E. has gained a clear idea of what steps need to be taken to build a realistic program for educational staff to continue to build on what Kaneland School District has initiated.

Copyright 2008 Controlled F.O.R.C.E. Inc