Corporal Punishment
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In every school district and supervisory district, the trustee, trustees, board of education or board of cooperative educational services, shall submit a written semiannual report to the Commissioner of Education, by January 15th and July 15th of each year commencing July 1, 1985, setting forth the substance of each complaint about the use of corporal punishment received by the local school authorities during the reporting period, the results of each investigation, and the action, if any, taken by the school authorities in each case.
Corporal punishment means any act of physical force upon a student for the purpose of punishing that student. The term does not include the use of physical restraints, as defined in paragraph (7) of 8 NYCRR 19.5, to protect the student, another student, teacher or any other person from physical injury when alternative procedures and methods not involving the use physical restraint cannot reasonably be employed to achieve these purposes.
Complaints About the Use of Corporal Punishment by District, BOCES, or Charter School Personnel:
From June 2016 to June 30, 2024, Incidents of Complaints Regarding the use of Corporal Punishment will be collected via the SED Monitoring and Vendor Performance System (MVPS) which may be accessed via the NYSED Application Business Portal.
Once logged in:
- Click on "SED Monitoring and Vendor Performance System"
- Choose "Student Support Services"
- Choose "Complaints of Corporal Punishment"
- Complete the survey as indicated
Note: At the July 2023 Board of Regents meeting, the Board approved for permanent adoption an amendment of section 19.5 of the Rules of the Board of Regents (along with Sections 100.2, 200.1, 200.7, 200.15, and 200.22 of the Regulations of the Commissioner of Education). Beginning with the 2024-2025 school year, each public school district, Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES), charter school, State-operated school pursuant to Articles 87 and 88 of the Education Law, and private residential school operated pursuant to Article 81 of the Education Law, must submit an annual report to the New York State Education Department on the use of physical restraint and timeout, substantiated and unsubstantiated allegations of use of prohibited interventions, corporal punishment, mechanical restraint and other prohibited aversive interventions, prone physical restraint, and seclusion. Please see the November 30, 2023 memo entitled, Reporting Student Behavioral Interventions in 2024-25.
In addition, as of October 25, 2023, corporal punishment is prohibited in every school within the state of New York and is classified as child abuse (Education Law §1125 and §305).