Seclusion Room Wall Pads - Clear Lake Schools Testimonial

Known for being the location where Buddy Holly played its final concert before dying in a plane crash, Clear Lake, Iowa is also home to Clear Lake Schools which has built a strong reputation for both quality education and athletic excellence.

Part of creating an environment conducive to success is providing a safe atmosphere in which students can learn and teachers can teach.

At Clear Creek Elementary School, the staff has found that sometimes kids just need a space where they can calm down when frustrations escalate.

That’s where its seclusion room comes into play. When students begin to act out their frustrations physically, parents or teachers give them an opportunity to cool off by walking with them in the hallways. But if things continue to escalate, a seclusion room is a place where the students can work through their problems without hurting themselves or others.

Clear Creek’s seclusion room is a 10x10 foot space with padded walls and a padded half door.

Originally, the padding came in the form of folding tumbling mats, but the staff soon realized that without being firmly secured to the walls these types of mats would often get thrown at people.

In early 2017, Director of Operations Tony Laudner found that gym wall mats - like you’d find on the wall behind a basketball hoop in a school gymnasium - were a perfect solution to that problem.

Working with Greatmats, Laudner designed and custom ordered wall pads to fit the seclusion room, and he and one other person were able to equip the room with all of its padding in under two hours.

“They’re really easy,” Laudner said. “Once we figured out the pattern- four screws into the concrete block and away we went.… They’ve worked out absolutely perfect. They were ideal for what we needed. The doors closed. The teachers are safe. The kids are safe. Everything is great.”

Clear Lake Schools’ Claim to Fame

Not only has Clear Lake won state championships in baseball, but it has also made a name for itself in football with the addition of former Detroit Lion defensive end (1999-2010) Jared DeVries as its head coach in 2015. It’s dance team also recently earned state championships in three divisions.

Tony Laudner

Clear Lake Schools

Clear Lake IA 50428