Menstrual cramps + Aleve = suspension for honor student
Zero tolerance: Student suspended for taking medicine
Updated 01 Feb 2005: Student apologizes, returns to class. (Details at bottom of post.)
Haverford Township School District has a zero tolerance policy toward drugs. It prohibits students “from carrying on their person any medication that is prescribed or purchased over the counter.” If a student does need medication (including over the counter items) they need a letter from their doctor and it must be administered by the school nurse. An honors student at Haverford High School ran afoul of the policy.
It began innocently enough when a senior female student experiencing menstrual cramps asked a friend for a Tylenol or Advil. The classmate had none, but in an effort to be helpful, asked a third student, who supplied a generic form of Aleve. Aleve is a non-prescription strength form of Anaprox, sold over the counter as a fever reducer, and for temporary relief of minor aches and pains.
The young woman took the Aleve, but continued experiencing discomfort and went to the nurse. When questioned, the student told the truth and admitted obtaining Aleve from another student. An assistant principal was summoned to the scene.
A violation of this magnitude mandates an immediate suspension prior to meeting with the principal (maximum of 3 days, which was the length sentenced). Parents were outraged.
A call from irate parents expedited a hearing with Haverford Principal Nicholas Rotoli. Parents felt the punishment was inappropriate. A level 5 violation is applicable in cases where a student “possesses drug-related paraphernalia and/or possesses, uses or is under the influence of drugs, alcohol, or mood-altering substances,” according to school district policy.
The student�s mother argued, “There has to be a distinction between someone who takes a cough drop or a Midol, opposed to a kid who�s smoking reefer ..It�s like throwing a hand grenade on an anthill. The world isn�t black and white ..The school didn�t look at who this child is. They didn�t delve into history or character ..This is a kid who wants to be in school, loves to be in school, and gives back to the community.”
Rotoli relented under pressure and let the girl return after a day.
(Tip credit to Tori in Texas)
UPDATE
[Principal Nicholas] Rotoli said that he talked to the student and her mother last week, and that the student apologized. He said she had admitted she violated the policy and made a mistake.
“We can’t have the attitude of only enforcing our policies against non-honor-roll students,” Rotoli said. “We have to be as fair as possible.”
He said the student and classmate who secured the pill, whose violations could have earned a maximum three-day suspension, were suspended a half-day. They returned to school Monday, he said.
Rotoli said the infraction also would not be recorded in the students’ permanent records.
Rotoli is mistaken. Nobody is asking that schools exempt honor roll students from their rules. What we are asking is that schools take into consideration the student and their intent instead of and grouping violations into a class of offense and applying a predetermined penalty to all items in the class regardless of the particulars of the event.
In any case this particular instance has worked out well. The student did break the rules, she has apologized, she was suspended for a day. It’s too bad the case needed national attention before being equitably handled.
(Tip credit to Jed)
It seems that students should answer no questions (other than normal classroom questions, such as “what is two plus two?” or “what’s the capital of Colorado?”) If a nurse asks what medications you’ve taken, take the fifth.
Serious question, will a student’s refusal to answer such a question on stated fifth amendment grounds be considered justification for immediate suspension or expulsion? I know it shouldn’t, but I expect it will.
Yeah…cause we all know how dangerous Aleve is…
Schools are getting ridiculous. Punishing honestly, etc…
Truly frightening.
At least the principal DID exercise some common sense and let her back in after only a day’s suspension. I have a feeling that wouldn’t happen here in Texas.
What can I say? Except STUPID STUPID STUPID!
I’m glad I got that out of the way. I understand (probably better than most of you) why we want students to have all drugs administered in the office. Especially with younger kids — some people are allergic to various drugs — even over the counter types and the schools get sued if a kid gives another kid a drug. For awhile the district had teachers administer the drugs — the teachers’ unions put the kabash on that (rightly so) and now in Champaign, since we have no nurses in any schools, the secretaries administer drugs, with written instructions and permission. I don’t think this is a good solution……
For high school kids, I think they can take care of themselves with over the counter drugs. Actually, it seems to me that the principal did the right thing, but he did it a day too late. Again, a classic example of why zero telerance is wrong AND stupid!
When I taught I kept a bottle of aspirin in my desk. If a kid asked for an aspirin, I told him I couldn’t do that, opened the drawer, winked and walked away. If someone asked me if they could go take a pill, I said I couldn’t give them permission to do that, but if they wanted a drink of water, they could go get one.
Rather silly isn’t it? Adolescents are almost adults. We need to trust them sometimes.
barry
I’m curious as to whether that policy has exceptions for epi-pens and inhalers.
“School policy prohibits students “from carrying on their person any medication that is prescribed or purchased over the counter.” (This includes eye drops, Tylenol, nasal sprays.)”
And Principal Rotoli has such a high idea of the intelligence of high school students:
Rotoli emphasized the need for safety precautions in a drug-oriented society where people “believe you swallow a pill and it will take care of problems ..Kids will ingest anything. People want immediate relief” and don�t think about possible side effects and allergic reactions, he said.
…when I read this to my 8th grade daughter, she could only shake her head in disbelief. When I asked her what she was shaking her head about she replied, “Everybody knows you don’t tell teachers anything about medicine, sex or other teachers because you don’t know what they’ll do.”
I don’t believe most teachers are like that, but you gotta wonder what goes on in the mind of a good teacher when she hears something that is awry of code/policy:
“If I don’t say anything and administration finds out I’m in trouble…”
Or…
“If I say something because it violates the rules, people will think I’m stupid…”
A no-win situation for the teachers…and the students.
As stated before, ZT is designed to make sure the lowest level of intel can push the right button when faced with making a decision of any kind outside study plans…and keeps the liability away.
Inhalers aren’t excluded in any school district I have heard of. There was a semi-famous case about a year ago where a student got expelled for allowing his girlfriend, who was having an asthma attack, to use his Albuterol inhaler (when they had the exact same prescription.) Go a google search for Brandon Kivi.
Actually inhalers are excluded in most schools. They generally must be kept in the nurse’s office. California just passed a law that forces schools to allow students to keep their inhalers and self-administer them.
I believe in the inhaler case, the two were suspended pending an expulsion hearing, but they told their school to screw off and decided to homeschool.
More kids should tell their schools to screw off when faced with an expulsion hearing.
Actually my fear is public education will attempt to ‘help’ home-schoolers. The public will accept expulsion for trivial reasons, since they can be homeschooled. In New York they send people to your house to help you after a child is expelled. The uncertified aid can look for sign of neglect and abuse while a babbling nonsence to your child. My neighbor was billed 90$ for this. I know another child who was basically expelled for the last half of his senior year because his teacher thought he was unmotivated; he is now homeschooled by the state.
A friend of mind from India told me they still cane children in school there. She was glad to come to this country because the schools were so much nicer to children. We should understand national corruption can occur in the US as easily as any other country. Aside from whatever we do to protect our children from these monster; I hope our goal is a reasonable school system that provides a reasonable education for the public.
The nurse has to keep and administer inhalers? There’s a lawsuit waiting to happen the first time some kid has an asthma attack on the other side of the school.
I have a friend who taught at a school where they kept inhalers in the nurses office. She protested to the administrators, who failed to respond. Then she spoke to the child’s parent, explaining the situation and expresing her understanding that if the student needed an inhaler he needed it immediately. Their unofficial solution? The student brought in one inhaler to leave with the nurse and another that he kept in the classroom in the teacher’s desk (so he wouldn’t get in trouble for carrying meds). The teacher, the student, and two “trustee” students knew where it was in case the student needed it.
It’s a sad world when students and teachers need to resort to such ruses.
It’s also a sad world where a student is punished for taking medication that can be freely purchased by minors and was being used appropriately.
Just wondering… what happened to the girl who had the generic Aleve? Did she get suspended too? If so, is she back in school?
The Philadelphia Inquirer of 1/29 reports that she “apologized for violating the policy and was reinstated after less than a day away from classes.” The other student who supplied the pill was also suspended a half-day.
http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/living/education/10764986.htm
Don’t talk to the Nurse she’ll rat you out for OTC med’s. Actually, with Zero Tolerance students should probably never cooperate since intent has no impact on guilt.
What is really crazy the girl could come to the nurse for a condom, an abortion referal, etc. But take an OTC pill for her cramps? Common, she clearly isn’t smart enough to make THOSE kinds of life decisions. What happened to her “dealer” buddy?
I wonder what these brilliant rulemakers do when faced with an insulin-dependent diabetic? Most elementary school diabetics have learned to inject themselves, and certainly all high-school diabetics should have. Given the small number of schools with qualified nurses they would seem to have painted themselves into a corner.
I’d be extremely reluctant to allow my child’s insulin to be stored and it’s use controlled by medically unqualified teachers and administrators.
There have been documented cases of asthma deaths attributed to not getting the medicine soon enough.
My son has food-related asthma.
What would happen if he needs his rescue inhaler and the nurse is out to lunch?
Parents - You know your child and his needs better than anyone.
Go to the school and get their attention:
Train the nurse and a secretary how to use the medicine.
Graphically describe the consequences of their potential inaction, implying the resulting lawsuits.
“I wonder what these brilliant rulemakers do when faced with an insulin-dependent diabetic? Most elementary school diabetics have learned to inject themselves, and certainly all high-school diabetics should have. Given the small number of schools with qualified nurses they would seem to have painted themselves into a corner.” - Bill
That’s why when I was in elementary school, the kids who had asthma and diabetes were in the classroom with the diabetic and asthmatic teachers.
All the teachers have to take classes over the summer to be certified in CPR, Child First Aid, and Special Medications.