Doug C. v Hawaii Analysis - Wrightslaw
On June 13, 2013, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued an important decision about parental participation at IEP meetings. As a part of that ruling, the Court answered several issues and clarified the approach that must be used to determine the proper response when procedural rules appear to conflict with each other.
In Doug C. v. Hawaii, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit answered several critical questions pertaining to IEP meetings.
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Must the school hold an IEP meeting before the “annual review deadline?” If the meeting is not held, do the child’s services “lapse” until a new IEP is agreed on?
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If there are logistical scheduling conflicts for an IEP meeting, is priority given to the schedules of the school staff or the parent?
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Can the school cure the failure to include a parent at an IEP meeting by convening a second IEP meeting with the parent within 30 days?
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If a school district violates the first prong of providing FAPE (compliance with legal procedures), must the reviewing Court still determine if the district violated the second prong of FAPE (whether the IEP is “reasonably calculated to enable the child to receive educational benefits”)?
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If a Due Process Hearing Officer and a U. S. District Court Judge make a finding that the parent’s failure to participate in an IEP meeting did not deprive the child of FAPE, what is the standard of review for a U. S. Court of Appeals? Does it require a “de novo” review of the legal conclusions or a “review of the district court’s findings of fact for clear error?”
Tuesday, July 2, 2013
Monday, July 1, 2013
States fight bullying with new legislation - Houston Top News | Examiner.com
States fight bullying with new legislation - Houston Top News | Examiner.com
On Friday, Kansas Governor Sam Brownback signed an anti-bullying bill into law, reports Fox News. The new legislation is being named after Shawnee student Loren Wendelburg. In 2008, Wendelburg – who suffers from autism – was a 5th grader who was verbally and physically abused by a teacher at Rising Star Elementary School.
The new law strengthens Kansas’ anti-bullying statue by protecting students from being bullied by school personnel.
Earlier this year, Wendelburg testified before the Kansas state legislature saying, “I had nightmares because I worried about going back to school and the teacher harming me.” According to his parents, the teacher continued to work at the elementary school without any disciplinary action by administrators.
Wendelburg, now 15 years old, was on hand in Topeka as Gov. Brownback signed the anti-bullying bill into law.
Prevention Tools
Parents who are concerned about their kid’s safety online should urge social sites to use live moderators. Los Angeles-based WebPurify offers professional content moderation services, including video and image filtering tools that block out vulgarity on the web.
In March, a pornographic video involving an infant was posted on Facebook. The content was shared tens of thousands of times and “liked” by 4,000 users.
“It’s tragic enough that videos like this exist, but exposing users to traumatic content and destroying a company’s brand is completely avoidable,” said Joshua Buxbaum, a co-founder of WebPurify. “There is no way around this; real live human beings, not software, need to be reviewing every video before it goes live.”
“Not having the proper safeguards in place . . . is extremely irresponsible. [Our] team . . . moderates content . . . [and] implemented systems to immediately alert our clients when that content contains potentially illegal or dangerous material” said Jonathan Freger, who is also one of the company’s co-founders.
Oklahoma Law
On Friday, Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin signed the School Safety and Bullying Prevention Act into law. The anti-bullying bill was introduced by legislators after a series of bullying incidents at schools throughout the state that were reported by local media.
The new legislation gives schools a roadmap for how to handle, report, investigate and punish bullying related incidents.
On Friday, Kansas Governor Sam Brownback signed an anti-bullying bill into law, reports Fox News. The new legislation is being named after Shawnee student Loren Wendelburg. In 2008, Wendelburg – who suffers from autism – was a 5th grader who was verbally and physically abused by a teacher at Rising Star Elementary School.
The new law strengthens Kansas’ anti-bullying statue by protecting students from being bullied by school personnel.
Earlier this year, Wendelburg testified before the Kansas state legislature saying, “I had nightmares because I worried about going back to school and the teacher harming me.” According to his parents, the teacher continued to work at the elementary school without any disciplinary action by administrators.
Wendelburg, now 15 years old, was on hand in Topeka as Gov. Brownback signed the anti-bullying bill into law.
Prevention Tools
Parents who are concerned about their kid’s safety online should urge social sites to use live moderators. Los Angeles-based WebPurify offers professional content moderation services, including video and image filtering tools that block out vulgarity on the web.
In March, a pornographic video involving an infant was posted on Facebook. The content was shared tens of thousands of times and “liked” by 4,000 users.
“It’s tragic enough that videos like this exist, but exposing users to traumatic content and destroying a company’s brand is completely avoidable,” said Joshua Buxbaum, a co-founder of WebPurify. “There is no way around this; real live human beings, not software, need to be reviewing every video before it goes live.”
“Not having the proper safeguards in place . . . is extremely irresponsible. [Our] team . . . moderates content . . . [and] implemented systems to immediately alert our clients when that content contains potentially illegal or dangerous material” said Jonathan Freger, who is also one of the company’s co-founders.
Oklahoma Law
On Friday, Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin signed the School Safety and Bullying Prevention Act into law. The anti-bullying bill was introduced by legislators after a series of bullying incidents at schools throughout the state that were reported by local media.
The new legislation gives schools a roadmap for how to handle, report, investigate and punish bullying related incidents.
Metro Parents Say Teacher Bullied Their Son | fox4kc.com
Metro Parents Say Teacher Bullied Their Son | fox4kc.com
SHAWNEE, Kan. — A Kansas couple says that their son, who has special needs, was bullied in the classroom by his teacher. Now they are sharing their son’s experience in hopes of changing the state’s anti-bullying law.
Lisa and Blake Wendelburg say it took several years for their son, Loren, to get over the mental and emotional scars they say he suffered after being bullied by his elementary school teacher. They say that Loren, then 10 years old, was bullied both physically and verbally on several different occasions by his fifth grade teacher at Rising Star Elementary School in Lenexa.
“She singled him out daily for months,” said Lisa Wendelburg. “She made fun of him when he answered questions inappropriately or incorrectly. She pulled the desk out from under him.”
“She was just plain mean,” said Loren Wendelburg, now in ninth grade. “I felt miserable. I felt depressed. I didn’t want to go to school.”
The family removed their son from the school, and are now home-schooling him. Lisa Wendelburg says that the Kansas Department of Social Services determined that her son was the victim of bullying. But she says that while state law protects teachers and staff from being bullied by students, that protection doesn’t go the other way to protect students from bullying teachers.
“We want to make it so teachers cannot do this again, that there’s something in the law that protects children,” said Lisa Wendelburg.
Studies show that bullying teachers can act by using degrading words and physical abuse, and it may go unreported for fear of retribution. Researchers also say that teachers who bully students can often also bully other teachers or staff.
State officials would not discuss Loren Wendelburg’s case, but say that local school districts are responsible for adopting and enforcing their own anti-bullying policies. A spokesperson for the Shawnee Mission School District says that they do not tolerate bullying, and take all reported incidents very seriously.
Meanwhile, the Wendelburg’s – who say that they are taking their concerns about the anti-bullying law to the Kansas legislature – say that their son is doing better now both emotionally and academically.
“I do feel better now,” said Loren Wendelburg. “I do.”
SHAWNEE, Kan. — A Kansas couple says that their son, who has special needs, was bullied in the classroom by his teacher. Now they are sharing their son’s experience in hopes of changing the state’s anti-bullying law.
Lisa and Blake Wendelburg say it took several years for their son, Loren, to get over the mental and emotional scars they say he suffered after being bullied by his elementary school teacher. They say that Loren, then 10 years old, was bullied both physically and verbally on several different occasions by his fifth grade teacher at Rising Star Elementary School in Lenexa.
“She singled him out daily for months,” said Lisa Wendelburg. “She made fun of him when he answered questions inappropriately or incorrectly. She pulled the desk out from under him.”
“She was just plain mean,” said Loren Wendelburg, now in ninth grade. “I felt miserable. I felt depressed. I didn’t want to go to school.”
The family removed their son from the school, and are now home-schooling him. Lisa Wendelburg says that the Kansas Department of Social Services determined that her son was the victim of bullying. But she says that while state law protects teachers and staff from being bullied by students, that protection doesn’t go the other way to protect students from bullying teachers.
“We want to make it so teachers cannot do this again, that there’s something in the law that protects children,” said Lisa Wendelburg.
Studies show that bullying teachers can act by using degrading words and physical abuse, and it may go unreported for fear of retribution. Researchers also say that teachers who bully students can often also bully other teachers or staff.
State officials would not discuss Loren Wendelburg’s case, but say that local school districts are responsible for adopting and enforcing their own anti-bullying policies. A spokesperson for the Shawnee Mission School District says that they do not tolerate bullying, and take all reported incidents very seriously.
Meanwhile, the Wendelburg’s – who say that they are taking their concerns about the anti-bullying law to the Kansas legislature – say that their son is doing better now both emotionally and academically.
“I do feel better now,” said Loren Wendelburg. “I do.”
Sunday, June 30, 2013
Why special needs families stay in fight mode. | Support for Special Needs
Why special needs families stay in fight mode. | Support for Special Needs
In a recent story, a private club with a swimming pool will not allow a child with autism to use a floatation vest causing, obviously, the family not to join the club. Officials at the club say they don’t allow anyone to use floatation devices of any kind, and “if an exception was made for one, an exception would have to be made for all, and that was not possible.” Why is it hard for the pool board to say yes to this family and no to others who many complain?
Every. Single. Day. There is a reminder of how families with a child (or more) with differences has to fight and sometimes for the simplest of things, like the right to attend events and the right to live in the community and productive.
During the time that my kids were at their local public school they were really sick. My son was on hemodialysis (at the hospital three days a week) and they both had kidney transplants at age eight. They were out for recoveries from multiple surgeries, procedures and illnesses connected to their health condition. Many times I had to run in and get the kids right before the end of the day. Technically I should have picked them up 45 minutes before dismissal. But because they also wanted the kids to be able to be in school as much as possible given their delays (and I wanted to be at work as much as possible), they let me pick them up right before dismissal, sometimes by just a few minutes. Seeing me approach the door, the staff in the front office often called for the kids before I opened the office door. They made an exception. Because it was best for the kids and for the family. I’m nothing special, they would have done it for any family in our situation.
Exceptions sometimes need to be made. We’re a world of different people and different situations and some people need exceptions.
We need extra time to arrive and leave and sometimes we need extra space. We need patience and understanding by people in front of us, behind us, next to us. We need a little bit of a break with things that make life easier like a better parking space, a fast lane at the E.R., a frequent flyer program at our pharmacy. We sometimes enjoy the perks of an attraction open just for us (free!) to help with the crowds making it the only way we could/would attend. We need people to help clean up the aisle in the store and not give us “the look” when our day falls apart (sometimes a lot of days in a row). We need the exception of floaties and harnesses without judgement, we need to help our kids by keeping them in strollers past the “acceptable” age. We appreciate the financial breaks we get and it makes it possible for us to do other things like donate to causes or to buy equipment our kids need to function at school and home. We need people to accept our kids and work with us to help build friendships and social skills.
We need exceptions all the time.
I think people wonder why special needs parents stay in fighting mode. It’s because if we let our guard down even for a day, we miss something. Sometimes it’s something big. Or something as simple as our family getting to swim together in a community pool with our son safer by use of a floating vest. Our “fighting” isn’t fighting as much as it is just doing what we do. Or doing what we have to do.
To me, this kind of “fighting” doesn’t even feel like fighting at all. It feels normal.
In a recent story, a private club with a swimming pool will not allow a child with autism to use a floatation vest causing, obviously, the family not to join the club. Officials at the club say they don’t allow anyone to use floatation devices of any kind, and “if an exception was made for one, an exception would have to be made for all, and that was not possible.” Why is it hard for the pool board to say yes to this family and no to others who many complain?
Every. Single. Day. There is a reminder of how families with a child (or more) with differences has to fight and sometimes for the simplest of things, like the right to attend events and the right to live in the community and productive.
During the time that my kids were at their local public school they were really sick. My son was on hemodialysis (at the hospital three days a week) and they both had kidney transplants at age eight. They were out for recoveries from multiple surgeries, procedures and illnesses connected to their health condition. Many times I had to run in and get the kids right before the end of the day. Technically I should have picked them up 45 minutes before dismissal. But because they also wanted the kids to be able to be in school as much as possible given their delays (and I wanted to be at work as much as possible), they let me pick them up right before dismissal, sometimes by just a few minutes. Seeing me approach the door, the staff in the front office often called for the kids before I opened the office door. They made an exception. Because it was best for the kids and for the family. I’m nothing special, they would have done it for any family in our situation.
Exceptions sometimes need to be made. We’re a world of different people and different situations and some people need exceptions.
We need extra time to arrive and leave and sometimes we need extra space. We need patience and understanding by people in front of us, behind us, next to us. We need a little bit of a break with things that make life easier like a better parking space, a fast lane at the E.R., a frequent flyer program at our pharmacy. We sometimes enjoy the perks of an attraction open just for us (free!) to help with the crowds making it the only way we could/would attend. We need people to help clean up the aisle in the store and not give us “the look” when our day falls apart (sometimes a lot of days in a row). We need the exception of floaties and harnesses without judgement, we need to help our kids by keeping them in strollers past the “acceptable” age. We appreciate the financial breaks we get and it makes it possible for us to do other things like donate to causes or to buy equipment our kids need to function at school and home. We need people to accept our kids and work with us to help build friendships and social skills.
We need exceptions all the time.
I think people wonder why special needs parents stay in fighting mode. It’s because if we let our guard down even for a day, we miss something. Sometimes it’s something big. Or something as simple as our family getting to swim together in a community pool with our son safer by use of a floating vest. Our “fighting” isn’t fighting as much as it is just doing what we do. Or doing what we have to do.
To me, this kind of “fighting” doesn’t even feel like fighting at all. It feels normal.
Friday, June 28, 2013
Fox C-6 Watchdogs: Stark Similarities Between Fox C-6 and Lee's Summit R-7 School Districts!
Fox C-6 Watchdogs: Stark Similarities Between Fox C-6 and Lee's Summit R-7 School Districts!
Stark Similarities Between Fox C-6 and Lee's Summit R-7 School Districts!
Stark Similarities Between Fox C-6 and Lee's Summit R-7 School Districts!
I received an email today from a parent in Lee's Summit, Missouri. They found my blog and wanted to discuss with me the similarities between their school district and Fox C-6. Their email said that they already sent information from my blog to the Assistant Attorney General to provide comparison information.
After I read their list of similarities, I had to laugh because of how similar the problems are in Lee's Summit R-7 compared to Fox C-6. You can see that there are quite a few.
They stated in their email that there are many more.
First, you have to understand that many of the school districts in our state are represented by only a few law firms. Many of the attorneys in these firms have worked with or for the same firms before splitting or starting their own firms. Therefore, the same strategies and tactics are employed by nearly all of the districts in the state on legal issues. Plus, there are quite a few books out there as well on dealing with the media as a school district superintendent with useful tips on what and what not to do. It's all about controlling the image and perception of your school district. It's the superintendent's job to make their district look good.
Not Just A Statewide Problem
Here is the list of similarities sent to me by a parent in the Lee's Summit R-7 school district.
Similarities Between Fox C-6 and Lee's Summit R-7:
- OCR Resolution Agreement for Not Following Civil Rights Laws
- Cease and Desist Orders Against People Who Question District Actions
- Board Meetings Not Videotaped and Available For Broadcast
- Violations of Board Policies, Federal, State and Local Laws
- Questionable Use of Taxpayers' Funds
- Educator Certification Issues
- Failure By Board To Respond To Patrons' Concerns
- Retaliation Against Anyone Who Questions The Board and Their Actions
- Superintendent Does Not Want Community To Know About Resolution Agreement With OCR.
- Taxpayer Dollars Used To Pay Attorneys to Fight Against Lawsuits When If They Followed The Laws, The Money Could Be Spent On The Education Of District Students
- DESE Passes The Buck Back To Parents To Complain To Board and Nothing Gets Corrected On Behalf of Students
- Community Only Reads All Of The District Generated Positive Public Relations Articles
- District Boasts of Awards They Have Received (Questionable Data To Back Up These Awards. Would An Award Even Be Justified If The Recipient Stated Up Front That They Are Being Monitored By the Department of Education Office For Civil Rights For Non-Compliance Of Civil Rights Laws?)
After I read their list of similarities, I had to laugh because of how similar the problems are in Lee's Summit R-7 compared to Fox C-6. You can see that there are quite a few.
They stated in their email that there are many more.
First, you have to understand that many of the school districts in our state are represented by only a few law firms. Many of the attorneys in these firms have worked with or for the same firms before splitting or starting their own firms. Therefore, the same strategies and tactics are employed by nearly all of the districts in the state on legal issues. Plus, there are quite a few books out there as well on dealing with the media as a school district superintendent with useful tips on what and what not to do. It's all about controlling the image and perception of your school district. It's the superintendent's job to make their district look good.
For several years now I have known about issues in other school districts in our state as I researched the issues going on in the Fox district. But, seeing a list from another parent on the other side of the state proves that we have some serious problems with MO DESE and with the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights (ED OCR) in Kansas City, Missouri.
U.S. Department of Justice Gets Involved
In speaking recently with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), I learned that the DOJ now has the ability to initiate their own independent investigations when ED OCR refuses to do so. Of course it helped that the USDA OCR Office asked the DOJ for assistance in getting Fox C-6 to comply with the USDA's August 2011 Final Agency Decision. The August 2011 USDA Final Agency Decision found both the Fox C-6 School District and MO DESE non-compliant with Section 504 and the ADA. So, in their efforts to bring the district into compliance if MO DESE doesn't do their job, the DOJ has been asking for documentation for their their case against the school district. We are quite happy to supply them with the information we have. I also asked the DOJ about handling retaliation since that is directly written into the laws and they do cover that as well.
For example, there has been a lot of online libelous and defamatory attacks made against citizens who voice their concerns about our school district in online forums. And, what I find interesting about some of the comments made by these anonymous posters is that they seem to have access to information that only our top administrators would know about like when cease and desist letters were sent out and how someone made a reference about something happening before they were even sent. Could it be a coincidence that these "anonymous" people have access to this information or are they just school supporters guessing? But it's quite obvious that a few people in our school district don't like some of the questions posed at school board meetings by a few citizens in our community.
It's kind of humorous that the Character Education Trait of the month for June at Fox is Perseverance. That's the word that will hopefully be remembered by our school administrators and school board members as to how change is invoked in our community. I have been thanked by many teachers and staff for my efforts on calling out our school district's administration and school board. There are a few others in our community that are not afraid to speak out. They should be thanked as well. Hopefully in the end all of this effort will bring about a positive change within our school district.
For example, there has been a lot of online libelous and defamatory attacks made against citizens who voice their concerns about our school district in online forums. And, what I find interesting about some of the comments made by these anonymous posters is that they seem to have access to information that only our top administrators would know about like when cease and desist letters were sent out and how someone made a reference about something happening before they were even sent. Could it be a coincidence that these "anonymous" people have access to this information or are they just school supporters guessing? But it's quite obvious that a few people in our school district don't like some of the questions posed at school board meetings by a few citizens in our community.
It's kind of humorous that the Character Education Trait of the month for June at Fox is Perseverance. That's the word that will hopefully be remembered by our school administrators and school board members as to how change is invoked in our community. I have been thanked by many teachers and staff for my efforts on calling out our school district's administration and school board. There are a few others in our community that are not afraid to speak out. They should be thanked as well. Hopefully in the end all of this effort will bring about a positive change within our school district.
It appears that Lee's Summit R-7 has a Resolution Agreement with ED OCR similar to Fox. However, Fox is also still undergoing a District Wide Compliance Review that Lee's Summit has not had yet. Fox's District Wide Compliance Review was initiated in March 2010 by ED OCR and it is still open as well according to a recent Freedom of Information Act request stating that ED OCR couldn't provide any information because the investigation was still ongoing.
I am hoping that providing this information and more to the U.S Department of Justice regarding problems with school districts in our state will lead to changes at MO DESE and ED OCR. ED OCR has allowed Fox C-6 to get by with doing practically nothing towards fulfilling the Resolution Agreement signed by the district in May 2009. You must be wondering why our school board hasn't done something to make sure Fox complies with Federal laws.
USDA Works Towards Enforcement
USDA OCR has been aware of problems in our state since 2008. In fact, in 2008 the USDA specifically came to Missouri to retrain districts after the USDA watched a video presented by attorneys at their annual school law seminar. Fox C-6 did not attend the training. The training was presented to the Food Nutrition Directors in our state. Maybe that's why our former Food Nutrition Director retired. Our district has a new Food Nutrition Services Director who is the daughter in law of one of our school board members. Our new Food Nutrition Director has been given two years to get her degree and certification to do her job since she only had a high school diploma when she was hired into the position with a salary of $65,000. I'm still wondering why Fox refused to meet with the USDA in March 2013 when the USDA came to do a Compliance Review of our district. But, then that was after the August 2012 meetings with the USDA when the district refused to comply with the USDA's Final Agency Decision.
Why would the USDA be more intent on compliance enforcement than ED OCR? I believe it could have something to do with the fact that the USDA's Regional Office is located in Colorado. In contrast, ED OCR's Regional Office is located in Kansas City, Missouri. The Director of the Kansas City ED OCR Office is Angela Bennet. Mrs. Bennet was an Assistant Attorney General for the state of Missouri. William (Bill) Dittmeier is the Chief Attorney for the KC ED OCR Office. Mr. Dittmeier was an attorney that represented the Kansas City School District for years before working at the Kansas City ED OCR Office.
Failings of the Kansas City ED OCR Office
Our experience with the Kansas City ED OCR Office has been quite similar to many others in Missouri, Kansas and Oklahoma. The KC ED OCR office has many investigations that have been open since 2009. Making Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests to the KC ED OCR Office are supposed to be handled within 20 days. Some requests have required multiple requests and have taken more than 6 months to get a response from this office. A quick search for Bill Dittmeier and Angela Bennet returned a link to the following document from the KC ED OCR office sent to a parent in Oklahoma. It's just another example of what has been happening in this ED OCR Office.
We contacted and voiced our concerns with Randolph Wills the U.S. Department of Education Enforcement Director regarding the Kansas City ED OCR Office a couple of years ago. Mr. Wills is the regional Director that oversees the Kansas City ED OCR Office. Mr. Wills responded a couple of years ago when I first contacted him. He informed me that he would look into our concerns and get back with us. Mr. Wills never got back with me and has not returned phone calls or emails left or sent to him since then. Not responding to concerns seems to be the same tactic taken by many school districts in our state take as well. U.S. Senator Roy Blunt's office even attempted to contact the Kansas City ED OCR Office and experienced similar problems. So this is not an isolated incident.
Since the USDA OCR office is not located in Missouri, there seems to be more enforcement efforts as opposed to ED OCR. ED OCR has allowed cases to remain open for years. Once they have a case go into monitoring ED OCR occasionally sends out monitoring letters to let the district know they still have or haven't complied with their Resolution Agreement. Sometimes it may be more than a year between monitoring letter updates.
The question we have sent KC ED OCR several times is, how many years does ED OCR allow a district to fail in fulfilling a Resolution Agreement before they move to enforcement or opening an investigation?
KC ED OCR responds with a standard letter stating that they will let you know when they plan to send out their next monitoring letter. For example, ED OCR informed us last year that they would be sending out a monitoring letter to Fox C-6 in August 2012. When that letter wasn't sent, they informed us it would be sent in November 2012. Then we were informed it would be sent in January 2013. Then we were told it would be March or April of 2013. ED OCR finally sent the monitoring letter on April 25, 2013. This was after the original April date that we were given. Do you see a pattern or problem here with this office?
Not Just A Statewide Problem
It's very disappointing to know that there are other school districts in our state that are doing the same thing as Fox C-6. It is also very disappointing to know that there are problems in other states that are covered by the Kansas City ED OCR Office as well. When asking ED OCR several times to engage the U.S. Department of Justice since it is documented in their Case Processing Manual that they will do so when a school district does not comply, ED OCR informed us that they weren't going to do so. ED OCR said the district had not indicated that they weren't going to comply. One would think that after 4 years of not complying with the Resolution Agreement and being given numerous updated deadlines, that ED OCR would recognize the fact that the Fox C-6 has no intentions of complying.
Now that the DOJ has informed us that regulations have been updated to allow them to initiate their own investigation independent of ED OCR, perhaps we will see improvements in our state and in the Kansas City ED OCR Office.
Kan. Gov. to sign anti-bullying bill named for KC student | fox4kc.com
Kan. Gov. to sign anti-bullying bill named for KC student | fox4kc.com
If only we could find legislators in Missouri that would be willing to take this stand. Bullying by school district personnel is far more damaging than bullying by peers.
TOPEKA, Kan. — Kansas Governor Sam Brownback will sign an anti-bull...ying bill into law Friday morning. The bill, named for Shawnee student Loren Wendelburg, strengthens the anti-bullying statue by protecting students from being bullied by school personnel.
Wendelburg’s parents said five years ago when their son, who is autistic, was a 5th grader at Rising Star Elementary School, he was verbally and physically abused by a teacher.
Wendelburg testified before the house education committee in February, saying, “I had nightmares because I worried about going back to school and the teacher harming me.” He also said he was afraid to say anything because he thought it was so unbelievable for a teacher to treat a student so poorly.
Wendelburg’s parents said the teacher continued teaching at the school without consequences, so they pulled him out and home schooled him.
Wendelburg, now 15 years old, will be on hand in Topeka with the governor as he signs the bill. His parents say they hope it will prevent any further students from being bullied by school personnel.
TOPEKA, Kan. — Kansas Governor Sam Brownback will sign an anti-bull...ying bill into law Friday morning. The bill, named for Shawnee student Loren Wendelburg, strengthens the anti-bullying statue by protecting students from being bullied by school personnel.
Wendelburg’s parents said five years ago when their son, who is autistic, was a 5th grader at Rising Star Elementary School, he was verbally and physically abused by a teacher.
Wendelburg testified before the house education committee in February, saying, “I had nightmares because I worried about going back to school and the teacher harming me.” He also said he was afraid to say anything because he thought it was so unbelievable for a teacher to treat a student so poorly.
Wendelburg’s parents said the teacher continued teaching at the school without consequences, so they pulled him out and home schooled him.
Wendelburg, now 15 years old, will be on hand in Topeka with the governor as he signs the bill. His parents say they hope it will prevent any further students from being bullied by school personnel.
Kansas family seeks law against teachers who bully kids | Local News - KMBC Home
Kansas family seeks law against teachers who bully kids | Local News - KMBC Home
I wish that my Representative would do something like this. It will never happen.
Read more: http://www.kmbc.com/news/kansas-city/Kansas-family-seeks-law-against-teachers-who-bully-kids/-/11664182/18989094/-/b9bwhv/-/index.html#ixzz2XWSGp6xZ
I wish that my Representative would do something like this. It will never happen.
A Johnson County family is pushing for a new Kansas law that would make it illegal for a teacher to bully a student.
Loren Wendelburg, 14, said that when he was 10 years old and a fifth-grade student at Rising Star Elementary School, he had a teacher who would single him out in the cruelest way.
"She grabbed me by the wrist, took me in the hall and yelled and screamed that I would never amount to anything," he said. He said he remembered other incidents at the school that year.
His mother, Lisa Wendelburg, said she found out about the problem that had been going on for months from another parent.
"We knew something was wrong because he complained about not wanting to go to school," she said.
She said until the incidents started, her son liked going to school. Loren's grades never suffered, but he still has strong feelings about the teacher.
"I would like if she would get fired," he said. "Because what she did was awful and wrong."
A child abuse investigation ruled that the claim was unsubstantiated, but the report said some of the teacher's actions "inflicted emotional injury."
Loren is now homeschooled and shows talent as an artist and puppeteer. His family is pushing for Kansas to change its school bullying law.
The family is supporting a bill in the House Education Committee that would make it illegal for a teacher to bully students.
Read more: http://www.kmbc.com/news/kansas-city/Kansas-family-seeks-law-against-teachers-who-bully-kids/-/11664182/18989094/-/b9bwhv/-/index.html#ixzz2XWSGp6xZ
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