Okay guys, I have a question that maybe you can answer. I'm posting for a friend. No names so don't ask me. She has a son at Cleveland Middle school. Recently out w/ the flu. Teacher at the school sent him home w/ 102 fever. Mother did not take him to the doc b/c they KNEW it was the flu b/c sister was sick recently w/ same thing. He missed 5 days total. She just got a letter from the county stating she has to produce a note from the doc no matter what. She ask the regular doc but since he didn't see him while sick, it can not legally be written. McLamb also told her doesn't matter. She is waiting what the consequences will be. Saturday academy is what they may do to him. I'm sorry but this is ridiculous & in my mind, punishing the child for being sick! What do you think & what in the world is right about this or legal for that matter??? They were told to stay home if they were sick. I understand the school loses federal money based on absentism. However, ALL schools are experiencing large #'s outdue to the pandemic. Anyone else in this situation?? I'm trying to figure this out b/c my guess is this could happen to anyone on here. Let me know if you all know any legal ways out of this so that she can rest at ease. It really has her worried & understandably so. Thanks in advance. Stephanie--mom to 7
And people wonder why parents send their children to school sick... perhaps it's to avoid issues like this.
We have had to take our kid to the doc ($30 co pay) when we KNEW what was wrong JUST to have the note..... maybe they should have to pay our copay for us when we have no other reason to go except that they require it.
I most certainly believe that with the flu situation as it is, especially if the child is sent home from school sick, they should be excused without a doctor’s note! You are right! It is punishing the child for having the flu. How sad. This is why many children are sent to school sick, as was mentioned earlier! I would fight any repercussions from this. Appeal, and appeal again! I bet in the end it works out in your friends favor, but they may need to fight very hard for it. Maybe if they do, it will help future students who become ill. Good Luck
For most everything, there is an exception to policy. I would suggest writing a formal explanation to the principal stating the facts, and request an exception to the absence policy. If she refuses to grant this, I'd make an appt ASAP with Central Office with someone with enough horsepower and common sense to override her decision. Start nice, be tactful, and giver her the opportunity to make a positive step. IF that doesn't work, make a beeline to central office.
Kids nowadays are treated as if they are on loan to their parents rather than the parents knowing what is best. It was the boy's SCHOOL teacher that verified the fever and called for him to be picked up. That is proof he was sick. Its up to the parent to decide if the child is sick enough to go to the doctor (not the school system) and given the vast number of flu, strep and bad colds going around, the schools should be a bit more lenient. Now obviously if he was grown and this was employment rather than school, he could be in jeopardy of losing his job, but that is apples to oranges in this discussion.
She spoke w/ the person on the county card (some blue card) that was sent to her. Lady on there said speak to principal. She did. Nothing can be done as it came from the county she is told. Sad part about all this is this friend of mine works int eh school system! It says the highest grade her son will be allowed to get is a 69. How is this right?! She asked me to write on here. She does plan on going higher up but it's looking more like a mute point. They(school) is trying to figure out what to do next. Keep ideas coming. Told her I would talk to a bunch of smart people on here & have answers for her--LOL. I really wish the schools would wake up. Thanks for ideas. Just feel bad for her & more than that, her son.
Don't forget the local media. If your friend can get an interview with a media person, good. Extra points of they do it in front of the school. And, Jester's point, is one to take. If we allow the schools to dictate to us, rather than their listening to us, that's our fault. Don't be skittish about crying foul LOUDLY, and communicate with the Board of Education folks. They are elected to represent us.
Go to the school website and click on school board. Email Donna White (school board member). She is awesome. Explain the situation and ask her for help. She is always good about replying to emails.
When my son got sick with all the flu symptoms, the Dr.'s office told us on the phone what to do and not to bring him in unless it lasted longer than 4 days, fever went over 104, or he had trouble breathing...they said so many kids were sick with different things he could catch something else and make him even worse if we brought him in. His school accepted a parental note about his illness...
I kept two of mine home for an entire week earlier this month; I wrote a note the following Monday, when I sent them back to school, advising I had kept them both home with the flu and my 6 year old had actually been diagnosed with H1N1 but had completed a treatment of Tamiflu and was symptom free. Granted mine are in elementary, not middle school, but are the rules different and if so, why? I didn't send any proof from the doctors office and wasn't asked to. My oldest is in 3rd and does get graded with the A-F grading system, just like middle school, albeit my 1st grader doesn't and he's the one who had the H1N1. But still, something doesn't seem quite right. Didn't we all receive a missive from Dr. Croom requesting we keep our children home if they had flu-like symptoms to help control the spread of these type of germs? I know I still have it stuck on my bulletin board here at the house. Doesn't seem right to change or add to those guidelines after the fact. JMO. I hope it all works out for your friend!!!
The four day per quarter absence rule has always been the rule, unless a doctor's note is on file. It is not a change in policy, as one suggested here. It is explained in the material sent home during the first week of school and it is posted on the county website and most school websites as a link. Is it a just policy in a time of pandemic H1N1? No, in my opinion it is not, but that does not change the policy. The principal has the authority to waive any absences over 4 with proper documentation, and will in most cases. My son attends CHS and missed one day too many due to H1N1 this quarter. He had a note from the doctor as well as orthodontic and dental appointment notes for other days and STILL had to make up his missed time. Did he do it?? Yes, he arranged it with each and every teacher and made it up every morning until it was done. Did I oppose it? No, it did not kill him to accept the policy as written, even though it was not his fault he got sick. It sounds as if this student has an alternative to receiving a 69 in every class if he attends the Saturday academy, or whatever they call it. No one has died as a result of attending, to my knowledge. We are still waiting to hear what my middle schooler will have to do. He also had two doctor's notes on file for the week he missed with H1N1. I contacted the teacher to find out what to do to get it waived...not the other way around, as it is our responsibility. I am still waiting to hear what the verdict is as they are swamped with so many kids out. Personally, I feel that Dr. Croom should have excused every student with proper documentation if they went over the limit. If there was no such documentation, then it is a tough call. Good luck to your friend. I would be interested to know how it turns out.
Thank you for posting this. I was a click away from doing this for a situation we've had at a school. It's good to know that Donna is good about these things. We ended up getting what we asked for - a new classroom for our son.* You simply do not get what you do not ask for in this world. If you don't get the answer you want from the principal, go up. The higher you go, the more noise you make. I have a problem with authority, so that's just how I work. *Results not typical. Void where prohibited.
I don't think there is anything wrong with emailing school officials, but given the seriousness of the situation, I believe I'd call for a face-to-face meeting. I'd also suggested "mama and daddy" go and calmly and collectively dispute the decision of the county school board. If either mama or daddy can't go, get a grandparent or another relative to attend, especially one that can attest to how sick the child was during the absence.
I remember a few years ago when I was living in Bladen County. My daughter was being suspended for 3 days because she wore an inappropriate T-Shirt to a teacher's class. It had pink flamingos on it (long story). I went to the Principal to talk with him and he told me before we started that his hands were tied and he couldn't do anything about it because it was a "county policy". I asked him for the Supt.'s direct number and he asked why. I told him him it was obvious he didn't run S*** at the school and was nothing more than a figurehead, that I needed to speak with someone with common sense, not a sock puppet. Amazingly, he was able to override the county policy in about 2 minutes time.
Exactly. This is your child - not theirs. They are sick, they stay home. How can the school dictate how may days a child is to be sick? Some parents can't afford a copay just to get a note when they already know their child is sick and what they are sick with. Esp when the doc is going to nod and say "Yup, it's the flu. Not a darn thing we can do for them. Just keep doing what you're doing". I would speak with the principal, then the BOE, and if that did not work I would tell them all to kiss my a__ and I would go to the media.
Sorry to post this again (and again, lol!)...I am trying to find the thread where the bulk of conversation is going on with this topic so now I am spamming but Dangerboy said this is the right thread finally...:lol: WHY does Johnston County have this 4 day rule, as opposed to what other counties must have? What DO other counties have--is it a certain number of days per semester or per year? I think I heard 16 or 17 days a year for one place, with no restrictions on # of days per 9 weeks. That seems more reasonable because sometimes, like with the case of this flu strain, or even with the really young kids, it would be easy and legitimate to miss more than 4 days in a 9 wk period. Is this something that voters could change somehow? Maybe our kids would stay healthier if this type of pressure wasn't there, to send them to school sick to avoid having to fight with the system. Does anyone know the history of the rule?
If the school does not excuse the absence, he will not be able to make up the work. He will receive a ZERO for all work that week. I thought schools were going to be more lenient with the flu going around.... poor fella
Well, there's always civil disobedience. Consider there are 13 years of students in our schools. At any end of year, EOGs are given. Seniors graduate, and all subordinate grades move up a year. Kindergartners start. 13 years of students in class. Note that EOG's are used to measure how good the schools are. If students sit on their hands and refuse to take them, no way the school board could allow an entire years worth of students to be retained. Johnston County doesn't have the capacity for 14 years worth of students in a 13 year capacity school system. Students will not be retained. And, maybe...just maybe, the school board will begin to realize that they are there to represent our voices in making school work. And that policies designed to address one issue, i.e. truancy must consider mitigating and extenuating circumstances like a flu pandemic. As it is now, that policy is contrary to common sense decisions by parents.
