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November 20, 2004

Silly Season -- school nonsense

Good lord, when Mrs. Grundy is not busy rustling through the band sheet music to make sure no illegal Christmas songs are polluting the school building, she's out making sure no actual playing takes place on the playground.

An 11-year-old girl in West Covina, Calif., was suspended from her school from doing "dangerous" cartwheels and hand stands during lunch time, according to a Local 6 News report.

Deirdre Faegre, who is a Student of the Month at San Jose-Edison Academy in West Covina was dismissed from the school this week after school authorities warned her for the last time to stop doing gymnastic stunts during lunchtime.

Administrators at the school said they were concerned about safety of their students.

They said gymnastics on the playground creates an unsafe situation.


"I thought they were absolutely weird, because I see other kids playing baseball and soccer and I think that's more dangerous than gymnastics," Faegre said.

Deirdre's parents are giving the school's actions a failing grade. The family says they'll continue to stand by their daughter.

"I don't think they care about the children at all," father Leland Faegre said. "What sort of a parent or administrator would ever enforce a rule that would proscribe a child from using her arms and her legs? We have got to fix this mess because we have to let children be children."

Her parents said they will home school Deirdre until they find a more "reasonable" school.

Calls to school administrators went unanswered.

Posted by Darleen at November 20, 2004 09:13 PM

Comments

- The public school system out here in Cal (I can't speak to the situation in other area's of the country other than to say everything I've heard says its just as much if a disaster) is simply beyond belief in too many cases. As a single parent I have had an on-going battle for all of the 8 years I've been raising my learning unit as a single parent. The war notebook is filled to the brim to the point I seldom even talk about it anymore. In the years up to 9/11 the parents had the power, as they should, to direct and control things concerning their child's schooling, at least on those rare occasions when they were aware on their own since the "district" was pretty careful not to admit that within hearing distance. One school he attended was so out of control they were forced to resort to on campus police patrols after a few of us threatened litigation. I know how tough teaching is, I did it for a number of years. So I'm not unsympathetic of the problems. But all of that is "layered" by the leftist Democrats and their death lock on the school system through the public "dole" process and the union, which will fight to the hilt to maintain their bureaucracy, with little regard to the job of educating the children. I don't want to see the system destroyed; the future generations depend on schooling. But I would love to see it completely rebuilt. Short of that I guess I'll have to try to find a private school for him I can afford if things don't improve. BTW. Recently I became aware that the schools now have their own police department and the city police no longer have any jurisdiction. I understand the need for security in these times but it seems they are raising it to a "siege" mentality, taking the position you no longer have the right to protect your child. I suspect this action has more to do with CYA litigation fears than the safety of the kids. Then again maybe after all these years of watching the shenanigans of people that are intensely protecting turf and pay checks, I've simply become too cynical...somehow I doubt it.....

Posted by: Hunter at November 21, 2004 09:17 PM