Discrimination in School?

Question

I am in Special Ed. I just found out that my school wont allow me to go on my senior weekend trip because I take medication and their is a rule that students can have on hand controlled substances and there is no body to administor the meds to me. I want to fight this. What should I do?

PS. The trip is 2 weeks away and they just told me this now

i am allowed to goon the trip but my mom has to come. this is unfair my life was already falling apart before this and now it is in shambles. I dont want her to go this trip was supposed to be a chance to get away from her. A chance for her not to be be on my back for once. Now thats ruined. I hate my life!!!!!!!!!!!!

Answer 1

Well, under Section 504 of the Americans with Disabilities Act, that is clearly discrimination. Are they preventing children who need insulin from going? What about students with inhalers? I would bet not, thus it's discrimination. There will be chaperones, right? It shouldn't be too difficult to assign someone to administer the meds to you, or you should have a parent go with you (yes, I know that would suck, but it is an option).

Answer 2

Have your parents or yourself call the local news stations and newspapers. Find out if anyone on allergy medication or diabetics can't go. You should be able to participate in all school activities. If they have to hire a nurse to go along and make sure you get your meds, than they have to do that. I have been an early childhood and autism teacher. Before field trip days the nurse always showed me what meds to give the students in my class and how the students took the meds. I had take a form with me and document that I gave the student the meds. When we got back I would attach the form to the binder. There is no reason why another teacher can not make sure you get your meds. Hopefully the news media can embarrass the school into allowing you to go.

Answer 3

Have your parents write a letter, which will need to be hand-delivered to the administration. In the letter, they will need to address these issues:
1) That you are a senior enrolled in the school.
2) That, because they did not give you sufficient notice of their ruling regarding medications, a decision with full explanation will need to be given, in writing, within 3 days of their receipt of your parents' letter. (If you are 18 or over and not legally conserved, you are a legal adult and you don't even need your parents to assist in this. But if you have a good relationship with your parents, they will be valuable in your fight!)
3) That the administrative refusal is directly discriminatory against you as a special education student.
4) That there is nothing in your IEP to permit your exclusion from this activitiy.
If your parents have some connections (advocacy groups, people influencial in education, business, or politics), having someone who has some power go along to deliver the letter can be useful. But don't worry - unless there is some complication in your situation that you didn't mention, they should agree to let you attend the trip. It sounds as if any accomodations they would need to make would be "reasonable."

What kind of medication do you take? If someone needs to inject you, this is a little trickier, since injections do require someone with appropriate training. Even so, there should be a way of accomodating this need. If you just take some pills orally, this should be easy. I work in public schools, and it is simple for an adult to be signed off to administer oral medications. Any responsible adult should be able to get approval to do so very quickly. It just takes an adult to read the label, identify that you are the right person, that the dose is correct, and that it is being given correctly. If you are under 18, or if you have a legal guardian or conservator, your parents or conservators could sign a waiver permitting a responsible adult to administer your medications. If you are 18 or older and not conserved, you can legally self-administer your medications.

Good luck! You deserve to go on your senior trip. Get your parents to back you up, and if you don't get immediate approval from the administration, get the media involved (local newspapers, local television news....) Bad press may help your administration figure out a way to include you in the senior trip.

Answer 4

Fight it. Have your parents set up an appointment to talk to your principal. You have the right to an equal, appropriate education just as everyone else does. They have to make reasonable accommodations for you. So, there will be NO adults on this trip? Is it sponsored by the school district? If so, they must provide adequate supervision of the children (sorry, but you are still a minor) in their care. The need for medication is no excuse for not allowing you to attend a trip designed for seniors of the school. If there are chapperones to be made available to keep an eye on the students, then one of them can be appointed to be in charge of your medication. If that is something they are not willing to do, have one of your parents/guardians go as a chapperone. You should not be denied the right to attend a trip that would be attended by your peers because of medication. Talk to your parents and set up a meeting with the principal to find a way around this conflict. Compromise and be flexible, but you have the right to attend if this is the only "blockade" that is the excuse for your exclusion.

Answer 5

I would say that your school should have a nurse or some type health service provider what happens if someone is seriously ill on the trip. There has to be some adult a teacher or principal or some adult that could keep the meds and give them to you as needed or prescribed. Otherwise yes I would agree that it is discrimination I would go to your parents and discuss with them what options might be open for you to be able to go

Answer 6

I'm assuming your medication is a controlled substance, such as Ritalin to treat ADHD. School districts do not allow students to self-administer such medications, for obvious reasons. I would have your parents call the school and find out why you're not being allowed to participate. There are other students who are on medications for asthma, etc., are those students not being allowed to participate as well? There should also be chaperones on this trip, assuming it's school sponsored--which it sounds like it is. Any chaperone should be able to administer your medication. Have a parent call and talk to the principal on Monday. Good luck!

Answer 7

They are violating your rights. Fight them on this. They can't keep you from a trip for that reason. In fact, the law says they have to provide you with someone to administer the meds while on the trip. They can't exclude you. It is violating IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Act). If this is a school sponsored function, they must let you go, no matter what. If they say no one more time, call the school board. Also, call any of the parent's and child's advocacy groups for your state. They will help you. (As an Spec. Ed. Teacher, this totally burns me up)

Oh yeah, if its a prescription in your name, any adult can give it to you.

Answer 8

You should fight it! It seems to me that they either didn't think of hiring a nurse or something slipped thru the cracks. Sometimes, many times schools also try to save themselves moneys for other things and it might just be that accommodating you is not one of their priorities. I worked as an administrative assistant for a few years and I saw this happening all the time. Instead, administrators came up with some bull that made me at times upset. A lot of the parents and students accepted what was given to them others spoke up and got what they wanted. It is important that you get your parents involved to make your voice stronger.

Answer 9

Have your parents send a letter saying they will adminsiter the meds. If the trip is close, let them drive up and give them to you. This may be a pain but it doesn't hold the school as liable.
Good luck and hope you can go.

Answer 10

Have your parents discuss this with the principal because they cant tell you cant go because of the meds there should be somebody present on the trip to give you youf prescribed medication.