It's Wednesday, March 25 and I have just created a delicious breakfast of eggs benedict. I used whole grain bread and Canadian bacon so I believe it may actually be good for me. As I bring the fork to my lips, my eyes drift to the front page of today's paper and POP another good meal down the drain!
On April 21st of this year, the Supreme Court will hear a case that will force the justices to decide just how much leeway school officials should have in policing zero tolerance policies for drugs and violence. Their ruling will provide important guidance to schools all over the country.
The case before the court concerns a terrible incident that happened six years ago in a middle school in Arizona. Savana Redding was thirteen years old when she was strip-searched at her school by a nurse and a school secretary. They suspected her of having in her possession prescription strength ibuprofen pills. The suspicion stemmed from an accusation by another student who was found with the pills. The student blamed Ms. Redding for providing her with the drugs. The assistant principal of the school ordered the school employees to search both students. The searches did not turn up any additional pills.
Ms. Redding said she was never asked if she had any pills before she was searched. In point of fact, this young girl was completely inncocent. Her record at school , had anybody bothered to look, revealed an excellent student who had no history of problems. Her ordeal was so terrifying and humiliating that she could not return to school for months. In the end she transferred to another school.
Her story is one we should all care about and pay attention to. The Supreme Court's ruling in April could impact everyone of us who have children or grandchildren in school. When we send our children off to school in the morning, we expect that they will be in class getting an education. If we knew that it was possible they could be subjected to a strip-search, would we send them off to school at all? I know I wouldn't.
