ELIZABETH – A New Jersey family says they’re taking action after their 8-year-old girl with down syndrome came home with six bite marks on her body on the first day of school. A video below shows what happened to her; video discretion advised.
The family says Emily, who attends William F. Halloran School No. 22 in Elizabeth, came home Thursday with six bite marks ranging from a deep wound on her face to some on her legs.
Her mother didn’t notice all the marks until she took Emily to the bathroom, said Emily’s sister, Britanie Montero. She’s started a GoFundMe page to help raise money for “Emily’s justice.”
Montero suggested that this was not the first time Emily experienced problems in the Elizabeth school system. The family, she says, is planning to pull the girl from the district.
“My little sister is nonverbal so we are her voice,” Montero said. “This is not acceptable. I am tired of the Elizabeth Board of Ed not taking our concerns seriously.”
Montero said last year, in School No. 28, a teacher yanked on her arm in front of her mother.
“We sought action and she (Emily) was simply placed in another school while the teacher remained employed,” she said.
Elizabeth Public Schools Superintendent Olga Hugelmeyer said in a statement that the third-grade special needs student in a multiple disabilities classroom received “minor injuries” as a result of the actions of another special needs student.
“The two students, who are both non-communicative, were experiencing their first day of school in an unfamiliar classroom environment with unfamiliar staff members,” Hugelmeyer said. “Immediate and appropriate action was taken by school staff in accordance with established protocols following the incident.”
The incident has been referred by the school’s administrative staff to the district’s Department of Special Services, which is reassessing the individual needs and appropriate placement of the students involved, the superintendent said.
Children with multiple disabilities, in addition to their own personal challenges in assimilating to their environment, “present unique challenges to both parents and educators,” she said.
“Elizabeth Public Schools takes pride in employing staff members that undergo extensive professional development and training to address these challenges in a compassionate manner while providing a safe learning environment for students and staff,” she said.
Montero said she’s hurt that this had to happen, but she doesn’t blame the other child who bit her sister because “I understand some children have behavioral issues or impulses.”
“One bite is understandable,” she said. “However, i am NOT okay with knowing my sister was bit SIX times and only one of them was mentioned to us.”
Montero said she dropped her sister off at school Thursday morning and she could tell Emily was nervous and scared.
“I hugged her and tried to reassure she would be okay,” she said. “I can’t believe this happened in the care of that school.”
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“I wanted to share our story because unfortunately children with special needs often get disregarded and become voiceless and I refuse to let that carry on. Emily will no longer attend Elizabeth public schools because her safety is our priority.”
Here is the video:
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