Looking for a legal opinion - education related

[mrsklamc]

Did you ask why they did it that way?

 

[gatormom2tots]

Just asked my husband who is an attorney.....he said you probably do not have a case.

 

[ilovefh]

I think I'd tread lightly on this one. There were an equal number of spots for both boys and girls.

I'd be careful because if you do contact a lawyer and sue you will become known as "that" parent.

Remember teachers and administrators are human too and they will remember this. I had a parent put up a huge stink that her daughter did not make the "A" team in 7th grade. She was not justified and her daughter remained on the "B" team. After her 7th grade year I moved up to be the high school coach and I did remember her temper tantrum for the rest of her daughter's field hockey career.

 

[mousefan1972]

OP, I know exactly how you feel. Last spring we entered DS in our town's lottery for full day kindergarten. 24 kids applied for 20 slots. Our town does the same boy/girl even split. 11 boys applied and 13 girls. Guess who's kid was the 1 boy who didn't get picked? Yup, mine. But, all was not lost as several parents backed out, and my son got off the waitlist 2 days after I was told he didn't make it. In fact, so many backed out that the school was recruiting more kids for the class a few weeks before school started. I really think some parents just put their kid in the lottery, without realizing the cost involved ($3800 for the year), then once they are picked they say "Wow, too much money" and drop out. I hope your child gets in.... good luck!

 

[mousefan1972]

Oh, and just wanted to add that the gender equality thing is only enforced in the full day kindergarten program. My daughter did the half day program (same school) and there were 12 girls and 5 boys in her class. This year, in second grade, she has 16 girls and 6 boys in her class. So why the school insists on the full day K class being evenly split by gender, I have no idea...

 

[KayW]

Oh, and just wanted to add that the gender equality thing is only enforced in the full day kindergarten program. My daughter did the half day program (same school) and there were 12 girls and 5 boys in her class. This year, in second grade, she has 16 girls and 6 boys in her class. So why the school insists on the full day K class being evenly split by gender, I have no idea...

For the discrimination piece probably. That way there are equal slots because it is a lottery. It is painful to sit there and really want to get in, but don't especially if you can pay for it, you feel or know your child will benefit from full day.

Even at the middle school level I have classes where there are 24 students, but not an even split of 12 and 12.

 

[mousefan1972]

For the discrimination piece probably. That way there are equal slots because it is a lottery. It is painful to sit there and really want to get in, but don't especially if you can pay for it, you feel or know your child will benefit from full day.

Even at the middle school level I have classes where there are 24 students, but not an even split of 12 and 12.

Oh believe me, we were very upset when our son wasn't chosen. Our daughter was in the half day program 2 years earlier, and in 1st grade she was noticeably behind the kids who had been in the full day K program. Also I work full time, so for schedule reasons we really needed him to be in full day K. Luckily he did end up getting in, and he loves it. Writing the tuition check every month stinks, but it is well worth it.

 

[mrsklamc]

I just wonder why we always have to jump to the legal option, instead of going to someone at the level where the decision is made, and saying, "I'm hoping you can help me. This doesn't make sense to me. Can you help me understand?"

 

[andymattmom]

I would just leave it! You are going to make a stink and as others have said be labeled for the ENTIRE TIME your child(ren) are in that school! Teachers know exactly what parents complain, whine and raise fusses. Same goes for administration.

Just put your big mom pants on...things happen for a reason. It might be hard to accept now but it is not the end of the world. Your daughter can go to school someplace else, someone could drop out and they could put her in, etc. Just leave it....

 

[andymattmom]

I just wonder why we always have to jump to the legal option, instead of going to someone at the level where the decision is made, and saying, "I'm hoping you can help me. This doesn't make sense to me. Can you help me understand?"

Cause we are a sue happy country and everyone thinks they are special and when things don't go their way they cry FOUL! People park in a handicap spot, get towed and sue for the towing fees. People break up with their boyfriend or girlfriend and sue for harassment and sue. People don't get their way and think injustice has been done and sue. People always think something terrible has been done to them....

Just an opinion. Totally agree with you...people use the threat of legal system far to often.

 

[mousefan1972]

Cause we are a sue happy country and everyone thinks they are special and when things don't go their way they cry FOUL! People park in a handicap spot, get towed and sue for the towing fees. People break up with their boyfriend or girlfriend and sue for harassment and sue. People don't get their way and think injustice has been done and sue. People always think something terrible has been done to them....

Just an opinion. Totally agree with you...people use the threat of legal system far to often.

Nah, not everyone. When my son didn't get chosen in our full day K lottery last spring, I was very disappointed and upset. But, it never occurred to me to consider a lawsuit. I just don't think that way. (no offense intended to the OP) I did think, "Just our luck...." Not everyone can get their way.

 

[KayW]

And the child could still get into the full day class if someone decides not to enroll their child. It happens. Not everyone is ready to shell out the money for the program.

 

[knewton64]

After a lot of thought, I agree....


Put on your Mom pants....


Move forward.....


and plan your next trip to a DiSney PArk.




Seriously - have fun and enjoy life.




Kris

 

[mytripsandraces]

Somewhat related, somewhat not.

Our local Gold's Gym had a "Biggest Loser" contest. There was a separate contest for girls and guys 1st, 2nd, 3rd place with thousands of dollars in prizes. It cost $50 to enter.

I figured what the heck, could use all the motivation I could use. Hired one of their personal trainers for 3 months 3x's a week and joined weight watchers.

At the end (90 days later), I was informed that due to "lack of interest, they changed it to just coed, AND 1st, 2nd, 3rd place were all male winners.

They made the mistake of telling me I was #1 for the women. So my wheel spins in my head and tells me if they had stuck to the damn rules, I literally would have gotten about $3k in prizes, 3rd place alone was a free year of membership.

After freaking out on them. I could only weasel 6 months free, which in the end I found out they just extended my contract and suspended my billing for 6 months. I am still PO'd about it, but there was nothing I could do since the "rules" were nowhere to be found after the fact. I did at least lose more weight than I normally would have so I guess I got something out of it!

You might have a case. Contests are governed by very strict rules. You should contact corporate, not the local gym. I believe they have to keep the rules on file for a certain period of time, too.

 

[Ciciwoowoo]

The school districts around here have all gone to all day kindergarten because if they did not, they would lose the families who were interested in the program to the neighboring district. The districts in my area all have "school of choice" programs.

I would investigate enrolling your child in a neighboring district. The money they might lose through your family, and any additional families who also leave due to this matter, might make it worthwhile for the district to investigate expanding this program.

Do you have charter schools in your area? That might be another option for you and your family.

I hate to say it, but money talks... the schools will practically bend over backward to avoid losing revenue. If you could talk to the other families who did not make this program and get them all to agree to investigate alternatives, the district might just listen to your group.

I do hope things work out well. I have heard nothing but positive things about the full day kindergarten programs. The children are more advanced than their half day friends.

 

[Marionnette]

The school districts around here have all gone to all day kindergarten because if they did not, they would lose the families who were interested in the program to the neighboring district. The districts in my area all have "school of choice" programs.

I would investigate enrolling your child in a neighboring district. The money they might lose through your family, and any additional families who also leave due to this matter, might make it worthwhile for the district to investigate expanding this program.

Do you have charter schools in your area? That might be another option for you and your family.

I hate to say it, but money talks... the schools will practically bend over backward to avoid losing revenue. If you could talk to the other families who did not make this program and get them all to agree to investigate alternatives, the district might just listen to your group.

I do hope things work out well. I have heard nothing but positive things about the full day kindergarten programs. The children are more advanced than their half day friends.

Not every state operates their educational system like Michigan. Around here, you attend the schools in your district or else you pay to attend elsewhere.

I think that my school district officials would do somersaults if parents told them that they didn't like half-day K and want to go elsewhere. The more parents who do that, the fewer kindergarten teachers we have to hire, the fewer K classrooms we have to furnish, the fewer K students we have to transport. All meaning that our district saves money.

And while kids that attend full day K usually are more advanced in first grade than their half day classmates, studies have shown that the edge is pretty much erased by the third grade. At that point, the half day kids have caught up and the gifted ones even surpass the average full day kids.
http://www.usc.edu/uscnews/stories/12146.html

 

[hambirg]

What I find really ironic is that there is no educational justification for having equal gender slots in a classroom. Our disctict just had a speaker come in and talk about the benefits of separate gender classrooms. So this disctrict's justification for being "fair" is to weight the stats against the girl applicants? If they truly wanted to be fair they would have put all the names in a hat and pulled for the 40 slots. At least every child would have been given equal opportunity. The way I see it, they weighted the stats against the girls in order to have a more "fair" classroom make-up. That makes no sense. . .there are no educational advantages to having a classroom with equal gender, in fact, the research actually supports the opposite. So why try to do it in the first place?

ETA: Just to illuminate my point. Let's say 20 boys applied and 100 girls. So the boys have a 100% chance of getting in and the girls only 25% chance? How is that fair? If they truly want to be fair they put all the names in the hat and pull for the slots. . .and the laws of statistics takes care of the rest.

 

[disfan07]

This is just another case of a parent who thinks that her child deserves it more then another child. If her child had gotten picked she wouldn't have even thought about this and she wouldn't care. She just would have been glad that her child got in and that would be that.

So it's not that she really CARES that they did it that way. She just cares because her child was one of the ones who did not get picked.

We just like to sue over everything. Why don't we save the legal issues and the lawsuits for things that really matter and that are really important?

 

[buzz5985]

I think I'd tread lightly on this one. There were an equal number of spots for both boys and girls.

I'd be careful because if you do contact a lawyer and sue you will become known as "that" parent.

Remember teachers and administrators are human too and they will remember this. I had a parent put up a huge stink that her daughter did not make the "A" team in 7th grade. She was not justified and her daughter remained on the "B" team. After her 7th grade year I moved up to be the high school coach and I did remember her temper tantrum for the rest of her daughter's field hockey career.

You should be fired. Your punishing a child for the mother's actions, that is abominable.

As to the OP - the above poster is what you have to look forward to with the public education system. Believe me, you will have larger battles to fight.

Janis

 

[plummer925]

You should be fired. Your punishing a child for the mother's actions, that is abominable.

Janis

Are you kidding me!? Really!? The poster you quoted did NOT say she was "punishing the child" in ANY way - she said she REMEMBERED THE MOTHER. Sheesh.