Below is the official press release from the Newport-Mesa School District regarding the story posted yesterday about the elementary school boy suspended from school for having kombucha tea in his lunchbox which school administration deemed with no testing or due diligence to violate the district’s drug and alcohol policy.
It appears that the school must fear the legal ramifications of their over the top reaction as they are spinning the story already.
The statement insists that the child was not suspended and no disciplinary action was taken.
You call keeping a child in the school office for the entire day, interrogating him about where/when he obtained this “illegal” beverage, telling him he may have to transfer to another school, attempting to sign him up for a youth alcoholics program and then having him sign a 5 day suspension notice “no disciplinary action?”
Revoking the suspension does NOT mean the suspension and interrogation somehow never happened! And, Police Officers in uniform (per a statement from the child’s mother who had another meeting yesterday – this time with the Principal) were called into the office to assist with the child’s possibly illegal interrogation since the child was questioned about any medicines he was taking etc and there was no attorney or parent/guardian present. Whether or not the officers were already on campus is immaterial.
I do hope the parents consider legal action to be played out in a court of law. A very strong possibility exists that their rights and that of their son were horribly violated and doing nothing just ensures that this type of abuse will continue.
Newport-Mesa Unified School District’s Statement Re: Alleged Action of Suspension for Possession of Kombucha Tea Drink
For Immediate Release: Friday, October 12, 2012
Newport-Mesa Unified would like to respond to a recent article posted in The Healthy Home Economist titled, “Child Suspended from School for Kombucha in Lunchbox.”
No disciplinary action was taken and the student was not suspended. The parents of the involved student met with the school principal to discuss and resolve any issues that resulted from Wednesday’s incident.
The issue resulted from the student being in possession of a beverage called, Kombucha, a tea, which states on its label that it contains 0.05 percent alcohol. The substance came to the attention of school officials through other students who reported that a student had alcohol. Having a substance on campus containing any level of alcoholic content is a violation according to District policy.
The article also references police involvement. The Newport Beach Police Department provides two full- time School Resource Officers who work with our Newport Beach and Corona del Mar campuses. Police were not called in specifically for this incident. The SRO was already on campus and participated in a routine discovery process. All this being said, the incident itself and the perception of how it was handled is something the District is committed to correcting. School districts implement policies and procedures to ensure consistency of practice. For most circumstances, the practices work. However, this was a new situation.
Seeing the need to review some of the practices regarding policies and procedures regarding discipline, the Newport-Mesa Unified School District Board of Education has requested the Superintendent to research programs that would emphasize a more nurturing approach to the discovery process and avoid overly aggressive practices when dealing with the discipline process.
Sarah, The Healthy Home Economist
Thank Sarah for this followup story!
Spin!! Won’t they feel silly when they find out how amazing Kombucha really is. Then again, maybe the teacher works for FDA…?? I hear that some of those folks take a pretty dim view of of the wholistic approach to life.
spin!
Ridiculous! I cannot even comprehend the insanity of public school leadership like this!
Seriously? Just take it away, and send a note home or call the parent. I wouldn’t have thought that would get a kid in trouble!!
Good job Sarah. By getting the word out on what happened, it sounds like, from their statement, they realize they were a little extreme and want to make changes to how they handle these types of situations in the future. Most people are still in the frame of mind of taking antibiotics for every little thing, using antibacterial soap regularly and have no clue why they’re sick when they don’t replace the good bacteria that they’re killing. I think we’re getting closer but aren’t there yet. Keep up the good work! 🙂
So, so silly!!!
I too hope they sue.
Yet another reason to homeschool!!!
Right!!!!
I completely agree with Sarah…its time to call a lawyer. The authorities in this situation went way too far. This poor kid went through an extremely traumatic experience because of the people who are supposed to be protecting him. If they had called the mom, like they should have in the beginning, this never would have gone so far.
I’ve worked in schools, volunteered in schools and now have my own kids in school. I’ve seen lots of good schools but even the good ones can have a bad apple of a staff member. While I think we’ve turned into a nation that sues everyone for every little thing, in this situation it would send a very clear message to this and other schools out there. (For example, the school that is trying to get a family to change their deaf son’s sign language name because it looks like he’s waving a gun)
A lawyer??? Wow. He had an alcohol containing drink on a zero tolerance campus! A major rule was violated. I am shocked that no one thinks the parents should be punished for violating a very serious school policy. He was probably being questioned to see if they gave him access to alcohol more often. This is a serious rule. If one wants to go to public/private schools, there are rules to abide by, like them or not. We all know the low amount of alcohol is not enough to intoxicate, but it is still ZERO tolerance. Is bullying ‘just a little’ OK to you if there is a zero tolerance policy? Lawyer-up! Please, no lawyers need be called. This opinion is what is CRIPPLING our country. SUE ‘EM so our own taxes go up. Wise indeed!
But, they never tested the drink for alcohol. Store bought kombuchas are often pasteurized so there is no longer alcohol in them. If it was home made, they should know for sure if what they are accusing him of is true.
As Sarah said:
“I do hope the parents consider legal action to be played out in a court of law. A very strong possibility exists that their rights and that of their son were horribly violated and doing nothing just ensures that this type of abuse will continue.”
It would take a lot for me to consider suing…I think its overboard in this country. But, the best way to know if their rights have been violated is to call a lawyer.
To those people who feel that the boy had an alcoholic drink at school, and the incident was the parents’ fault, I would say that the school should not serve any ripe fruit or fruit juice, or baked goods containing an alcoholic extract, or soda-type drinks. They should treat any kids bringing these items from home just as they treated this poor boy.
Do you realize how infinitesimal that amount of alcohol is? And the label gives that percentage, but the actual amount may be much less, or virtually none. All those other foods and drinks have about the same amount of alcohol, as others have pointed out above, or more than the Kombucha. The Kombucha was not an alcoholic drink. But if it is according to the school rules, than those other items must be banned.
If anything, the school should have called the parents and reminded them not to send that sort of beverage, which would have been over-reaction.
The point here is that the drink was clearly labeled as containing alcohol. Other food items may have trace amounts as you quote, I don’t care to research, and never heard of this, but the point is this was clearly labeled! If someone brings anything into a school that is clearly ZERO tolerance, then at minimum the parents should recognize the schools viewpoint of concern. We all know the possibility of intoxication is ‘almost’ impossible but again, it all boils down to zero tolerance and also protecting the welfare of a child. Many of you are seeing this as a lawsuit/life altering violation of rights and I am shocked by that. I fear for the resilience of the future generations here… It was an honest mistake on the part of the boys family in allowing a clearly labeled drink containing alcohol. It was their mistake and they put the burden on the school to investigate further.
You either work for a school district or have no kids, probably both. There is a difference between taking the said alcohol away and a different thing to interrogate the child without the parents present, which is what we are complaining about. I could care less about the drink being taken, where I would be upset is with the violation of this kids given rights according to the founders. Those rights don’t change because some adult is on a power trip.
I am a parent and not a school employee everywhere. I am just floored at the litigiousness of these posts and the lack of teaching resilience to your children. I’m deeply saddened by it. A mistake was made, that was bringing in a clearly labeled beverage to school, containing a small amount of alcohol in a zero tolerance zone. I can only guess, if you put yourself in the schools position, they have to ensure this child is not regularly consuming alcohol at home, they have to question him w/o parents to get to that answer. You must know once you let your children go to school, a scary thing happens. Anything they say or do must be taken seriously by the adults at that school. They have to look out for abuse situations and negligence. They may have considered calling CPS.
It’s very poor judgement on the parents part to allow anything clearly labeled as containing alcohol into the school even if it is just a ‘super-healthy’ drink that many people have never heard of! Schools don’t care about that, they have to ensure the child isn’t being mistreated. They may not have done everything perfectly, but I certainly think this blog is doing this story a HUGE disservice. I am so saddened by the lawsuit happy remarks. What a nice little bubble to live in, where you sue your own district rather than make this a teachable moment. Wonder why your property taxes are so high?
You obviously have no idea how the real world is supposed to handle these situations. Cause their are laws and due process that must be followed and the school knows this, hence the reason they are trying to deny what happened and claim the officer wasn’t called in.
Okay lets assume they wanted to know about the parenting skills, the proper way to handle this would be to call the parent and notify that an investigation has been opened on them and that CPS is going to get involved for the question. Now when CPS is present to witness the questioning you may begin. The school knows there is trouble coming from the way they handled this, again the denial says it all. You can not have police interogate someone without representation and if the parents are in question then another person present that can council the child must be present.
Also your logic on clearly labeled is false as it was just a plain glass jar and was covered with foam, so no it wasn’t clearly labeled.
There is rules and regulations for dealing with these situations and the school knows it messed up. Since this situation doesn’t deserve jail time the only way to have them think twice before violating another childs civil rights is to hit them where it hurts. Schools are accountable to law just as everyone else is, they are not above and beyond it. We are not nazi germany and just because you have a government paid position doesn’t mean you can do as you please.
I’m all for the school investigating to make sure the kid isn’t being put in danger. Its not hard to ask those questions in a safe environment. But, this wasn’t any of those things. They interrogated him for the rest of the school day, threatened to transfer him and make him join a youth alcoholics class. They also suspended him for 5 days. That is not the behavior of officials who are trying to make sure the kid isn’t being abused or hurt, that is officials who are on a power trip.
You are right, I am unsure of the protocols for this situation. As a mom I can only assume the child is questioned by a principal and or guidance counselor while parents are called/ awaiting parents to arrive. The police officer was on duty at the school so that doesn’t sound like a huge stretch that he’d want to hear the story as well. It just sounds like a huge miscommunication. “Hitting them where it hurts” is a pathetic option in my opinion.
We are all entitled to our views on this one and making lawyers rich for a misunderstanding that can be easily settled privately by having a simple discussion, I find that sad. I understand I am in the minority on this one so we have to agree to disagree. I teach my children that sometimes we have to follow rules, even when those rules seem silly or unnecessary. Resilience in this crazy world is SO important. I never want to push the “victim” card when the error was on our part. I see this time and time again. Again, agree to disagree.
Jill, maybe one day something like this will happen to your child, and then you will be shocked and understand. I, too, taught my children to follow rules, respect “authority,” be polite, be cooperative, be easy going and resilient, be forgiving, give benefit of the doubt, etc.
That works ONLY if the other party behaves and does his/her part to follow the rules, not take advantage, not be abusive, be kind, respectful, not threaten, etc.
You may have the opinion you have because nothing bad has ever happened to your kids by following your advice — and that is a blessing. However, you might want to consider “what if” an authoritarian “authority” abuses his/her power and traumatizes your obedient child who has not been taught his/her rights and how to respectfully yet firmly stand up for them.
This is just a warning, from a very experienced mother who was once in your position. I once held the views you seem to hold, until it happened to me and my child. Boy, were my eyes opened in a hurry. What was described by Sarah, if that is the way it happened (and I think it did happen this way), is abusive, traumatizing, overreaching and abuse by authorities. This has to be acknowledged. At the very least, heed the warning.
And I mean this kindly — the more you have your blinders on to what can happen, the more trusting you are (blind trust), the harder you (and your child) may fall.
I teach reality and street smarts as well Eliza. Blind respect of authority is also a foolish thing, I understand that. I would love to know generally or specifically what you are referring to in your situation.
This particular situation we are discussing would never, never happen to me because as a parent I would NEVER, NEVER allow a drink known to contain alcohol to be brought to school. How upsetting for everyone involved. I truly do empathize with everyone involved, family and school. But I think rather than a “victimization moment” and a “lawsuit moment” it’s an “education moment.”
I did some research beyond this article and read more of the details, like the schools interaction with the parent and exactly what they did while the kid was being interrogated. Knowing more of those details is what leads me to believe the parents are within their rights to consult a lawyer. I would rarely consider such a drastic response, but at some point I feel the authorities should be held accountable. It’s not the first time that “zero tolerance” has been taken way farther than it should. We had an incident in one of our schools recently with a toy gun. Again, zero tolerance caused the situation to be blown out of proportion.
Jill, I’ve been thinking the same thing all along, we can agree to disagree. I hope my posts reflect that thought.
Jill, I won’t speak specifically of what happened to my child, but generally speaking, as a high school student she was interrogated by police in the school much like this event was described, without my being called before, during or after, and she was totally innocent. It had nothing to do with Kombucha or alcohol or mind-altering substances. There were no gray areas. It was completely black and white: there were false accusations, there was complete innocence on her part, and also an abusive interrogation and investigation directed at our family. And no apologies were given for the trauma caused to her or to us. False statements were taken and threats were made to remove the children from my home, based upon lies and a preconceived agenda — not facts. No proper (thorough and fair) investigation was made. I could not believe that this could happen in America. But I had never encountered such a thing before, blessed as our family had been. This was tyranny and after a lifetime of believing in the goodness of people and giving benefits of doubts and so on… well, if it can happen to a good, decent, loving family like ours, it can happen to you and yours, too. We are no different from any other normal, good family. You can turn over every rock and look in every closet — you will not find one skeleton or “something we must be hiding.” There is and was nothing. That is why I take such a strong stand against abuse by authorities, these days.
But like I said…. and this is not meant specifically directed at you (though your comments sparked it), this is very, very hard for someone to “get” if it has never happened (or not yet happened) to them or their child.
The way the school acted towards the child — and this is just an example, it is not an isolated incident — can happen to ANY child, whether totally innocent or as in this case, probably totally innocent (we do not know from the story what the child may have done to catch the attention of the school personnel — bragging about drinking alcohol? I don’t know). The objection has nothing to do with any zero tolerance policy being followed or not (that is a separate subject). My objection and the objection of many is how over the top the authorities were in their treatment of and investigation of the child. Without parents being called or being present. Completely unnecessary, misguided, scary, traumatic, abusive. That’s wrong and the school must be called on it. Backpedalling to do damage control after the fact is not acceptable. Also it is a “teachable moment” and now is the time to teach all of our kids how to stand up for their rights in a situation like this.
As for zero tolerance policies, I am aware that people will disagree on this. We all have our reasons. I’m for following rules and if you don’t think the rules are just or reasonable, then try to change the rules. I personally think zero tolerance policies (if this is indeed what was a factor, and I don’t know that it was) are NOT a good thing. They tend to obstruct use of judgment and critical thinking, turning us and our children into mindless robots, which short-circuits our empathy and humanness — and sets us up for abuse by authorities, like what happened in this school. There are other (better) ways of teaching our children about ethics, morals, healthy behaviors.
And also, side note: I believe it is legal in every state for parents to serve their children small amounts of alcohol in their own residence. And questioning children about this without their parents being present is a gross invasion of the family’s privacy.
Jill, you keep bringing up ZERO tolerance. 0.05% IS ZERO alcohol when it comes to real alcohol consumption. Others on these responses are saying that fruit juice and fruit that has sat in a bag for a few hours contains the same amount of alcohol, which is basically NOTHING. So, I am afraid that your ZERO tolerance argument here is moot. I don’t know how you cannot sympathize with the possible (very probable) trauma that this child has endured. It is a heartless way of looking at this situation and humans are not black and white when it comes to these types of situations. We have brains and can analyze if certain reactions are appropriate. In this case, the school’s reactions were not appropriate and no one used their brains. To follow protocol blindly is the definition of stupidity in my opinion, especially when it is ABUSIVE TO A CHILD. Additionally, I highly suspect they BROKE protocol here.
Jill, I think you have not understood fully what the school did to this boy. Apparently, they did not call the parents. This is how Sarah summarized what they did:
“You call keeping a child in the school office for the entire day, interrogating him about where/when he obtained this “illegal” beverage, telling him he may have to transfer to another school, attempting to sign him up for a youth alcoholics program and then having him sign a 5 day suspension notice “no disciplinary action?” ”
To me, these actions were beyond extreme. They could have taken the beverage away and called the parents to remind them that no alcohol is allowed on campus. Perhaps the parents did not realize that 0.05% is considered “alcohol.” Five one-hundredths of one percent. They could have taken out their math skills as educators, and realized that there is virtually no alcohol in that beverage, and that many things allowed on campus, such as oranges and vanilla cookies, have just as much or more.
Yes, the parents were naive in sending kombucha with a label on it. But that child was traumatized for nothing, because the authorities overreacted bigtime. They did not think; they did not put kombucha into perspective, and they went to extreme measures. They didn’t even use arithmetic.
Jill, I also want to address your comment questioning if “a little bullying” is ok in a zero tolerance school. What? You cannot compare this situation with bullying. I can’t believe I have to explain this to you, but bullying is harming another child while drinking kombucha is beneficial to the child who was drinking it. I don’t mean to attack you in any way, but I am literally shaking my head on this one. There is no logic behind your statement.
My issue is that people love to play victim, and massage and change rules so they can be the special one for which rules do not apply. Look I can even agree, due to my knowledge of the drink, it’s all a HUGE totally sad misunderstanding of what that drink was. My point (which you applied your own logic, certainly not mine) in using bullying is that ‘zero tolerance means ZERO, not .05%, not any. You missed my point and I can see we are both coming from this with hugely different ideals. I follow the basic rules of my children’s school even if I don’t like them when it means punishment could come our way. That’s just how I do it. It was an error on the part of all involved. I am most disgusted at the ‘sue-them!” comments however. Sue your own school district? Yeah that will teach… no one. Only one party suffering there… kids. Oh sorry kids and tax payers. Obsurd! They could go for some sensitivity training but please… Sue-happy people… blaaa…
You say you follow rules, then why shouldn’t the school follow rules? There are rules on how children and people are to be questioned and dealt with, none of those rules allow for intimidation such as threatening to transfer and rehab programs.
It is not playing victim when something has happened to you that is against the law such as this. You are obviously blinded by a bias that no one else but you knows. If we are to play by the rules than so should the people in positions of authority. That is the point plain and simple and why you still don’t see it I can not fathom. Is it really that hard to understand the problem isn’t the drink or taking of the drink. The problem is the way the child was secluded away in a room with armed police officer and officials drilling him. I just don’t see how a parent would think thats okay.
Just because people are commenting that suing could be a good course of action, doesn’t make us sue-happy. Sue-happy people are the ones who sue McDonalds for millions of dollars because they got burned when they spilled coffee on themselves. This is a serious situation in which the authorities went too far.