My eight year old son attends a private school in
Rancho Palos Verdes. We were behind on our
tuition payment and therefore the school took it upon
themselves to punish my child for something that he did
not do. On 5/28/03, I dropped him off at
school at 8:35am. School starts at 8:45am, he was
immediately sent to the office by his
teacher. My son, thought that he was being
sent to the office for arriving to school
late. When he got to the office, he was placed
in a room and for the next 3 1/3 hours he sat in that
room until he got sick and the school finally called
me. My son told me that the lady that put him
in that room told him that he needed to sit still and not
talk. He said it was hot in that room, I have
tried to coax him into telling what happened but when I
bring it up he gets upset and starts to
cry. From the bits and pieces that I have
heard from him, he said he cried for hours. He
said they did not go in and check on him. He said he
missed his recess and didn't get a chance to go out and
play. At almost noon they sent him to his
classroom to pick up his lunch, which he ate at the
office or room as he calls it. He said a short
time later, he got up and went to the lady in the office
and asked if it was okay to talk if it was an emergency,
he said he felt sick and needed to go the
bathroom. He threw up his lunch and the school
finally called me at work. They did not say
anything about him being in trouble, all they said was
that he was sick and had a fever. As it turned
out he did not have a fever, but was probably hot from
being in this room. He stated that while in
that room they could not see him. In my mind I
think they forgot about him.
I don't know all of the facts, and not until today did I
learn that he had actually been in that room crying for a
while. He gets very upset when I bring it up
and I am afraid of the effect that this will have on him.
On 5/28/03, I contacted Child Protective services, and
they informed me that as this was a private school they
have no jurisdiction. We also attempted to
file a complaint with our local police department and
they informed us that this is a civil matter.
I again contacted Child Protective services and the woman
I spoke with was very helpful. She claims that
my son's civil rights were violated and that I have means
of pursuing this matter. I am not in this for
monetary gain, but for the concern of my son and any
other child that may be at risk. I told my son
that in September he will be attending a public school,
his only reply was "is the same thing going to
happen to me in public school"?
Attached, is a letter that I mailed to all parents at the
school. I have received a few replies and some
parents have raised other issues that have taken place at
this school. Child Protective services has
advised me to contact State Licensing to file a complaint
against this school for not having a
license. They also informed me that since this
school also runs a daycare by law they must have a
license. When the State attempted to locate a license
they claim they could not find one. Unless, it
is under a different name and not the name of the actual
school.
My question is, have my child's rights been violated? Do
I have a means of pursuing this? And if so, what steps do
I take. I think my son may need counseling, so
I will be contacting my pediatrician to see what she
recommends. In the meantime, I feel helpless,
thinking that I have no rights and that unless I take it
to civil court that nothing can be done to
hold these people accountable.
Please call me or send an e-mail at your earliest
convenience
Thank you
Isabel Christophersen
See attached letter below....
May 30, 2003
Dear Christ Lutheran Parents:
Below are words expressed by a mother’s concern for
her child.
The events that have transpired are true and it happened
to my child.
Could your child be next? If your child
attends Christ Lutheran in Rancho Palos Verdes, you need
to be concerned you need to look out for your child.
These words are not expressed in anger. These are
expressed with sorrow for the wrong that has been brought
upon an innocent child by a less than caring staff and
principal at Christ Lutheran Church and School. According
to Child Protective Services a school or institution must
contact the parents of a child within 1-hour of keeping a
child out of class. This school had no
intention of contacting us to inform us that our child
was not being allowed in class. They had every intention
of keeping my son in that office all day. They
just did not count on my child getting sick to his
stomach from sitting in a hot room with no food or drink
for hours. My child does not understand why he
is not in school. He does not understand that
he will not complete 2nd grade with his
friends. All he knows is that he was punished
at school and then got sick and went home.
How do I explain their actions to my
child? This school is not concerned about this
child’s well being. On 5/28/03, I spoke
with the person in charge of the Board of Education at
Christ Lutheran. He informed me that he would
speak to the principal and get back to
me. Their concern is so great that to date,
they have not had the courtesy of either contacting me or
informing me of their position. All I know is
that the Christ Lutheran claims that my child is
suspended from school but the school refuses to state
this and the reason for the suspension in
writing. They also refuse to give me credit
for the time he is not being allowed to be in
school. In my opinion, the school has
something to hide. In my opinion this raises
concern. After all, we entrust our children to
their care, but they make their own rules and that scares
me. This should raise concern with all parents who
entrusts their children to their care.
IMAGINE
Imagine you are an eight- year old little boy
You are dropped off at school and proceed to walk to your
classroom
Upon arrival, you are sent to the office
You are worried, because you think you are in big trouble
For the next 3½ hours you are confined to a room
It is hot in that room, but you are afraid to tell them
you are hot
You are afraid to tell them you want a snack
You are afraid to say hey it’s recess time
I want to go out and play
You have your backpack and your water
But, you do not eat the snack in your backpack or
take a drink of your water
When Mom asked why you didn’t take a drink
You simply stated, “You are not allowed to eat or
drink in the office”
You sit in this room and you don’t know why you are
there
It is hot and you are thirsty and you are hungry
When Mom asked why you didn’t say something
You simply stated, “You are not allowed to talk in
the office”
All you know is that you must have done something very
bad
Because you sit and you wait and you wait
Finally, it is lunch time, but you must sit in the office
and wait and wait
You are hoping that your punishment is almost over
You are hoping that is time to go home
You are finally sent to your classroom to pick up your
hot lunch
Only, it is not hot lunch as it has been sitting there
for a while
You are ordered to walk back to the office and eat
You eat your lunch, because you are starving, after all
You missed your recess and snack today
You are still very hot and feel sick to your stomach
You ask the lady in the office if you can go to the
restroom
You feel sick and throw up your lunch
Your little nerves couldn’t handle the stress of the
morning
The worry of being punished and being in serious trouble
Was just too much for you
But finally, you are free…
Your Mom receives a call at noon- time
Your son is sick and has a fever she is told
Your Dad works 1 1/2 miles from school and rushes to pick
you up
We are worried we believe that you are sick
We are concerned that maybe there is something wrong with
you
When you get home you are happy you are relieved to be
there
You have no fever, but feel quite warm
You rest for a while and play…
You’ve had a rough day
But Thank God you are okay
Your Mommy gets home from work to find out
That not only is her child not sick but her child
Was punished and confined to an office all morning
This punishment was brought on to my son
by people who call themselves educators
by people who call themselves loving Christians
You see my son was punished for a parents delay
We were delayed two payments on our tuition
We tried to work out an arrangement but the school
refused
We brought a post-dated check to the office and they
refused our check
I did not request for a donation but simply made a
request of a four day extension
The school refused “they said, either bring in a
cashier’s check or your child is
suspended from school”.
I was shocked I was numb to hear this
This school placed their monetary gain high above a
child’s learning
High above child’s well being
It is unbelievable to me that this school would go
to such measures just to be paid
They had no sympathy for the parents
They had no sympathy or concern for the child
Worst yet, they suspend a child and punish him for
something he did not do
They refuse to notify the parents in writing, they refuse
to give the parents
Credit for the time you will miss from school
A child’s worst nightmare is to be in trouble with
school officials
A child’s worst nightmare is not to be allowed to
play with his friends
A child’s worst nightmare is to be out of school
with nowhere to go
A parent’s worst nightmare
Is to go to work everyday
To work hard to pay for your child’s private school
tuition
Only to find out, that in a private school setting
They make their own rules
They can break the law
They can even mistreat your child and call that
A Christian education
As a concerned Parent for my child
I am quite upset at this Christian school for suspending
my child
I am quite upset over the effects that their actions will
have upon my child
but most of all I am upset with this school
for the torture that was brought upon my child
Imagine you are at a doctor’s office and your doctor
is running late
20 minutes go by then 30 minutes go by
Gee, an hour has gone by
The waiting seems like an eternity
You are on edge, but you wait and wait
Imagine being an eight- year old child
20-minutes to you is like an eternity
Imagine 3 ½ hours of punishment
Imagine 3 ½ hours of mental anguish
A child does not understand time
All a child knows is that time for them goes much slower
What Christ Lutheran did to my child is called ABUSE
It is called CORPORAL punishment according to the State
of California
The funny thing is that this is what the Christ Lutheran
school claims they stand for:
Celebrate Jesus, others and self- God’s way!
Learn to Communicate, solve, work, share and achieve
God’s Way!
Contribute to and serve others, our country, and our
world with God’s love
Is your child safe at school today?
Imagine your child in a school like mine…
Signed by a Concerned Parent:
aconcernedparent @ msn.com
Jesus Said,
“Let the little children come to me,
and do not hinder them,
for the kingdom of heaven belongs
to such as these”
Matthew 19:14 NIV
Whoever welcomes one of these little children
In my name welcomes me.
Mark 9:37 NIV
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