Trending
ELKINS – Two parents of Randolph County school children voiced their concerns to the Board of Education this week about an employee at Coalton Elementary being transferred as part of the county's annual Reduction in Force (RIF) process.
Desire Miller was one of the many service personnel employees who were transferred out of their positions during the RIF hearings and subsequent Randolph BOE decisions in March. Miller, who is currently a LPN at Coalton Elementary, will be moved into an aide position at a different school at the start of the next school year.
Cindy Bennett and Robert Fox, who both have children at Coalton Elementary with special medical needs, came before the Board of Education this week and asked the board to reconsider their decision on the transfer.
"Having a Type 1 Diabetic child means you must trust virtually no one to care for them," Miller said. "It has nothing to do with how wonderful a person is, how good they are with children, or how much experience they have. It has everything to do with being able to drop your child off with that person and not feel like you can't function because of your anxiety level… Because of the actions of the hearing on March 11, I am now being asked to trust my daughter's life to yet another stranger."
Bennett said she presented evidence to the BOE that her daughter's A1C level raises every time she is given a new nurse, and that her AIC stabilizes and improves with consistent routine and consistent caregivers.
"We pleaded with you to hear us while we spoke for our daughter, because she is not old enough to speak for herself," said Bennett. "As her mother, that is my job, to fight for her rights. My daughter has the right to not have a different nurse every year because you move employees around like monopoly pieces. The head nurse even stated to the board that she doesn't have enough nurses to cover field trips and vacations, yet it was still decided to take my daughter's nurse from her… I am asking you all to please reconsider what you have decided on regarding our student nurse for next year."
Fox spoke to the board next and said he was there to voice his concerns about the safety of his child, who also attends Coalton Elementary School and is also a Type 1 diabetic.
"Type 1 diabetes is something that changes periodically and is something that is unpredictable, especially when it's in a child whose body is constantly changing and growing," Fox said. "Constant care at a young age is part of ensuring children have a better quality of life, not only now but for the future. Neglect to manage this disease can and will result in permanent and irreversible damages."
Fox said Miller has been very helpful with his daughter's care throughout this school year.
"The nurse learned about her disease and developed a bond necessary in these circumstances," said Fox. "She works closely with my daughter's mother to ensure she makes the right decisions for her health. We are so confident in her (Miller) abilities that we would allow our daughter to be with her in a personal setting. We have developed that kind of bond and trust with the nurse we have at the school…
"We have a nurse at Coalton who is willing to stay in a rural area and work. She is not only home-grown, but she is loved by her peers and students alike… I truly hope the board will reconsider their decision and do the right thing for the children."
Randolph County Schools Superintendent Debbie Schimdlen said she is unsure if any changes will be made regarding this year's RIF process.
"Our CSBO (Chief School Business Official) Brad Smith is just beginning to work on next year's budget, so he hasn't had the opportunity to take the cuts that were approved and fit them into next year's budget to see what it looks like," Schmidlen said. "We really don't know where we are at, so we can't recommend resending anything at this point. We just have to wait and give Brad the opportunity to run numbers and see what that is going to look like next year."
When Schmidlen was asked if there was a chance of a RIF transfer being rescinded, she said, "There's always a possibility."
Some of the students' parents at Coalton Elementary School are under the assumption that, with the transfer, there will be no nurse at the school next year. On Tuesday, Board of Education President Amanda Smith said that is not the case.
"Our school nurses are labeled as itinerant, which means they can move from school to school where the need arises," Smith said the night of the meeting. "Many times they go into a school and they develop a relationship with the students and staff. So when they are moved it does cause some hard feelings. Rest assured, though, we do have a plan for all students to be taken care of in Randolph County and there will be a nurse at Coalton Elementary."
Speaking to The Inter-Mountain by phone Thursday, Smith said the following:
"The schedule for a nurse at Coalton has not been figured out yet. Basically, in one of our other schools the need declined, so in theory the nurse at that school will likely go to Coalton. A need changed in one of our other schools and that freed up another nurse to move. Someone will be at Coalton, it just won't be that same LPN that they had.
Smith said that during the RIF process in March, the LPN/Aide position at Coalton Elementary was reduced to just an Aide position for the upcoming school year. She did confirm, however, that there will be a nurse on staff at the school for the next school year.