[nabs-l] Really?

Thu Dec 18 22:46:13 UTC 2014

Hi all,

First of all, James, thank you so much for sharing this article 
with us.  This is the sort of thing that we need to resolve as 
blind students.

First of all, I'm very disappointed and infuriated that this 
happened as well.  Not only is this totally wrong and 
humiliating, but I also believe that Dakota did not deserve to 
receive this punishment.  The school really should have 
investigated more thoroughly at the situation before jumping to 
conclusions about what his punishment would be.  I mean, he's 
only eight years old, and we all have our habits.  The article 
doesn't say, but Dakota might have only hit this other student 
with his cane by accident, not on purpose.  In that case, he 
should only have received a minor punishment (and not even 
dentention or suspension if he did it only once, possibly just a 
warning or reprimand was his teacher or the principal,) not have 
one of the most essential tools for a blind student taken away 
from him.  The school should have seen this.
I have no idea if a pool noodle will work to help navigate, 
because I personally have never used one and I don't know of 
anyone else who has, but I seriously doubt that it will work in 
protecting you from obstacles and helping you to navigate as safe 
as possible.

I think it is good that ACB got involved in this matter and I 
think that we are all on this list on their side.  Dakota's 
mobility instructor will probably be very angry at the school for 
this as well.  Mobility instructors strictly enforce cane usage 
and technique, so they will not be happy at all if someone 
(particularly if they are totally blind) either refuses to use or 
is not in posession of a cane.

I seriously hope that the school will realize these facts from 
Dakota's father, ACB, and possibly his OANDM instructor so they 
can reccsider their decision and resolve this problem.

Thanks again James for sharing here, and happy holidays to all!

Sami.

 ----- Original Message -----
From: Kaiti Shelton via nabs-l <nabs-l at nfbnet.org
To: Aleeha Dudley <blindcowgirl1993 at gmail.com>,National 
Association of Blind Students mailing list <nabs-l at nfbnet.org
Date sent: Thu, 18 Dec 2014 12:04:50 -0500
Subject: Re: [nabs-l] Really?

I'd love to see an O&M instructor comment on this.  That will be 
priceless!

KC Schools, say hello to Lady Justice!  This won't stand; the 
parents
will fight back, and they'll win for sure.

We're well past the days of putting children in the corner with 
the
dunce cap on to humiliate them.  Teachers all know that all 
students,
no matter how poorly they behave, should be made to feel included 
and
secure in a learning environment.  What infuriates me more than a
school official taking the cane away and giving the kid a pool 
noodle,
is that, out of all the faculty who saw this kid using the pool 
noodle
that day, no one stepped up and tried to positively intervene.

On 12/18/14, Aleeha Dudley via nabs-l <nabs-l at nfbnet.org> wrote:
 I saw this and was infuriated.  This goes way too far.  One 
cannot use a pool
 noodle for a cane.  Especially when some bend.

 Aleeha Dudley and seeing eye dog Dallas
 Vice President, Ohio Association of blind students
 Blindcowgirl1993 at gmail.com
 "The wind of Heaven is that which blows between a horse's ears." 
Arabian
 proverb

 Sent from my iPhone

 On Dec 17, 2014, at 9:56 PM, James Alan Boehm via nabs-l
 <nabs-l at nfbnet.org> wrote:

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Society/2014/1217/Kansas-City-school
-punishes-blind-boy-by-replacing-cane-with-pool-noodle-video

 Kansas City school punishes blind boy by replacing cane with 
pool noodle
 (+video)

 The decision to punish a blind child by replacing his mobility 
cane with a
 swimming pool noodle is an "extra nasty step," says a director 
at the
 American Council of the Blind<http://acb.org/>.

 Dakota

Nafzinger<http://fox4kc.com/2014/12/16/north-kansas-city-school-t
akes-away-blind-childs-cane-replaces-it-with-pool-noodle/>,
 age eight, is a student at Gracemor Elementary School in Kansas 
City.  He
 was born without eyes, 
<http://www.nkcschools.org/page.cfm?p=1828> and
 relies on his white mobility cane for personal freedom and the 
ability to
 move freely about his environment, according to FOX 4 in Kansas

City<http://fox4kc.com/2014/12/16/north-kansas-city-school-takes-
away-blind-childs-cane-replaces-it-with-pool-noodle/>.

 North Kansas City Schools spokeswoman Michelle Cronk told the 
media that
 Dakota hit somebody with his cane while riding the bus and his 
punishment
 was to have his cane taken away and replaced with a foam pool 
noodle.

 Recommended: The top 5 things never to ask your child right 
after

school</The-Culture/Family/2012/1220/The-top-5-things-never-to-as
k-your-child-right-after-school/How-was-school-today

 Ms.  Cronk also reportedly said that Dakota was given the pool 
noodle not
 as a replacement for a mobility device, but rather because he 
needed
 something to hold in order to avoid fidgeting.  The school also 
reportedly
 said that it owned the cane and gave it to the boy at the 
beginning of the
 school year.

 In a statement released by Cronk Wednesday afternoon, the 
district
 reversed its earlier decision.

 The District has reviewed the situation.  We regret that a 
mistake was made
 in making sure the student was in possession of his cane when he 
boarded
 the bus Monday evening.

 The District has apologized to the family and is working to 
rectify the
 situation.  When we were made aware of the mistake, corrections 
were made.
 It is always the District's policy when we become aware of 
situations like
 this, we thoroughly and immediately investigate to ensure a safe 
learning
 environment for all students.

 In a phone call Cronk, says: "We've been taking a lot of heat 
from the
 local community over this."

 Eric Bridges, director of external relations and policy for the 
American
 Council of the Blind (ACB) says in a phone interview from his 
office in
 Arlington, Va.,  that the act of taking a blind child's cane 
from him as a
 form of punishment was "absolutely wrong and something which 
impedes the
 child's mobility."

 "To do what this school did to this student is just beyond the 
pale," says
 Mr.  Bridges, who is blind himself.  "If you want to punish a 
blind child
 then punish him the same way you punish a sighted child - 
detention,
 suspension, sitting on a bench in the hallway.  What this school 
did was
 just an extra nasty step of demeaning the child, humiliating him 
and
 robbing him of his mobility."

 Bridges adds that even if the school supplied a guide to 
constantly be by
 the boy's side, the addition of the pool noodle adds a dimension 
of
 humiliation that is unacceptable.

 "There's already enough stigma that comes with the white cane," 
Bridges
 added.  "A pool noodle? Because he fidgets? I honestly don't 
know which is
 worse, taking his freedom of mobility or the total public 
humiliation."

 Dakota's father, Donald Nafzinger told the media that his son 
lifts his
 cane sometimes and the bus driver thought he was using it 
violently.

 "All around, he's a good little guy, and he shouldn't be treated 
the way
 he's being treated," Mr.  Nafzinger said.

 Bridges adds, "It's honestly very hard for me to get my mind 
around what
 it would take for an educated adult to come up with that 
punishment,"
 Bridges says in exasperation.  "It's almost as if another 
eight-year-old
 thought that one up."

 James Alan Boehm
 Contact Information:
 Phone: 901-483-1515
 Personal Email:
 jimmydagerman80 at gmail.com<mailto:jimmydagerman80 at gmail.com
 NFB Email: secretary at nfb-tn.org<mailto:secretary at nfb-tn.org
 Kustom Cane: kustomcane at gmail.com<mailto:kustomcane at gmail.com

 Blindness never limits-low expectations do! Live the life you 
want!

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--
Kaiti

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