Central Dauphin School District in Pennsylvania Questioned by Some Parents

Their mission statement, displayed in a colorful banner at the bottom of their web site's front page, promises "...lifelong learning in a caring, collaborative community..." But, some parents are questioning the Central Dauphin School District in Harrisburg, PA.

According to WHPTV, one concern the parents have with Central Dauphin School District is with the cafeteria food. Even though schools are supposed to have their cafeterias checked at least twice a year, seven of the schools in the Central Dauphin School District only had their cafeterias checked once this past school year. The school officials are telling the parents that it is safe for their children to eat lunch at school. However, many parents remain uneasy about it.

Another problem Pennsylvania parents are having with the Central Dauphin School District actually involves home schooling. According to the Home School Legal Defense Association, or HSLDA, parents who have chosen to educate their children from home have received unlawful treatment from Central Dauphin School District. The HSLDA reports that four families who are members of the association requested their assistance when they received letters from the Central Dauphin School District informing them they would need to stop homeschooling.

These four families had done everything required by law in order to be a homeschooling family. The official who made the decision that these families should not home school disagreed with their outlined curriculum objectives. However, the problem with this is that those objectives are not supposed to be used in determining a family's eligibility to homeschool. The school district's request for the family to submit revised objectives was actually a violation of the law.

The ACLU reports that back in 2007, the Central Dauphin School District was sued for the prosecution of a teen who had missed some school, due to the care of her child. Apparently, the teen mother was an honor roll student, but had missed some school, due to caring for her child while ill, when he needed to be taken to doctor appointments, or when the sitter, the teen's mother, was unavailable. Says Mary Catherine Roper, a staff attorney for ACLU of Pennsylvania, "Public schools are supposed to give our children - all of our children - a chance to make something of themselves. This young woman needs that more than most and is trying to be both a good parent and a good student. She shouldn't have to choose between her child and her education."

These actions taken by the Central Dauphin School District may lead some parents to wonder where their priorities are. Instead of questioning families who are following the rules or trying to do the right thing, some may wonder if the district should be focusing more on the health, safety, education, and nutrition of the children.

Sources:

Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA)
http://www.hslda.org/hs/state/pa/200809241.asp

WHPTV/CBS
http://www.whptv.com/news/local/story.aspx?content_id=080a8ece-acef-476e-825d-ef85a8af2601

Central Dauphin School District
http://www.cdsd.k12.pa.us/cdsd/site/default.asp

American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania (ACLU)
http://www.aclupa.org/pressroom/schooldistrictsuedforprose.htm