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Sunday, February 2, 2014

Lunchtime Politics

WCAU-TV in Philadelphia reports:
The mother of a fifth grader at the Jersey Shore says her son has had his school lunch taken from him and thrown away by school staff -- just like a similar case in Utah that made national headlines.
“This to me is a form of bullying," said Amy Ross. Her 10-year-old son Jake attends Smithville Elementary School in Galloway Township, N.J.

As recently as this month, Jake, who has Asperger's syndrome, a form of Autism, has had his hot lunch tossed aside by staff because of an unpaid balance on his lunch account, Ross told NBC10's Ted Greenberg. The mother said the same practice has taken place several times since her son was in third grade and calls it "humiliating."
...

Dr. Annette Giaquinto, superintendent of Galloway Township Public Schools, told NBC10 that Ross had not made a recent complaint about Jake's food being thrown away.

Giaquinto said it is school policy to replace a child's hot lunch with a cheese sandwich if their account is delinquent.
Nothing in the report indicates that the school singled Jake Sutton out -- but treating any 10-year-old that way is pretty stupid -- as is the cheese sandwich option, which is the worst possible thing to give any kid on the gluten-free casein-free diet.