Father refutes reaction to son’s Popsicle-stick ‘weapon’

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This article was published 21/03/2024 (592 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A Manitoba father is accusing school officials of misapplying safety policies after he was asked to participate in a violent threat assessment after his autistic son took a toy made from Popsicle sticks to class.

The child, a 13-year old student at École John Henderson Middle School, was reprimanded by school officials last month when a teacher caught him showing an “imitation weapon” to a friend.

Despite acknowledging the child poses no threat to his classmates, school officials initiated a violent threat risk assessment, asking his parents to participate in an in-depth interview.

The incident has called into question how and why school officials choose to invoke such assessments, said the boy’s father, who spoke to the Free Press anonymously to protect his son’s identity.

“I feel very strongly that this has been misapplied to my son,” he said by phone.

“This is an important policy… we have to keep schools safe, but when you apply it to a Popsicle stick, does that not diminish the seriousness of this policy?”

The item in question was constructed from Popsicle sticks, paper and a rubber band. It was modeled after a character from one of the child’s favourite video games and was not intended to be a weapon, the man said.

The game, Brawhalla, is something the child plays exclusively at school, where he is a member of the e-sports team, he added.

The assessment, developed by the North American Centre for Threat Assessment and Trauma Response, is designed to identify and intervene when school students exhibit potentially violent or threatening behaviour.

It asks parents 39 questions about their child’s home life and relationships, as well as a review of their social media presence, online search history and school work. It may also include searches of a student’s locker, backpack and personal notebooks or journals.

Typically, a report detailing the findings of an assessment is added to the student’s permanent academic file, along with intervention recommendations.

The father refused to participate in the interview, but fears the fact an assessment was triggered will make school more difficult for the boy, who lives with high-functioning autism, he said.

“This is an important policy… we have to keep schools safe, but when you apply it to a Popsicle stick, does that not diminish the seriousness of this policy?”–Father

“This questions my son’s integrity and my family’s integrity, and yet we have no recourse,” the man said. “What biases are going to be applied because of this in the future, and by whom?”

He has asked the River East Transcona School Division to strike the incident from his son’s record, but officials have declined to do so, he said.

While the father’s concerns have been “duly noted” the division has decided to extend “its full support towards the use of this process, ensuring adherence to all relevant legislation,” RETSD superintendent Sandra Herbst wrote in an email to the father, obtained by the Free Press.

“While it is acknowledged that no explicit verbal threat was articulated… the presence of a replica weapon brought onto school premises initiated the process — a process whose purpose is to gather information before determining the necessity for further action or consequences,” she wrote.

The father will be allowed to submit a written response objecting to the assessment and explaining his interpretation of the incident, and the letter will similarly be attached to the student’s permanent file, Herbst added.

The man disputed the school’s definition of an imitation weapon, asking them to explain how the item created by his son meets such criteria.

The Free Press asked similar questions of division officials, who did not provide a clear answer.

“The division cannot discuss the particulars in relation to any specific assessment or student,” Herbst said in an email statement.

“School and divisional personnel have met with the concerned parent and continue to remain willing to meet to address these matters directly.”

“What biases are going to be applied because of this in the future, and by whom?”–Father

 

Herbst stressed the risk assessment is not a disciplinary measure and does not negatively impact a student’s academic record or future opportunities.

The superintendent reiterated support for the assessment protocol, saying it ensures all potential risks are addressed in a formal, thorough and complete way.

The father argued the policy should be reviewed, warning its definition of a weapon is too vague and misapplication could be harmful to children and families — particularly for those who are neurodivergent.

tyler.searle@freepress.mb.ca