My name is Alison Gadient.  I went to West Lafayette High School where I was forced to drop out in 2011 after CPS confronted me about my absences.  I was given the choice: Drop out or don’t miss any more school.

For someone with a pattern of frequent illness, the choice was easy.  

It wasn’t until my 20’s that I discovered my chronic underlying illnesses such as Narcolepsy.

I’ve since become a mother to a child who’s been plagued by ear infections their entire life and now has hearing loss, prompting the need for an IEP/504.

I thought it would be as simple as “The doctor will communicate with the school”, but so far that has not been the case.  I’ve asked what I needed to do and before anybody gave me answers, CPS was at my door telling me I was being feloniously neglectful.  Until that point, nobody told us we needed to sign a release of information, so the health records weren’t available to them, unbeknownst to us…

I stepped down from my full-time job to handle this problem.  It’s not fair for anyone to go through this.  I’m appalled by the lack of checks and balances in place… I’m heartbroken to be on the receiving end of this treatment again.

But even worse, I know we can’t just run away from it.  Sure, we can change schools… But this attitude and approach is like a cancer enveloping the system.  Other parents will continue to suffer in my place if we escape it.

I just can’t let that happen.

I am asking that the local Lafayette/West Lafayette school boards reconsider their policy on absences for disabled and chronically ill students.  Here is a list of potential changes:

• Make accommodations readily available, even without a doctor’s confirmation.  “A diagnosis is a privilege” and in this day and age, many of us can’t afford to pursue such.
• GUIDE parents through the process as much as possible.  Call, set up meetings, send home information about help and be direct.
• Understand that even as the pandemic’s severity wanes, the risk of illness does not for some children.  We saw “distance/remote learning” become more common during COVID.  At one point, masks were even required.  It needs to be understood that the risk is still there today.  Those with weakened immune systems are still vulnerable to illness.
• Consider the comfort of the children.  Maybe they don’t feel good and need to lay down in the nurses’s office, maybe they have a headache… there shouldn’t need to be medical proof for acute medical situations in order to provide comfort for a child.
• Last but certainly not least, reconsider the absence policy.  Disabled/chronically ill children usually grow up to be disabled/chronically ill adults.  By placing so much value on their absences, we are essentially teaching our children that they have no worth unless they can be present and in attendance.  This teaches everyone to look at them the same way, making them less desirable for job positions in the future.

Please help us, even if your child is healthy.  Keeping my sick child home keeps yours from getting sick and vice/versa.  A child with cancer or a condition like ALS still deserves fulfillment in their lives.  We can do better and we should.  We need to save our children.