By: Las Vegas Now Staff
An angry mother is demanding answers after she says her special needs son was taken from home without her knowledge or permission. Felicia Philips says an assistant principal showed up at her home and took her son, who was home sick, to school without contacting her.
Sixteen-year-old Devon Pollard is a junior at Spring Valley High School. Last Wednesday was testing day for the district, an important day for students but Devon was home sick. He's a special needs student and says he got scared when he saw one of his assistant principals at his door threatening to suspend him if he didn't get into her car.
The report filled out by Clark County School District police refers to the incident as suspicious circumstances/kidnapping.
Philips said she had Devon stay home from school because he didn't feel good. She left for work and says about one hour later an assistant principal showed up at the house.
”It was a lady that worked at school. I recognized her, and she said 'Devon are you going to school to take the test?' I said 'I don't know I am not feeling well.' She said 'if you don't I'm going to RPC you,'” said Pollard.
RPC stands for request parent conference and can sometimes lead to suspension. Pollard who is a special needs student and works at a second grade level, says he felt he had no other choice.
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“She said 'I'll be outside waiting, I'll give you give you five minutes,'” Devon said. He did get into the car and was taken to school. His mother is furious and says she was never contacted.
“To me this is like kidnapping a minor especially without a guardian's authority. For somebody taking my son off my property. I don't care if they want to take him to school. They can't do that without a parent's authority,” said Philips.
She says the principal at Spring Valley would not return her calls so she finally went to the school on Monday.
“They did apologize and told me it was wrong and asked me what I wanted for compensation. I said I did not know. Bottom line is this can not to happen again,” she said.
Philips says none of the emergency contacts on Devon's personal chart were contacted, letting them know he was going to be picked up by an administrator. Eyewitness News did contact the high school principal but the phone calls were not returned. The school district says they cannot comment . Devon's mom is now hoping to start a parent committee to help keep this from happening to other students.
Click here to email reporter Chris Saldaña.
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I’m a sophmore that attends Spring Valley High School and i personally think thats she shouldn’t sue the school. I think she should sue the administrarors that think they have a right to do something like that. They deserve some punishment for something, they just can’t walk away from something like this. It’s ridiculous how people think they can just apologize and get away with it, do something for Christ sake. Don’t just sit there and let these stuck up paper pushers ruin everything.
Comment by Anonymous — April 9, 2008 @ 8:56 pm
This event happened because of No Child Left Behind. The schools are at risk of being deemed inadequate if students in various sub-groups (like special education) do not take important tests like the proficiency exam. This mother should have made her son go to school that day unless he was deathly ill. Parents need to help their kids succeed, too. Should the assistant principal have taken the boy to school without the mom’s knowledge and in a personal vehicle? Definitely not, but I can see where the school’s desperation came from. Making Adequate Yearly Progress is vitally important to all schools now that No Child Left Behind judges them on tests and attendance. A few kids missing a test can hurt the entire school!
Comment by Mindy — April 10, 2008 @ 3:53 pm
I like to Thank everyone for your responce, AND SUPPORT. Bottom line…MY SON WAS TAKING (KIDNAPPED) from our home. I need not to prove to anyone what a good parent I am, or a good kid my son is.PEOPLE THAT KNOW ME, KNOW I AM A GOOD PARENT, AND MY FAMILY AND FRIENDS SUPPORT ME. MY SON IS A GOOD STUDENT, AND HAVE NEVER BEEN IN INTROBLE WITH HIS TEACHERS OR THE SCHOOLS, MY KID GOES TO SCHOOL TO LEARN, AND IF MY CHILD IS SICK HE CAN STAY HOME. I DONT CARE WHAT DAY IT IS MY CHILDS HEALTH IS MORE IMPORTANT, NOONE HAS THE RIGHT TO COME AND TAKE ANYONES CHILD FROM YOUR HOME WHAT IS THIS WORLD COMING TOO PUT YOURSELF IN MY SONS SHOES AND MINE. I CAN NOT STAND TALKING ABOUT THIS BECASUE IT UPSETS ME MORE AND MORE.
Comment by The Mother — April 30, 2008 @ 9:51 am
I agree, the school should not have taken your son to school without your knowledge. That’s inexcusable.
However, I disagree with your perspective. I’m not saying you’re a bad parent. Good parents make mistakes. Making a mistake, in itself, doesn’t make you a bad parent.
However, your son was evidently healthy enough to go to school and take the test. The proof is in the pudding, so to speak. And if you knew you’d done the right thing, you wouldn’t be so defensive.
I suspect you know you were wrong to allow your son to stay home on the day of a big test. Perhaps you know, or you do not believe, your son will ever leave home, or have a job. But if he does, there will be days when he goes to work when he isn’t feeling 100%. That’s the nature of being an adult — sometimes we have to do things we don’t want to do. And if he becomes a father, I *guarantee* he won’t get a single sick day for many years!
All of that said, I hope you receive some kind of compensation — far greater than a mere verbal apology — from the school district. Two wrongs don’t make a right, and whether you were right to keep your son home or not, the school was way, way out of line to take your child out of the home without your permission. I hope your advocacy ensures this never happens again — on a national level, not just here in Nevada. I feel sad thinking that you can’t feel safe leaving your son at home. Best wishes to you and your son!
Comment by Donna — May 25, 2008 @ 5:01 pm