SAN ANTONIO — New allegations are emerging from parents whose children attend a San Antonio charter school.
Great Hearts Western Hills Upper School has been the subject of two news articles by KENS 5 in recent months.
On Wednesday, another parent emailed KENS 5 hoping to shed light on the serious medical situation at the same school.
A father whose daughter has type 1 diabetes revealed details of the traumatic situation in KENS 5 on condition of anonymity.
“I wanted to bring about change, positive change,” he explained.
Fathers can track their daughter’s blood sugar levels at any time.
“She wears a CGM that continuously monitors her blood sugar levels. Bluetooth technology allows us to check her blood sugar levels at any time,” he said.
The family prepared specific instructions detailed in a 504 plan for the school in case their daughter’s blood sugar levels dropped to dangerously low levels.
“It says in case of severe hypoglycemia you need to contact your parents,” the father explained.
According to the father, on October 31st, while his daughter was in class, a nurse sent another student to call her.
The nurse was also able to track her daughter’s blood sugar levels and knew she needed treatment.
However, the daughter said that the teacher would not let her go home until she finished work.
“Other students who were familiar with my daughter’s condition started saying, ‘Ma’am, you should send her to the nurse. She needs to go to the nurse.’ Ta. [The teacher] “We said it had nothing to do with us,” the father explained. “As time passed, her daughter got up and tried to go. The teacher stopped what her daughter was doing and went to the door to prevent her daughter from getting out.”
Severe hypoglycemia, below 54 mg/dL, can cause symptoms such as difficulty walking, vision problems, and seizures, according to the CDC.
“What was your daughter’s blood sugar level when the incident happened?” we asked the father.
He answered, “I’m 65 years old and it’s been declining.”
Another student called a nurse for help, and her daughter was eventually able to receive treatment.
The father said he never received a phone call from the school warning him about the incident, which he says violates his daughter’s 504 plan. He said he learned of the circumstances from his daughter on the night of the incident and other family members from Great Hearts Western Hills corroborated the story.
The next morning, he and his wife met with administrators and teachers to figure out what went wrong.
“The doctor has allowed my daughter to go to the nurse for low-carbohydrate treatment in the past, so when she said she didn’t know, he questioned her sincerity. ” said the father. ”[An administrator] She said the kids shouldn’t have taken over the class…she actually likened it to the French Revolution. I said this is interesting because the French Revolution was actually one of the most violent revolutions in history, and no violence occurred in the classroom. ”
The father emailed the school board and Great Hearts of Texas administrators. The superintendent responded in a timely manner.
“They asked me to speak to give the principal an opportunity to resolve these issues,” the father explained.
The father says a big reason he sends his child to Great Hearts Western Hills is because of the care and compassion of the school nurse. His hope is that the nurse will not be disciplined for this incident.
At the end of the day, he says he just wants to take responsibility. He plans to meet with Great Hearts High School’s principal on Friday to discuss ways to improve communication between administrators and training for teachers on 504 plans.
He also filed a complaint with the TEA.
A Great Hearts Texas spokesperson said they would not comment on the situation, but told KENS 5 in an email: “We are aware of this incident and will work with the parents involved.” wrote.
“I hope so [Friday] After meeting, we were able to come to an agreement that something like this would never happen. “Because I don’t want to think about what could have been worse,” the father added.