Posted on 03/03/2008 2:21:07 PM PST by Morgana
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) - The state Supreme Court has agreed to hear the case of a functionally illiterate man who says the Kanawha County school system failed to provide him a proper education.
An attorney for Thomas Sturm says that although Sturm was allowed to graduate from Sissonville High School in 2004, the 21-year-old man can read only on a third-grade level.
The attorney, Mike Clifford, says the school board failed to abide by state and federal laws meant to monitor and protect the rights of students with disabilities. Sturm allegedly suffers from attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
Kanawha County Judge Tod Kaufman dismissed the 2006 lawsuit last year, saying Sturm didn't exhaust all his administrative remedies.
School board general counsel Jim Withrow says Sturm could have complained about his lack of education and requested a hearing with education officials.
Clifford expects the high court to take up the case this summer.
Gee, this could be a test case for whether schools have a responsibility to make sure kids have learned a minimal amount. You hear so many stories, especially about inner city schools, where kids graduate and are functionally illiterate. Whether a lawsuit is the answer, we’ll see what happens with this one.
Gee, ya think the illiterate one will seek big $$$ damages? Illiteracy is not synonymous with stupidity.
Shut down the school system and refund the tax money they've misspent. Not likely to happen though. We have some school districts around here that are in default both financially and quality of education. They won't be closed because they are run by protected species.
Ouch! My mother is from Sissonville, WV. She turned out alright. She retired as a Lt. in the Virginia Sheriff’s Department in Richmond, VA.
Looks like some of them may have grounds to take me up on it!
I bet he figures out how to sign the back of the check.
Maybe I ought to start a website seeking donations to pursue “Reparations For The Illiterate”. Spell a few words wrong just to make it look legit, set up with PayPal and watch that money roll in while I continue to research the problem.
“I bet he figures out how to sign the back of the check.”
Never mind the West Virginia Lottery........I am willing to bet money on this one!!!!!
“Ouch! My mother is from Sissonville, WV. “
Sissonville “Ain’t what it used to be” that is for sure!
My crystal ball says there’s a new pickup and some shoes in his future.
I'd guess it will be ruled like the Police. They have a duty to protect society in general, but no duty to protect you in particular.
No, I’m not familiar with that part of the state. Went to college in Wheeling, though. Left there over 30 years back - and haven’t looked back.
ping
LOL. We lived in Sissonville for over a year. My son was born in Charleston but spent the 1st 5 months of his life in S’ville. He turned out all right. He’s almost 2 and know all his letters, colors, shapes, and can count from 1-15. Wait, he already knows more than the idiot suing the school board!
You get the idea!
Every year the results of testing showed that the vast majority of the students in his high school ( and about to enter) were essentially illiterate and innumerate. At the planning meeting at the beginning of the year, my brother would always stand and suggest to all the teachers that what was needed here was a program to teach this kids ***basic** reading and math. He was always ignored.
Instead of teaching basic reading and math to those illiterate and innumerate students, the principal and liberal/Marxist teachers insisted on preparing courses as if these kids had adequate skills, which of course they didn’t.
My brother, in his math and physics classes, used his course materials to teach addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, fractions, and decimals, and he took every opportunity ( using his curriculum) to teach basic phonics.
My brother was very popular with his students. Even in the worst of the worst schools in America, students do appreciate teachers who will meet their needs.
here in the Cleveland Municipal School District a high school senior reading at third grade level will be accused of "acting white". (this is NOT a joke.)
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