Student Kicked Out Of School For Refusing To Wear RFID Tracking Badge Following Failed Appeal

cnsnews ^ | Friday, January 18, 2013 | Craig Bannister

[upchuck]

Having lost her appeal, 15 year-old student Andrea Hernandez is leaving John Jay High School after school officials denied her request to allow her to continue her "education uninterrupted" by permitting her to use her old (chipless) ID badge which "does not signify participation in a program which I believe conflicts with my religious beliefs."

In her handwritten letter, Hernandez writes: "I do not wish to wear the new badge, even without the RFID chip, because it signifies participation in the program."

Hernandez, who has been threatened with expulsion for refusing to wear a chipless RFID tracking badge, had her request for a preliminary injunction denied by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals and the Western District of Texas. Rutherford Institute attorneys argue the school is violating her rights under Texas' Religious Freedom Act and the First and Fourteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution.

"The case will definitely move forward now, and hopefully, we will eventually find justice in the courts," John W. Whitehead, president of The Rutherford Institute says.

Hernandez had been hoping the school would compromise. "If they dig in their heels, however, she will have to change schools," Rutherford told "The Right Views."

[Suz in AZ]

Just stick it in the microwave. One spark should do it.

[A_perfect_lady]

The sad thing is that every iPhone, iPad, GPS device, and cell phone is actually a tracking device. And everyone has at least one of those.

Yes. But let's not interrupt this satisfying Two Minutes of Hatred with such prosaic facts. The Endtimes contingent is having so much fun just now.

[deport]

The points you make are valid even if not accepted by the student and her religious beliefs.

But another reason I read sometime back from the school administration included the monetary factor in that they could find the students if they were on site and missing from the attendance count, thus raising their revenue stream for the day.

[yefragetuwrabrumuy]

They should now increase the pressure. The crafty way to do this would be to make a discreet paid scholarship offer to other students to “Leave John Jay High School under protest, by refusing to wear the RFID badge or support the dehumanization of students.” With no mention of the scholarships, it would appear to be a mass protest.

Throw in the “dehumanization” bit as the reason instead of religion, because it broadens the case as well as attracting the support of the more secular.

Losing one student, no problem. Losing half a dozen or a dozen students adds up to real money, from the school’s point of view. It also tells the public that it is not just one “hothead”, but a bunch of students and parents that find this objectionable.

[Mr. Know It All]

This badge has nothing to do with buying or selling, so it doesn’t match the description in the Bible.

[MaxMax]

And all the kids should be told about this method of denial to the Gov.
They will not turn away the whole school. Someone needs to get this onto their facebook.

[left that other site]

I don’t think that FReepers who believe that we are in the End Times are “Hateful”. Please don’t attribute that to me.

I am sorry if my post caused you to draw that conclusion.

[Resettozero]

Just stick it in the microwave. One spark should do it.

Clever use of modern technology. Bet a parent would have to cough up the money to replace a non-functional unit.

The fact that circumvention of tagging is even being thought of as a way for religious conservatives to proceed in American life indicates to me that students (and future adults) are being herded into containment rather than our paid officials dealing with the real problems of violence in public school systems.

[pepperdog]

No kids school age, but noticed an advertisement on tv the other night, high school at home via computer, no charge. Of course one could always be tracked by the computer id. Love the idea of kids not being indoctrinated by liberal teachers or exposed to the bullying that sometimes happens at publik schools for trying to excel. I also like having the idea of curriculum available for the parents to read and debate or downright ridicule if necessary. Then there is the added benefit of no danger of a gun free zone school shooting!

[Repulican Donkey]

What they’re talking about is ADA (Average Daily Attendance). What appeared in the story has little to do with ADA. Every school day, at 10:00AM, schools take an official attendance record for that day. Over the year those numbers get tabulated and averaged to serve as the basis for state funding the NEXT school year. Yes, ADA plays a small role in this, but not much. All of the misinformation on education galls me since I spent years working in public ed. I’m not a big fan. After Columbine I led a district effort to make our schools as safe as reasonably possible. It is a full time task. About 15 years ago the legislature founded something called AEP - Alternative Education Program - in every district. The AEP law is a joke. The net effect is that criminals under age 18 got foisted off onto public school districts instead of the juvenile justice system. Every day I left work thanking God we didn’t have anybody killed or raped that day - student or staff. Things just got worse after 2005 when the criminal element from New Orleans hit Texas after Katrina.

[Repulican Donkey]

Guess you are OK with Option 2.

[Resettozero]

Things just got worse after 2005 when the criminal element from New Orleans hit Texas after Katrina.

I'm curious what happened to the political career of the Mayor of Houston who magnanimously invited those from NO to "come on over". Still in office?

[Repulican Donkey]

Ok, to you she’s a brave young woman. To me she is a whiner and a brat. First, she’s in a magnet school, not a regular school, so she is getting a superior and more costly education than the herd back in the regular school. Second, attendance at a magnet school is not part of the “free appropriate public education” required by the state constitution. It is “gravy”. Send her back to the regular school. If a high school football player, band member, cheerleader etc has to agree to mandatory random drug testing because their programs are not part of the standard curriculum, then Ms. Entitled can wear the damn badge at a school that isn’t part of the standard curriculum. No one is “implanting a chip”. This isn’t the “sign of the beast”. This is wearing a stinking badge while inside a building. Jeez, get a grip!

[yadent]

So are these chipped badges like little ‘I’ve fallen and can’t get up’ devices, self-activated when one is in ‘trouble’ or wearer activated when in a ‘bad’ situation? Or are they more akin to a plane ‘beacon’ that tells one where to find the bodies? A false sense of security if that is what it’s for as I have dealt with such systems within the CA correctional system.

[deport]

White was term limited on Jan 2, 2010. He ran as the democratic candidate against Gov. Perry in the fall of 2010 and lost.

[deport]

THREE GOALS

1. Increase student safety and security. Our students' parents expect that we always know where their children are in our schools.

2. Increase attendance. Through more efficient attendance management, schools can generate additional revenues by identifying students who are not in their seats during roll call but who are in the school and locate them. (Increased attendance = increased state revenues)

3. Provide multi-purpose "Smart" Student ID card. The Student ID will provide access to the library and cafeteria, serve as a photo ID, and allow for the purchase of tickets to schools' extracurricular activities. Other uses will be rolled out during the pilot program. http://www.nisd.net/studentlocator/

Note #2 above indicates locator type device.

[Repulican Donkey]

Term limited

[Repulican Donkey]

Sounds reasonable to me. Students who are “out of area” identified; cashless means reduced theft; electronic attendance eliminates human error (kid in restroom or office when teacher takes ADA).

[Repulican Donkey]

Apples vs Oranges. Every 50 - 60 minutes every high school student is supposed to be in a particular room. You can bet the school cop and the APs have a “hot list” of the thugs. If they are wandering they can be located, as well as any potential victims. For instance: Thuggo isn’t in class but in a stairwell along with three other kids. Instant alert to trouble. One AP heads to each exit from the stairs, grabs them as they come out and deals with it / all APs converge and intercept. As to the “false sense of security”: every system is flawed.

[RitaOK]

Thanks, upchuck.

Can’t imagine ACLU going along with this overreach.