Posted on 05/27/2004 1:18:08 PM PDT by Roberts
Student Whose Hair Set Afire Told To Stay Home Alleged Attacker Remains In School
POSTED: 8:23 am MDT May 26, 2004 UPDATED: 11:07 am MDT May 26, 2004
DENVER -- A 13-year-old Denver girl said she was threatened with a knife at her middle school and her hair was set on fire, yet she was the one who was told to stay home for the remainder of the school year while her alleged attacker wasn't suspended or even investigated.
Courtney Glowczewski has a small right arm and leg because of cerebral palsy, a disability that her teachers say has not kept her from working hard in school and being a good student.
"I do really good in my classes. My teachers tell me, 'Good job,' and, 'You're doing very good,' and 'Excellent girl,'" said Glowczewski.
But her physical appearance has made her a target of taunting and of physical attack, which she said has never been addressed by the administration at Martin Luther King Middle School. Last week, she said the bullying got worse when she said she was threatened and assaulted by a seventh grade boy.
"He pulled out a knife, a silver knife, a pocket knife, and then he said 'What!?' So I was scared and didn't know what to do," said Glowczewski.
As she walked to her seat she smelled smoke and one of her classmates was patting her hard on the back.
"I looked and there was a black spot on the back of my shirt. And then I saw some black hair falling from my hair," said Glowczewski.
Her hair was on fire and the other student said that she was trying to help put it out.
Her mother, Sherrie, was called to school when her daughter reported the incident to the assistant principal. Sherrie Glowczewski was outraged when she was told by the administration at Martin Luther King that her daughter didn't need to come back and not to worry about the tests.
"I just wanted to go to a school that doesn't make fun of me. I wanted to be treated with respect," Glowczewski said, crying.
Meanwhile, her mother has made repeated phone calls to the assistant principal.
"I have no idea what they've done. That's why I want to speak to her. I want to know what happened to (the bullying suspect) and what's going on in that school," said Sherrie Glowczewski.
7NEWS discovered that while Glowczewski was sent home, her alleged attacker is still in school, even though administrators confirmed he had a knife.
The principal has now admitted her staff did not call police, did not interview potential witnesses, and did not conduct a proper investigation.
"He shouldn't come back in school. I should be in school taking my education and it's not fair," said Glowczewski.
The interim principal at Martin Luther King Middle School declined an on-camera interview, but said her staff made serious mistakes in this case and that she will offer Glowczewski and her family a summer school program and transportation.
Meanwhile, both Mark Stevens, the spokesman for Denver Public Schools, and the superintendent declined to discuss the case or DPS policy for dealing with such issues. That seems to be the same response Glowczewski's parents got when they complained to the administration.
I guess all those no-tolerance policies only apply to really dangerous things like aspirin and plastic forks.
It's absolutely rediculuous. It even sounds like she wants to learn; schools don't get that often so they shouldn't tell her to go home. Also, the Zero Tolerance policy is gay. Shouldn't exist.
btw, LMAOROFLLOL
okay, it wasn't that funny, but it's true, which makes it that funny
This is crazy! The attacker is gettiun g treated like a victim. Where is the outrage. Where is Mike Rosen?!
Or a drawing of a gun.
If this happened to a child of mine there would be arrests made even if it was only me.
now if he pulled out a bible instead of a knife!
Poor kid. There is simply no excuse for this.
And fingers pointing like a gun....unbelievable
so the kid will be further punished by having to go to summer school
Ping!
The principal has now admitted her staff did not call police, did not interview potential witnesses, and did not conduct a proper investigation.
Only the bizarro world of education tolerates this level of willful disregard.
An unrelated thought: does the administration at M.L. King Middle School punish anyone who plagiarizes?
My first reaction was this is unbelievable. Then I realized, sadly, that it isn't.
I think the rule for avoiding danger by steering clear of any M. L. King Blvd in large metro US cities probably applies to any school named ML King as well.
The name "Martin Luther King" applied to a street or a school is a thinly veiled warning that non-minority individuals are not tolerated there.
"I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character."
Done. Dream realized.
I'm glad she does "real good in school" and I hope she gets to go back and "take her education."
From her quotes, it seems she has a way to go in that regard.
(But that does not mean she should be set on fire.)
Sadly, I wonder if this blond-haired, disabled girl had a prayer in that school. The administration knew that a girl had her hair set on fire, and yet didn't interview a single person to find out what happened? That's incredible, even by public school standards.
Who cares what happens to a honky? </sarcasm>
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