Marijuana found at elementary school
Published 8:45 pm Tuesday, June 15, 2010
A bag of marijuana was found in a storage area belonging to a 4-year-old student at Mack Benn Jr. Elementary School Friday.
A teacher found the drug in the student’s cubby as she was cleaning it after school, city spokeswoman Debbie George said. The student is a male special needs student who is non-verbal.
“There was really no way to communicate with the child to find out where he might have gotten it,” George said, adding that the area is not secure and “anyone could have put it in there.”
Suffolk Public Schools spokeswoman Bethanne Bradshaw said the school division will not punish any student since there is no way of knowing where the bag came from.
“It was never associated with a specific student,” Bradshaw said. “There’s no one to penalize specifically.”
Normally, Bradshaw said, an older student found with drugs at school would be recommended for expulsion. A 4-year-old in possession of the drug would prompt an administrative hearing.
However, since it cannot be determined which student brought the drug to school, no disciplinary action will be taken, she said.