“Something needs to change,” says Christa Lauks, the mother of a third grader at Schall Elementary School in Caro.
Lauks says she has watched her 8-year-old transform from a fun-loving innocent girl, into a terrified child after problems with a group of boys.
“They’ve pushed her down, stepped on her, and pulled her hair.”
Then in at the beginning of November her daughter came home and told her one boy had told her the explicit details of sex.
Lauks found it disturbing the young boy knew so much and went to the school to address the issue. She says she spoke with the principal, but it didn’t stop. Her daughter came home asking questions about other sexual acts this boy had told her about. Again she says she went to the school and raised concerns.
Then last Monday her daughter called home and asked to be picked up from schools.
“She got in the car and she was crying,” says Lauks.
Her daughter told her the same boy told her he planned to force her to have sex with him.
Lauks notified school leaders who she says told her they could put her daughter in another class, but this boy would not be removed or disciplined because he is disabled.
Lauks says this isn't fair to her daughter, and she fears this boy is a danger.
"I don't know this little boy. How do I know he's not going to do something to my daughter?”
NBC25 wanted to know if students with special needs are protected from punishment.
Saginaw Valley State University Assistant Professor and Special Education Expert Myra isn’t familiar with this exact case, but says in general no. They are still subject to discipline, but policies may be adjusted so students aren’t punished for behavior caused by their disabilities.
She however says the law does call for schools to integrate special needs students into mainstream classes, not separate them from. She says the goal is to teach all students social skills and to respect each other’s differences.
The principal at Schall Elementary School says she is aware of the situation and steps are being taken to keep children safe, but she said it wouldn’t be appropriate to talk about it on camera.
The mother of the child threatened says she’s not satisfied. She understands this little boy has a disability, but fears he could permanently hurt her little girl, if not physically, emotionally. She suggests the school pull him out of class, or assign someone to supervise his actions more closely and require he go to counseling to learn appropriate behavior.
“The school says they’re handling it. We’ve been up to the school several times. Why does it keep happening if they’re handling it?”
