St. Croix Preparatory Academy, a public charter school in Stillwater, Minnesota, suspended and then expelled a young elementary student for not wearing a mask.
The student was expelled after being suspended four times for a total of 10 days, according to documents the student’s parents provided to Alpha News. The first suspension occurred in late October. The school board unanimously voted to expel the student on Thursday evening. This is the first instance Alpha News was able to identify where a Minnesota student was expelled from a public primary or secondary school for not wearing a mask.
“Having reviewed all the facts, the Administration has determined [redacted] repeatedly violated the Board regulation and Face Covering Policy requiring face coverings in school,” the school’s executive director, Jon Gutierrez wrote in an expulsion notice sent to the student’s parents — Abby and Jake Lee. This notice was sent prior to the board voting to oust the child.
“His continuing refusal to comply after being notified and suspended also constitutes gross disobedience. The Administration has determined that it is appropriate to pursue expulsion in this matter,” the notice continues.
The student who was expelled is not the only Lee child to face disciplinary action as a result of not wearing a mask in school. Abby Lee said that her other children also face expulsion. Her son is being fast-tracked through the expulsion process because he has an individual education plan (IEP) due to a speech impediment, she said.
“You can’t keep a kid with an IEP out of school as long, apparently, so they did his hearing first,” she explained to Alpha News.
The school determined that the child’s disability does not exempt him from wearing a mask and “that his conduct was not a manifestation of his disability,” per the expulsion notice.
Abby Lee also claimed that the school gave away her son’s spot before the school board even voted to expel him. She said the school has also given away her daughter’s seat as her hearing and disciplinary process unfolds.
The Lee family plans to homeschool their child who has been expelled as well as any of their other children who will be expelled for violating the school’s mask rules.
Meanwhile, only five Minnesotans ages 19 or younger have died of coronavirus, according to the Department of Health. This means that school-age children make up about half of one percent of Minnesota’s roughly 9,600 COVID-related mortalities.
Multiple studies have also concluded that kids aren’t vulnerable to coronavirus — nor do children under 10 pose a considerable risk of transmitting the virus, according to a study that even mainstream media’s self-appointed fact-checkers approve of.
Kyle Hooten
Kyle Hooten is Managing Editor of Alpha News. His coverage of Minneapolis has been featured on television shows like Tucker Carlson Tonight and in print media outlets like the Wall Street Journal.
