Some of you might have read about this by now:

PEA RIDGE, AR– The Disability Rights Center of Arkansas, Inc. (DRC) claims the Pea Ridge Public School District has removed three siblings from school, two of whom have disabilities.

The group claims the students have been denied the right to attend school until documentation is provided that they are not HIV positive.

…

(source)

Read more:
Joe.My.God. link
thenewcivilrightsmovement link
5newsonline link
Box Turtle Bulletin

I live in Pea Ridge. All I can say (so far) is that I find what Superintendent Rick Neal has done to be appalling. And I’m fairly certain illegal. I’m attempting to find out more information from within my community about what’s going on, and why.

I can say I am somewhat surprised, but at the same time I’m not. Pea Ridge is a small town. In the South. While this area in Northwest Arkansas is more progressive than a majority of the state (thanks in part to Walmart and vendors to Walmart bringing in people from all over the US and the world), there are still many “backwoods” locals that are filled with teachings from organized religions that choose to live in the past.

If you want to email Superintendent Rick Neal, his email is: rneal@prs.k12.ar.us, or call 479-451-8181. You can find a list of his staff here if you would like to contact them as well.

I’ll post more as I find out about it.

Update @ 2:26pm:

In case the above mentioned staff list “disappears”, here is a list of the email addresses of the Pea Ridge School District officers:

• Rick Neal, Superintendent. rneal@prs.k12.ar.us
• Danielle Rose, Superintendent’s Assistant. drose@prs.k12.ar.us
• Keith Martin, Assistant Superintendent. kmartin@prs.k12.ar.us
• Bonnie Colville, Treasurer. bcolville@prs.k12.ar.us
• Gail Langston, Payroll Clerk, Human Resources. glangston@prs.k12.ar.us
• Stephanie Stamps, Human Resources, Insurance. sstamps@prs.k12.ar.us

Knowing how unlikely it is ANYONE will respond to emails, I suggust you call the school district at 479-451-8181.

The irony(?) is, on the Pea Ridge School District website, the footer states: “Pea Ridge School District does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, sex, national origin or disability in any of its policies, practices or procedures.”

Update @ 2:35 pm:

The first news video I found of it… (also seen on thenewcivilrightsmovement.com)