Parents and teachers ask Northside trustees to act after repeated denials of accommodations for medically fragile student

Parents and a former district teacher told the Northside ISD board that a Scarborough Elementary fourth‑grader with an uncommon, heat‑sensitive medical condition has been denied routine accommodations — including morning recess scheduling and access to a medical refrigerator the family says the campus initially refused.

What parents said - Juliana, a fourth‑grade student who said she has hereditary coproporphyria and cannot tolerate temperatures over 80 degrees, asked trustees for help to move her recess to the morning so she can play outdoors with classmates. In her remarks she said, “I just want to be included, to feel safe, and to have a normal school day and recess with my friends like everyone else.” - Joanna Sandoval, Juliana’s sister, described her sister’s daily challenges and asked the board to “come up with a solution” to allow morning recess so Juliana can be included in her final elementary year. - Lupita Sandoval, Juliana’s mother, thanked the district for recognizing Rare Disease Day earlier in the year but said the family has faced miscommunication and what they described as decisions presented as final rather than made collaboratively. She said her daughter spent 94 days in the hospital last year and that the campus twice denied access to a medical refrigerator; the family later confirmed with the county fire chief that a cited fire‑code reason was incorrect.

Broader parental concerns and district response - The speakers asked the board to require campus staff to verify legal or policy claims before communicating them to families, to provide mandatory training for campus staff about invisible and rare disabilities, and to establish accountability when students’ rights are denied. - Joanne Parra, a former Northside collaborative teacher and long‑time district employee, criticized what she described as prolonged, adversarial meetings and said the district’s record on special‑education cases in court was concerning; she urged the board to do better by special‑education students. - Dr. Kraft acknowledged the remarks and asked staff to address the issues raised. The board chair noted that citizen comments are for information and that administration would follow up with the family and staff.

Why this matters Families with medically fragile children told trustees they feel procedural decisions have been made outside of the standard ARD/504 process; they said that practice undermines collaboration and delays legally required accommodations. The witnesses requested clearer, more transparent processes, required training for campus employees on invisible disabilities, and timely, verifiable communications with families.

Ending Trustees did not take action during the citizen comment period (the public‑comment item is informational only by law) but staff said they would follow up with the family and return any required information to the board.