School defends punishment of 5-year-old girl

By Marie Szaniszlo
Milford Daily News
Apr. 09, 2006

What a sick joke...MAYNARD -- School officials yesterday denied they had disciplined one kindergartner for hugging another, alleging that the girl was "roughhousing" on the playground.

"This is not an issue about hugging," said Superintendent Mark R. Masterson. "This is an issue about safety."

According to Masterson, 5-year-old Savannah Marino and her class were outside Greenmeadow Elementary School Tuesday afternoon when she and a half-dozen other students began playing "inappropriately."

Some were running around, flipping children’s hair, he said, when an aide saw Savannah pick up her friend "6 inches off the ground."

Her friend told a teacher the gesture made her uncomfortable, Masterson said.

So the teacher asked all six students to reflect on their actions, write a letter about what they had done and why it was inappropriate, and bring it home to their parents.

"I do like hugs," a pigtailed Savannah said as she perched on a chair in the dining room of her home yesterday. "But I don’t like to get in trouble."

So, even though she never actually picked her friend off the ground and was standing in line with her, not running around with the other students, she said, she wrote, "I tuched (sic) Sophie because she tuched (sic) me. I didn’t like it," and her teacher corrected her spelling.

Later that day, she went home, looking forlorn, and when her mother, Brenda Brier, asked what was wrong, Savannah showed her the letter and explained what had happened.

"I said to the principal, ’What is your policy on touching?’ She said, ’There’s no touching.’ I said, ’What about hugs?’" Brier said. "’She said, Hugs are fine.’"

By yesterday, the district was being inundated with calls from the media asking whether one kindergartner had actually been punished for hugging another.

"This isn’t about safety; this is about saving face," Brier said.

"They’d look foolish if they admitted they’d punished a child for hugging someone. So they’re lumping Savannah and her friend in with the students who were misbehaving."

Asked whether it was acceptable for one student to hug another, Masterson hesitated before answering, "Hugs are OK."

"If there’s been a misunderstanding," he said, "that needs to be sorted out between the student and teacher."