Girl suspended, potential alternative school time for sharing inhaler
GARLAND, TX (FOX 4)- A 12-year-old Garland girl thought she was helping save another girl's life -- instead she potentially faces a month in an alternative school.
Indiyah Rush, 12, is dependent on her rescue inhaler. The 7th grade A/B honor roll student knows all too well the scary feeling when it seems each breath could be the last.
Tuesday in gym class at Schrade Middle School in Garland she says another girl with asthma was wheezing, gasping for breath during a workout. Indiyah, who plays club volleyball and has coped with the disease since she was 5, offered the girl her inhaler.
The two ended up in the principal's office and Indiyah wound up with several days of at-home suspension and 30 days of alternative school.
"I mean they punished her twice," said Monique Rush, Indiyah's mother. "They suspended her on top of sending her to alternative school. I mean how could you do a kid like that?"
The district says 30 days at alternative school is an initial automatic punishment for sharing a controlled substance including prescription drugs like inhalers - until there's a hearing to weigh all the facts. The final punishment could change and range from no days to the maximum of 30 days.
"It's a prescription and one students severity with asthma may not mirror that of the girl who let the other borrow hers and that could have resulted in some pretty significant issues," said Chris Moore, Garland ISD spokesman.
Indiyah and her mother feel any time at alternative school is excessive.
"I was just trying to save her life. I didn't think I was trying to do anything bad," Indiyah said.