Mother files suit against school district accusing it of unjustly removing her son from school over AIDS rumors

The mother of a Grove, Oklahoma high school student who was removed from school has filed a lawsuit in state court against Grove School District, accusing the district of unjustly removing her son from school and spreading rumors he is carrying the AIDS virus. Sheila Dawson says she and her son are leaving the area. "I can’t even explain the scars it’s leaving on my son," she says. "We want to put our children in a place where they are not subjected to this kind of environment." Ms. Dawson says her son is not HIV positive and claims the rumors began because school officials "believed there was a possibility my son was involved with a student who has AIDS." She declines to comment if her son had a relationship with an AIDS-infected student. Her suit alleges the school also failed to remove derogatory graffiti written about her son in the speech and drama classroom and boys’ bathroom. According to school board member Annie Maxson, the student was offered home schooling or enrollment in the Grove Alternative Academy, which is designed for students who want to continue their education in a nontraditional setting. "I believe the school has done everything possible to protect the identity of Ms. Dawson’s son and we have always had his best interests in mind," she says. Ms. Dawson says her son was not informed of the Alternative Academy. "He was put on homebound status where the school sent a teacher for one to two hours a week to our home," she claims. The lawsuit says principal Don Barr removed the student from the school without due process.