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A family in San Jose is continuing their fight after their child’s service dog was denied access to the Willow Glen Elementary.
Lydia Truong tells NBC Bay Area that his 6-year-old so has recently been diagnosed with autism and has a history of eloping and/or running off.
With Truong’s son’s history, the walk from the parking lot to their son’s classroom has been challenging because the Willow Glen Elementary is located on a Main Street.
And so, to reduce the risk of their son running off, the family brought Maelene, their son’s service dog.
Maelene is trained to perform one important task: to run after the child and block his path, so the boy doesn’t stray too far and get into any dangerous situations.
However, Truong said that during the first day of school in August, the school’s vice principal asked the family to remove the dog from campus, asking if it was registered.
Truong then pointed out that under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), service dogs do not need certification. And they can be trained by their owners to perform a task that is directly related to a person’s disability
Furthermore, service dogs are allowed to be with their handlers, even in places that don’t allow pets. These establishments include restaurants, shops, hospitals, schools, and hotels.
So, after being denied access, Truong requested the San Jose Unified School District to put the denial and reason in writing.
However, the family did not hear any form of response from the district, not until September.
In September, the parents received a letter from San Jose Unified School District stating the dog did not meet the criteria for a service animal.
It also noted that based on reviewed information, the dog does not do work or perform any tasks related to any disability. And that the student “had not been assessed by the district on his disability”.
However, Jan Garrett, Deputy Director for the Pacific ADA Center at the Public Health Institute (PHI) and a former attorney with over 25 years of experience interpreting ADA law, tells NBC Bay Area, “As long as the handler gets them under control right away, then that is still a service animal.”
Furthermore, after being shown a video of Maelene performing her task of running after the child and blocking his path, Garrett confirmed that the pooch is qualified as a service dog, and not merely an emotional support dog.
Garrett also added that schools cannot require an assessment of the child’s disability before allowing a service dog on campus.
The ADA website also states that you may only ask certain information about service animals using two questions:
- Is the dog a service animal required because of a disability?
- What work or task has the dog been trained to perform?
And you are NOT allowed to do the following:
- Request any documentation that the dog is registered, licensed, or certified as a service animal
- Require that the dog demonstrate its task, or inquire about the nature of the person’s disability
Which, in this case, were requests that the school asked from the family.
For now, the family has chosen not to bring Maelene back to school but are continuing her training. Truong even revealed that they’ve hired a dog trainer to help them train their dog.
NBC Bay Area reveals that they’ve shared Garrett’s review of the situation with the San Jose School District, but did not hear back.
