Student with HIV sues Milton Hershey School after admissions denial

Thursday, 01 December 2011 13:50

Student with HIV sues Milton Hershey School after admissions denial

Written by Craig Layne, Morning Edition Host/Reporter

(Harrisburg) -- Advocates for people living with HIV and AIDS say they're dismayed by a Milton Hershey School decision to deny enrollment to an HIV positive teenager. The 13-year-old Philadelphia-area boy has sued the Derry Township, Dauphin County, school for disadvantaged youngsters, claiming it discriminated against him.

The boy's lawyer, Ronda Goldfein, Executive Director of the AIDS Law Project of Pennsylvania, says the admissions denial is against the law. "We see this as a straightforward violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which clearly establishes that you can't treat a person with a disability differently simply because of that disability," Goldfein says.

In a statement, the Milton Hershey School said it was a "challenging" decision to deny the boy's enrollment, but it did so out of concern for the health and safety of its 1,850 students who live on campus.

The school says it was preparing to ask a federal court to review its admissions decision. The court documents, which the school shared with witf News, reveal the school was ready to ask the court to declare it did not violate the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Dr. John Goldman specializes in infectious diseases and internal medicine at Pinnacle Health. Speaking on witf's Radio SmartTalk, Goldman says there's very little risk of the boy spreading HIV. "You're taking a kid who is sick, who poses no danger to any other kids at the school, and you're flat out discriminating against him," Goldman says. "There is no way that the kid, through any kind of casual contact, could give another kid at that school AIDS," he says.

The school's statement points out Milton Hershey is a "unique home-like environment, a pre-K -12 residential school where children live in homes with 10-12 other students on our campus 24 hours a day, seven days a week."

It concludes, "after careful review and analysis, we determined we could not put our children at risk."

witf's Tim Lambert produced a two-part series on the MHS in September 2010 looking at the school itself and some of the controversies surrounding it at the time.

The state Attorney General's office is currently investigating the trust that runs the Milton Hershey School amid questions over how much it paid for a golf course bought to serve as a buffer zone for the school.

Last modified on Friday, 03 February 2012 11:01

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# lawrence Garner 2011-12-12 18:14

This case of the 13 year old boy wanting to enter MHS has caused much attention and has produces many myths both for and against MHS. First MHS is correct in not letting a 13 year old HIV positive boy to enroll. It does pose an iminate danger to staff, teachers, house parents and fellow students. A typical child who spends 24/7 with 12 to 15 others students in one home will without a doubt be injured to bleed from horseplay, to sports, to an accident and by typical boys that age to fighting. All this is a threat to others. Federal and State Law requires that no one know of this boys infection therefore mishandling any of the above situations will be catastrophic. I am not even touching on a 13 year old boys normal hormone drive sex drive. The dangers described above are many, the prevention non-existent. PHC has been unrealistic on this problem and are just using this tragedy as a vindetta against MHS. Alumni overwhelmingly back MHS and their stance on admitting this young man.

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# Rodger 2012-01-21 22:24

Your statement i agree to a certain point... but it does not make sense.. any one even at a public school can have the HIV, so they same activities in MHS can be found at any school and any accident can happen any where at any moment..

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# Support M H S. 2011-12-12 20:53

I would like to ask Dr. John Goldman to take full responsibility for any child who might become infected at Milton Hershey School because of his statement and personal views. Milton Hershey School is as closed a student population that there is, and certainly more so than a collage campus. I would like to see any study that refutes Duke Universities study that HIV is on the rise on NC collage campuses. They attribute this to peer pressure, the immaturity of collage students, partying and unprotected sex. Now I ask you, are high school teens more mature than collage kids? And isn't there much more peer pressure in a school like M H S? I have also been told by HIV/AIDS activist that they don't have to prove it, its common sense. Nice or what. But once again, will Dr. John Goldman take full financial responsibility for his statement and guarantee that there is no risk to other students? Probably Not.

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# Rodger 2012-01-21 22:26

Jesus said that all man should created equal

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# Support M H S. 2011-12-13 16:14

Dr. John Goldman First states that "there's very little risk of the boy spreading HIV" and then he states that, "You're taking a kid who is sick, who poses no danger to any other kids at the school." So which is it? is it a risk all be it small? Or is there absolutely no danger to the other students and staff at M.H.S. It would seen that Dr. Goldman has never read the study by Duke University in regards to the rise of HIV infections on North Carolina collage and university campuses. These campuses are considered a closed society as students tend to date other students and that collage students tend to be immature, give into peer pressure and of course party. Now given that Milton Hershey School is even a more closed society, and high school kids are even less mature than collage kids and give in to peer pressure much easier. SO given all the above, I wonder if Dr. Goldman will take full responsibility for any student that would be infected by HIV due to this students enrollment.

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# Rodger 2012-01-21 22:27

I guess since all student know that the 13 yr old boy have hiv,,i don't think that they will have sex with him...

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# Lawrence Garner 2012-01-22 08:09

Rodger, the ADA law and the State of PA law says you can not reveal the name or person who is infected. That alone increases the risk substantially. Rodger, please do not confuse out US Constitution with Jesus on equality. Support M H S is 100% correct in their posts. We alumni of MHS, know the living conditions and know the risk to the other students is sever and iminate. The decision by MHS is not only appropriate, but prudent. The protection of 1850 students outweighs the admission of one with the risk he presents to all others.

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