RENO, Nev. — Reno mom Sara Kopp searches through every strand of her daughter’s blond hair at least once a week.
She meticulously combs through it, watching for lice after treating her 10-year-old for the bugs 15 times over the school year.
“When I realized my daughter had it after brushing her hair, I called the school immediately, told them I was keeping her home to treat it and she’d be back tomorrow,” said Kopp.
What surprised Kopp the most was that the Washoe County School District didn’t seemed concerned. She has treated her daughter more than a dozen times since September and started an online petition at change.org demanding the district change its policy that allows students with lice to participate in all activities. Kopp said she believes her daughter is repeatedly infected with lice by students allowed to stay in school untreated.
More than 1,700 people have signed the petition, many commenting about battling the bugs after exposure at school.
The school district said it follows national standards and does not exclude students with lice or force those with lice to seek treatment.
“We don’t go around looking for it,” said Jennifer Crane, the school district’s assistant director of student health services. “But we don’t turn a blind eye.”
She said the district does not track reported cases, but said it follows recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which does not recommend students with lice be excluded from school. But the national health institute does say students can go home at the end of the day, be treated and return to class after treatment has begun.
The Washoe County Health Department said on its website children need to stay home until the first treatment is given and no live lice are seen.
