Southington Mom Continues Push For School Peanut Ban

SOUTHINGTON, CT — A local mother who went before the Southington school board to urge a ban on peanuts in schools to keep children with peanut allergies safe is now circulating a petition seeking action.

Amanda Schlitten, a Southington resident whose youngest daughter is severely allergic to peanuts, has created a petition on Change.org to urge the Southington Board of Education to, at least, look at the issue.

Schlitten's 5-year-old daughter will start kindergarten this fall and, should she come into contact with any peanut products, she could go into shock and die quickly.

That nightmare scenario is why many school districts in Connecticut already ban peanuts/peanut products in schools as does the Hartford Yard Goats baseball team and, even, some airlines.

But the Southington school board's "Policy & Personnel Committee" shot down a pitch to bring the issue before the full board on Dec. 5, 2023.

At the school board's last meeting Dec. 14, Schlitten gave impassioned testimony before the school board during the audience of citizens portion of the agenda.

As is common with most school boards, Southington board members did not discuss the idea after Schlitten's testimony.

Now Schlitten is hoping if enough people sign the petition, it might prompt the school board to, at least, look at the issue.

"I am putting together this petition to help protect my daughter and others with life-threatening allergies from having to worry about the risk of exposure at school," Schlitten told Patch Thursday.

"Even if my 5-year-old is excellent at managing her environment, other 5-year-olds may not be. Peanut butter is extremely hard to clean off surfaces, hands, clothes, etc., and, therefore, the risk of exposure is still high, even if she is not sitting at a table at lunch where peanut butter is being eaten."

Southington Board of Education Chairperson Colleen Clark could not be reached for comment, but Southington Superintendent of Schools Steven Madancy said implementing a peanut ban requires subcommittee referral to the full board and a board vote.

Madancy said Thursday the potential pitfalls of peanut products are, very much, part of school lunch protocols, and safety is sought for students with those dangerous allergies.

"Understandably, a parent with a child with severe peanut allergies would be concerned about sending their child into a less controlled environment such as a school," Mandancy said.

"Relative to peanut allergies, the school system has extensive experience in navigating and accommodating these occurrences."

Short of outright bans of peanut products, Madancy said the district has significant protocols to address the matter. They include:

• Individualized health care plans for students with life-threatening food allergies.

• Emergency care plans, sometimes referred to as "Allergy Action Plans."

• Nut-free classroom snacks and celebrations.

• Nut-free food zones in the cafeteria that allow the child to invite a few friends to a table designated as nut-free.

Madancy said those areas are specially cleaned and disinfected while friend lunches are inspected before eating to ensure nut-free foods around the child with allergies.

• Whole-class handwashing before and after eating.

• Staff training regarding life-threatening food allergies and pupil education about them as well, Madancy said.

Madancy said peanut bans are not the guarantee of safety that many might think.

"Schoolwide bans of specific foods may not render the school environment safe because there is no method for ensuring that the allergenic food does not inadvertently enter school grounds," he said Thursday.

"Bans can create a false sense of security, which can lead to less responsible approaches to effective management strategies, education and emergency responses.”

Schlitten expressed similar sentiments to her testimony before the school board last month, saying a ban is another layer of protection for peanut allergy children.

Plus, Schlitten — a former elementary school teacher in the Stamford School System — said "peanut-free zones" create an exclusionary atmosphere for children with allergies.

Said Schlitten: "It also seems very unfair to isolate children who have life-threatening allergies because parents don’t want to try other options with their children who are not at risk of anaphylactic shock. In 2024, there are so many other choices for one meal a day that children eat at school. I would gladly have my children give up any food for lunch if it meant potentially saving another child’s life. No snack or sandwich is worth that risk."

For now, school officials have no plans to revisit the policy and the current policy still stands.

To see the petition urging a peanut ban in Southington schools, click on this link.

From Dec. 28, 2023: "Parent's Peanut Policy Concerns Shot Down By Southington Schools"