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Tuesday I blogged about my frustrations when public schools shut me out. Tuesday night I got an explanation from the school district spokesfolks on why I can’t seem to get the green light to shadow a school nurse: San Diego Unified believes that could violate student privacy.
I don’t know if this is the same reason that the school initially rejected my visit; the principal who turned me down never explained why.
A few of our readers had the same thought. I still think there could be ways to address that concern and protect kids while letting me sit in. It’s been done before: Other newspapers like the Las Vegas Sun have written great articles where reporters shadow nurses. We’ve also watched school nurses with kids in the past. Our photographer Sam Hodgson took one of my favorite photos of a nurse in action.
But I’m glad to at least know why the idea was a nonstarter. It’s an understandable concern, even if I think it could be addressed. And knowing is better than just not getting the call back.
Please contact Emily Alpert directly at emily.alpert@voiceofsandiego.org or 619.550.5665 and follow her on Twitter: twitter.com/emilyschoolsyou.