School nurse fired after saying student, 11, was on puberty blockers and teachers helped kids keep sexuality secret from parents
A Connecticut school nurse was suspended over a Facebook post saying an 11-year-old at the school she worked was on puberty blockers. Kathleen Cataford's post was slammed as transphobic and she was subsequently axed from her role at the Richard J Kinsella Magnet School in Hartford.
"Investigate the school system curriculum...CT is a very socially liberal, gender confused state," Cataford, 77, wrote on a local mom's group where there were requests for local school recommendations. "As a public school nurse, I have an 11yo female student on puberty blockers and a dozen identifying as non-binary, all but two keeping this as a secret from their parents with the help of teachers, SSW [social workers] and school administration. Teachers and SSW are spending 37.5 hours a week influencing our children, not necessarily teaching our children what YOU think is being taught."
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Puberty blockers are used to delay puberty in transgender children. Cataford claimed that "children are introduced to this confusion in kindergarten." According to supporters, this helps trans children from undergoing body changes that could potentially be traumatic to them. As per opponents, however, the blockers can have side effects causing serious damage to users later in life. The side effects could include sterility and the inability to achieve orgasm.
Hartford School District Officials took note of the post after the mother of the 11-year-old mentioned in the comment brought it to their notice. Hartford Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Leslie Torres-Rodriguez condemned Cataford's comment in a statement without naming her. "Hartford Public Schools strives to provide an inclusive environment where all students feel seen, valued, respected, and heard," Daily Mail quoted the statement as saying.
"We uphold all of our staff to a high standard, entrusting them to be caretakers and leaders in the community," Torres-Rodriguez added. "We as a school district are responsible for the health, well-being, social and emotional development, and safety of ALL of the children entrusted to our care. It is our responsibility to support our students' growth, personal experiences, and social-emotional development."
The district took note of the post and launched an investigation to determine whether the nurse could be allowed to continue working at the school. The student's family appreciated the way the school responded to their complaint. "As a family we are very happy with how thoroughly and quickly the school and the district has taken action to both ensure the nurse is fully investigated and ensure the safety and privacy of our child. They could not have done a better job," relatives told WSFB3 in a statement. "t's clearly not a reflection of who we are," Torres-Rodriguez told the outlet.
Cataford has also posted other links to stories addressing the current transgender debate on her Facebook feed. She had shared a FOX article about former USA swimming official Cynthia Millen, who had resigned to protest Pennsylvania transgender swimmer Lia Thomas' participation at Penn in the women's swimming team. Cataford also recently shared a press conference of Daily Wire commentator Matt Walsh, which was titled "Here's why men don't belong in women's sports". She expressed her support for the trucker's convoy protesting vaccine mandates, claiming that she believes in personal freedoms even though she supported vaccination.
