Father: High school targeting my son

Andrew Grechniv’s son, Logan, a student at West Milford High School, was found with a vape in a school bathroom Dec. 14, 2023.

Since that moment, Grechniv and the district have been engaged in a standoff of sorts.

“My 17-year-old son has traveled all over the United States and has never been in trouble anywhere except the bathroom of his hometown high school,” he said.

“An encounter in a bathroom, by a school employee, caused my kid to miss out on a free appropriate public education for two months without any real reason.”

Grechniv says the vape contained nicotine yet the district demanded that Logan take a drug test.

“The district demanded that I consent to them testing my son for drugs, and when I refused consent, they placed him on home instruction on Feb. 23 of last year,” he said. “I filed a complaint with the New Jersey Office of Administrative Law contesting the requirement of a drug test. The case was settled, and my son returned to school.”

The settlement agreement between Grechniv and the West Milford Board of Education was reached April 4, 2024, in a case before Administrative Law Judge William Courtney.

The agreement says, among other things, that Logan is allowed to return to school with the same rights, privileges and obligations as any other student; the district’s policies are not inconsistent with the law or violative of his rights; and the agreement shall not be construed to mean that the board acquiesces to Grechniv’s failure to consent to a medical examination of his son.

The story, according to Grechniv, does not end there. Another stipulation in the settlement says that should his son be found in possession of any vaping device and or prohibited substance within a year, a medical exam and drug test, as set forth in the board policies, must be agreed to.

“Recently, this same ‘watcher’ or ‘monitor’ accused my son of having a vape in the bathroom,” Grechniv said. “When no vape was found, they said my son must have secreted it.

“I find that outrageous on many levels. My son is not a druggie, and we feel as if the school is targeting him. We are once again looking into taking further action.”

When asked about the matter, Superintendent Brian Kitchin said the district cannot comment on anything related to a specific student.

“We can’t comment on student matters, but we have at all times followed district policy, and we deny the allegations from the other individual,” he said.