(The Center Square) – The mother of a Puyallup School District high school student who has been missing for more than two months provided emotional testimony at the state capitol Tuesday in Olympia.
Jodie Holman’s daughter Eleanor, who is 16, ran away and, according to Holman, the school district facilitated her daughter’s decision to sever guardianship, without her parents’ knowledge.
Holman spoke before a crowd of about 300 people Tuesday, gathered on the capitol steps in a rally organized by Let’s Go Washington, the political group behind two initiatives to the legislature concerning the protection of girls’ sports and parental rights.
“She has multiple intersecting mental health needs but the school, and Washington state, narrowed their focus to gender alone, sideling the whole scope of what she was experiencing,” said Holman during a Senate listening session organized by Republican lawmakers. “Without our knowledge or involvement, steps were taken, leading our daughter to believe our home was an unsafe environment.”
The distraught mother shared that the Puyallup School District included her and her husband in several meetings initially, where they were led to believe their concerns as parents were on the same page with the district.
“At each stage, we acted as engaged parents, seeking coordination and support. At no point were our parents’ rights terminated or limited by core finding of unfitness,” said Holman.
Before a packed hearing room, she explained the family felt entirely deceived by school officials.
“Meetings appeared cooperative. Communication seemed professional. The impact only became visible later, once consequences were already in motion and difficult to unwind,” Holman told lawmakers. “Privacy protections were cited, but applied inconsistently. Timelines expanded during moments when time was critical. [We] were expected to respond to outcomes without having been included in the processes which produced them.”
The Center Square reached out to the Puyallup School Board for comment on the controversy and received the following statement.
“Because this inquiry involves a student, the Board of Directors is legally bound to protect privacy and cannot discuss or confirm information about any individual student or family. District policy does not authorize staff to assist students in running away, making medical decisions, or accessing medical care without parent or guardian involvement. When student safety concerns arise, trained staff follow legal requirements that include parent notification. When a student is reported missing, law enforcement and child-welfare agencies are the lead authorities,” wrote Puyallup School Board President Gretchen Miles.
The district response concluded stating they remain “committed to student safety, family engagement, and compliance with state and federal law.”
Sen. Chris Gildon, R-Puyallup, told The Center Square he is looking into the reports and reaching out to school board members.
“If everything we’ve heard is true, it’s just a tragic outcome that was spurred by the passage of Senate Bill 5599 just a few years ago that we fought so hard against and we said would lead to situations just like this,” said Gildon. “It seems now it may be coming true.”
