Millie is finally back at Fargo South! Several months of advocacy from a number of passionate and exhausted people have paid off, and our school’s beloved therapy dog has returned for Wellness Wednesdays, where she should have been able to attend each week. Beth, Millie’s owner, and Mrs. Smithmeyer– both from our library– have worked intensely with a whole web of dedicated students, staff members, district members, and admin in order to allow Millie to return.
Advocacy for Millie actually began a few years ago when we initially brought her here for Wellness Wednesdays. Beth and Mrs. Smithmeyer worked eagerly with Dr. Bertsch and Dr. Mortrud to begin Millie’s program. This year, when she was first taken away, Beth and Mrs. Smithmeyer contacted board members and oversaw all of the following pieces of the puzzle. Mrs. Brandt was thrust into this web less than two months into her new job here. She worked with Dr. Mortrud to speak with the district lawyer, Tara Bradner, and other district administration. Bradner wrote an effective policy for therapy animals. We believe that this should open the path for other schools in the area to follow South: Mrs. Smithmeyer says, “I’d love to see it expand!”
In order to clear up some negative misinformation about Millie, our superintendent Dr. Gandhi was invited to our school to speak to Beth and Mrs. Smithmeyer. This was a huge leap for the cause, because clearing up misinformation helped the program come back to South. One rumor that had to be cleared up was Millie’s credentials; she is an extremely well-trained, calm, and happy dog. If she were not a trained and certified therapy dog, it would make sense why anyone would not have rallied for her to attend our school on Wednesdays, but that is just not the case.
Even some students took the extra step to advocate for Millie to higher-ups. Nyasia Lee, a sophomore, created a very effective online petition that was used later on to prove our school’s love for Millie. She also spoke to lawyers with Danica Kane and Adrian Boyda, both freshmen, and left some people in the room in tears, because it was clear how much our school loves Millie and how much we missed her. Kane and Boyda created their own petition on paper and amassed over 125 votes, just from students and staff they came across. Lee and Aiden Rosten, a junior, also spoke at an official public board meeting when Mrs. Christensen, the leader of the local teachers’ union, sacrificed her important time slot at the meeting. What really pushed the situation forward was when the press got involved. The publicity of an InForum article about Millie gave some good pressure to the board members to make their ruling. Her story even made the front page, which gave a huge boost in local support for her cause.
In the end, Mrs. Brandt was the one to tie up any final issues with Millie working at our school. At last, the only thing to address was renewing Millie’s insurance, but Beth would have to pay the hundreds of dollars out of pocket. Many members of our building’s staff pooled together to pay it to take the financial burden off of her shoulders, to allow for Millie to return as soon as possible.
It’s important to note how unified our school was on this issue. Not one student advocated against Millie’s return, and the only issues and misinformation came from outside of the building. This is a great example of what happens when literally over a thousand people come together to work towards an important goal. The staff involved note that they are amazed at how upset and passionate everyone became after Millie was taken away from us, and were so willing to exhaust themselves to get her back; in a quote from Beth, “the culture of the building all came together to support a program that means something to people.”
Millie’s impact is far-reaching. Students who would usually never talk to each other united to sign Nyasia’s petition. One comment on the petition from students and staff read, “Millie is an important asset to the Fargo South community. She helps students and staff with their mental health by calming them and providing a comforting environment. In the world we live in today, this is needed more than ever!” Others brought up that each individual student Millie helps, is a big difference. Some students find it really hard to come to school on bad days, and they report that Millie is the one who gets them through the week. According to the petition responses and to the conversations I’ve had in real life, Millie helps to calm many students down on Wednesdays before they test. Millie is very beloved at our school. Beth also reports that Millie loves being at South. Millie gets really excited on Wednesday mornings because she knows it’s her day to get pet by loving students. In the end, one student summarizes the situation in their petition response: “[…]Millie always puts a smile on my face when I walk past the hallway and get to see her and I have never heard a complaint about her ever.”
