Donate to help Meredith's spinal surgery expenses

Meredith doesn’t just teach high schoolers, she teaches life lessons.

Now, Meredith is navigating through one of life’s hardest lessons to endure: a career-ending injury on the job.

Who would have thought that Meredith McIvor would end up teaching high school students? Definitely not me. I met Meredith when she was 18 years old and randomly assigned to be my NYU roommate in the fall of 1990. We’ve been best friends ever since we laid eyes on each other in Rubin Hall. It’s our “meet-cute”. Her sunny California self was destined to be a bright star in the entertainment industry - and she was for many lucrative years. But, ultimately, Meredith found the Hollywood track to be unfulfilling and began searching for a new path. That path led her to a classroom in a severely underserved public high school in a large midwestern city. Meredith’s love of teaching has only grown over the 12 years that she’s been in the classroom. Her students adore her and her no-nonsense approach to life and the world around her. She’s led the Gay Straight Alliance club for 10 years, positively impacting the lives of hundreds of students. Meredith is a respected educator, a leader, and a mentor to many students.

The students in her freshman transition seminar (aka the “life lessons” class) are challenging, but if you’ve met Meredith - even just one time - you know she does not suffer fools gladly. When a physical fight among students broke out in her classroom in September 2022, Meredith did not hesitate to jump in and shut down the violence. In the chaotic scrum, Meredith was slammed into a wall. The students continued to fight, pinning her to the ground, and leaving her with a lifelong back injury (a bulging L4 disc with herniation). Because we live in the ubiquitous time of technology, yes, there is a video of the fight and Meredith’s injury. No, I’m not going to post the video because of student and community privacy. But, let me just say - wow, the video is horrifying and left me in tears.

Meredith has been in tears and in pain since the injury occurred in her beloved classroom. After her injury, Meredith could not stand up some days, let alone walk into her classroom and teach all day.

Without realizing the extent of her injury, Meredith went on FMLA (Family Medical Leave Act) hoping to take time to heal while protecting her employment. Once Meredith realized that she’d suffered a very serious back injury from which she might not ever recover, she filed a Worker’s Comp Claim with the school district.

It’s been 8 months since the injury and nearly 5 months since Meredith filed a Worker’s Comp Claim and her school district - the largest employer in the state of Nebraska - is “still investigating.” After filing her claim, she had zero contact from the district until after her FMLA ran out at the end of February. At that point, the district put Meredith on a “health leave” which meant she would not be paid and she lost all benefits during her absence from the classroom. (Union side note: Yes, Meredith belongs to her teachers’ union, but the union “does not provide legal help for Worker’s Comp issues.”)

Meredith has endured weeks of physical therapy and steroid injections – all out of her own pocket - to try to get better so she can get back to doing what she really loves: teaching. In March 2023, the district finally approved Meredith to consult a surgeon. Guess who told her that she’d been approved to see the surgeon? The surgeon’s office, not the district. The surgeon gave Meredith a steroid injection into her back and sent her back into the classroom to teach half days. Her back pain continued. Since the injection did not work, the surgeon now recommends surgery as the only path forward. But, wait! The surgery cannot be scheduled with the district-approved surgeon because the district is “still investigating”. Guess who told Meredith that her surgery had been canceled? The surgeon’s office, not the district.

The district continues its stall, delay, and deny tactics to avoid any responsibility for Meredith’s Worker’s Comp Claim. Despite the video evidence, the district does not believe that Meredith was injured in her classroom. They’ve accused her of being injured prior to the fight and of trying to scam the school district.

Yes, Meredith has retained a lawyer, but her only option at this point is to pursue the spinal surgery through her own insurance. Meredith is in pain and it’s anyone’s guess how long the district will try to drag out their investigation. The cost analysis estimates that Meredith will still owe approximately $5,000 out of pocket to cover the surgery. Have I mentioned that the district has not paid Meredith since December 2022? Oh, except for that $32.00 check they sent her in April 2023 without any explanation. Neither the district nor the claims adjuster will respond to Meredith’s lawyer, but they have responded to the surgeon’s surgery recommendation with a loud NO. How long will the district pursue this defensive and punitive strategy? Meredith has been forced to retire from teaching because of the injury she sustained in her classroom. Her spirit is crushed.

Please join me in lifting Meredith UP and supporting her efforts to pursue the surgery despite every stonewalling strategy of her school district. Each dollar counts – $5 - $20 - $35 - $50 - $100 – and is greatly appreciated. Let’s get Meredith back on her feet and living life again!

Julie Zasloff Lindstrom

May 10, 2023