Parents are alarmed about “sleepy stickers” being given to students at school

SPRING, Texas (WKRC/KHOU/CNN/CNN Newsource) – Parents expressed shock and concern after finding out their children had allegedly received “sleep stickers” from teachers.

The patches, which contain melatonin, among other things, are intended for adults as a sleeping aid.

Four-year-old Layne Luviano was the first to reveal the situation in September when she brought home one of the stickers from Northgate Crossing Elementary School.

“The sticker puts me to sleep,” Layne said.

Her mother, Lisa Luviano, recounted the moment she found out about the stickers.

“She kind of pulled up her little shorts and said, 'Mom, look, this is my sleep sticker.' And I thought, “What?” Lisa said.

Layne explained that the teacher placed the sticker on her arm and described it as “sleeping with a moon on it.”

Joseph Luviano, Layne's father, said he knew something was wrong since school started.

“At 2 a.m. I hear noises in the room and I go there and she's still awake,” Joseph said.

Lisa Luviano took action by contacting other parents in Layne's class and sharing pictures of the patch. Melissa Gilford, another mother, confirmed that her daughter recognized the sticker.

“I showed it to my four-year-old and she said, 'Yeah, that's the Sleepy sticker,'” Gilford said.

Gilford researched the sticker online and discovered it was a Sleep Z patch that contained ingredients she was unfamiliar with. Najala Abdullah, another concerned mother, noticed changes in her son, who also received the stickers.

“They give them sleeping pills to keep them calm,” Abdullah said, adding that her son cried, stopped eating and brought home untouched lunches.

Parents received an email from the principal saying two staff members were placed on leave after allegedly giving students sleeping pills on Sept. 24. The Spring ISD Police Department is investigating the incident.

The school district said Wednesday morning that administering unapproved substances violated district policy.