District apologizes for separation of twins at Diplomat Elementary

The first day of school for twins Cayden and Bella was an exciting moment for the young duo. But instead of going to class side-by-side, their mother, Nicole Fitzpatrick, said the school separated them.

“We dropped Cayden off first and Bella was rubbing his back saying, ‘it’s going to be okay Cayden. I’ll see you at recesses. It’s going to be okay,'” Nicole said.

Abbe Finn, a counselor at Florida Gulf Coast University, said science shows “the twin bond” actually starts before birth.

“You can actually see twins kissing each other through the amniotic sac,”Abbe said. “They’re in separate sacs, but they’re actually kissing each other.”

It is why deciding when to separate twins in school is a big decision. It is so important, it is the law. Florida schools must honor the placement request by parents of their twins.

But, when Nicole made the request of Diplomat Elementary in Cape Coral, someone in the office told her they do not make special requests. While the request would be filed, the school is unable to make any promises.

WINK News reached out to the school district on Monday. Before the district gave a response, it called Nicole to apologize and called it an oversight error.

Now, Nicole has a new decision to make. Her twins have their own Kindergarten teacher and classroom.

“I don’t know what direction to go,” Nicole said. “I don’t know which direction I want to go in.”