The underlying issue, though, is this:
how safe will a contact-sensitive child feel in a classroom where an allergen is routinely served (non-instructionally, no less!!) several times a month and without notice to you first?
Do consider carefully whether or not serving birthday treats in the classroom like this is a good idea going forward. It's certainly setting up a situation which is almost
inevitably going to be an opportunity for a series of errors at some point down the line.
Some other alternatives that I have heard of from other parents in this community:
a) treats are not permitted for birthdays-- period (they don't meet most district wellness policies now anyway, aside from food allergy concerns)
b) treats are eaten in the cafeteria, not in the classroom, and child has his/her own safe version or can choose something from a parent-provided treatbox
c) you are notified when it happens and the treats GO HOME at the end of the day. This is my personal favorite, and most teachers like it too-- no mess in the classroom AND no safety risks all day during instructional time, AND
you know how often the exclusion is happening. I might even enlist the school counselor/principal in this one-- as in, s/he needs to CALL to let you know that treats are going home with kids... that way, see, you can be there with something special for your child, too, when he's picked up. Heheheh... this also has the impact of making it CRYSTAL clear to administrators how frequent and pervasive this kind of exclusion is. You would be ASTONISHED at how it adds up if the teacher and administrators allow this crapola to go on in classrooms. It can literally be weekly and at random otherwise.
I also, PERSONALLY, don't like the 'safe treat box' for a series of reasons:
a) safety. What if someone else 'borrows' from it and replaces items with what they THINK is 'close enough' to the original items?
b) how 'equal' is it for parents to have to provide for this at our own expense
so that the school can "out" a child's medical condition at will, anyway?c) many times, the child who is shy/retiring will not insist on being allowed to choose something from the box, and the teacher may well forget, too... plus, how safe is it if teacher has been handling goopy cupcakes and then handles your child's 'safe' treat?
d) subs can EASILY make a mistake if treats are allowed into classrooms for distribution there. This is the TRULY scary one... what if your ds is trusting enough to believe a claim by another adult that something is "safe" for him to eat?