Cheryl O'Brien

Staff Writer, @CherylDaleNews

RIDGEFIELD PARK — Students here may use medical marijuana at school.

The approval brings the district into compliance with a law signed by Gov. Chris Christie last November that requires schools to adopt a policy permitting parents and guardians to administer medical marijuana to a student while on school grounds, on a school bus or at a school-sponsored event. The law prohibits taking the drug by smoking it.

The Board of Education unanimously adopted the policy Wednesday night.

Before the new law was enacted, students could not use medical marijuana in schools, the New Jersey Principals and Supervisors Association said. Some schools prohibited it to avoid liability.

Although the law went into effect last year, Superintendent of Schools Eric Koenig said the district was implementing the policy for compliance reasons.

"We received the mandate fairly recently," he said.

Assemblyman Louis Greenwald, D-Voorhees, and Assemblywoman Pamela Lampitt, D-Cherry Hill, sponsored the bill when they learned of a student in their district who needed to take medical marijuana during the school day, according to Mallie Salerno, communications director for the politicians.

In August 2015, a state judge ruled that the southern New Jersey teenager could not use medical marijuana in school to help control her seizure disorder, according to The Associated Press. Roger and Lora Barbour sought to require a nurse at their 16-year-old daughter's school to administer cannabis oil. The girl suffered from seizures caused by a severe form of epilepsy, and her parents have turned to medical marijuana as a treatment.

In Ridgefield Park, parents will need to submit a written request to the principal to have a primary caregiver administer the drug while on school property. The principal, school nurse and superintendent will review each request to determine approval.

Currently, no students need to take the drug, Koenig said.

Email: obrienc@northjersey.com