I agree that this is overboard, but children are sometimes "hurt" when someone they think of as a best friend claims someone else as their best friend. The difference is children generally forget about such slights quickly, often within minutes, unless someone — like a teacher or overly protective parent — makes an issue of it. This decision has all the earmarks of being the result of a complaint by a helicopter Mom parent and educators struggling to find a rule to hide behind so they can keep their jobs.
I sympathize with the teacher's and school administrator's struggling to keep their jobs. But the ones I feel sorry for are the child(ren) of the parent(s) behind this. She (I am guessing it was most likely a girl) will grow up with a parent dedicated to sweeping away every slight and every obstacle and is unlikely to learn how to deal with social and other life problems. Too often these children are so unsure of themselves that when they get to college and are faced with some of life's harsher realities elect to stay blind drunk and/or blitzed out on drugs rather than facing their inability to cope.
