One California parent says she’s prepared to take her fight with a local school district over bullying her 7-year-old daughter has weathered for two school years to civil court.
Kavon Ward, a parent of a second grader enrolled at El Rincon Elementary School in Culver City, California, said that school administrators have taken little to no action to address the verbal and physical abuse her daughter Semira has suffered at the hands of other students.
Ward told Atlanta Black Star that in April, her daughter’s first-grade teacher emailed her to let her know that three boys were using verbally abusive language and physically harming Semira.
Days after learning of those incidents, Ward sat down with El Rincon Principal Dr. Amy Hodge, who launched an investigation into the bullying.
At the time the investigation was happening, Semira was bullied even further during one incident where she tried to play with a group of students, but they rejected her and called her “fat” and “stupid.”
The probe concluded in June and ultimately found that the abusive behavior has happened on “numerous occasions” and has escalated into acts of physical bullying against Semira, according to an investigative report drawn up by the school and obtained by Atlanta Black Star.
The report stated that the school contacted the parents of all the accused students and issued consequences. No details were released on what disciplinary actions were taken.
School administrators also established measures to monitor and safeguard Semira during certain class periods when the bullying typically happens. They also allowed Semira to choose her second-grade class that would include a preferred friend and exclude all of the the accused bullies.
Even though Semira and her bullies were told not to have any contact with each other, Ward said the bullying only persisted against her daughter, particularly among one student who had been disciplined.
During Semira’s second-grade year, that student and another young boy jumped Semira and kicked her in her stomach in November, Ward said. That same accused bully joined other students who threw objects at Ward’s daughter in another incident in December.
Semira’s teacher also reported that earlier in the school year, another student punched Semira in the face in an unprovoked attack, which prompted a visit to urgent care.
Ward said the bullies were still able to get near Semira in certain class periods and that their behavior wasn’t being monitored as promised.
She tried to contact the principal and the Culver City Unified School District multiple times throughout Semira’s second-grade school year about the incidents. Meanwhile, she said the bullying only continued against her daughter.
Ward’s frustration with the school reached a boiling point on Dec. 6. That morning, she dropped her daughter off for school, confronted Dr. Hodge, and got into a loud, verbal altercation with the principal in full view of other students and parents.
Shortly after the confrontation, Ward said she received an email from a district official notifying her that she was banned from campus for disrupting school operations and for threatening the health/safety of students and faculty.
Ward rebuked what the notice alleged, stating that she only threatened to sue the school for negligence when she confronted the principal.
“They said they would have eyes on her at all times, which is why I got upset and cursed her out,” Ward said. “You’re supposed to be protecting all kids and when I curse you out because these kids are physically harming my kid, you ban me from campus and make me out to be public enemy No. 1. This is what they do to Black women.”
Once word got around about Ward’s outburst, the school sent an email blast to concerned parents. Afterward, a parent volunteer emailed other parents and began spreading rumors alleging that Ward possibly directed her daughter to “threaten students in the classroom.”
The parent also said Ward and her daughter were considered “a security threat” by the school and expressed “fear that the student could bring a weapon to the school.”
Ward said the situation has only brought her and her daughter great emotional distress. She now has to rely on a friend to take her daughter to school.
She said Semira has started journaling about the bullying incidents and is now undergoing counseling.
Ward alleges that her ban from the school premises is retaliation for standing up for her daughter and the school still won’t discipline her bullies for the repeated bullying.
“How is a child supposed to understand the gravity of the harm they’re causing if they’re not held accountable?” Ward asked. “[The school)] is so hellbent on trying to hold me accountable that they’re not seeing how contradicting and hypocritical it is.”
Ward said she wants the El Rincon principal fired, and her daughter’s bullies transferred to different schools. She said she plans to pursue legal action.
Ward also met with the outgoing CCUSD board president, Kelly Kent, about holding district superintendent Brian Lucas accountable since she had kept him abreast of the bullying incidents through email. Kent only offered Ward the services of a third-party mediator who could visit the school and offer solutions to mitigate the bullying, which Ward said wasn’t enough.
Atlanta Black Star reached out to the Culver City Unified School District to confirm whether Ward’s bullying complaints had been addressed and sent this statement:
“We cannot comment on specific complaints; however, we can assure you that CCUSD takes seriously any allegations of bullying and/or physical abuse on our campuses. The District is committed to working with all of our students and their families to respond to any complaints of bullying swiftly and comprehensively to address the safety and well-being of our students.”
According to the district’s bullying policy (AR5131.2), “Corrective actions for a student who commits an act of bullying of any type may include counseling, behavioral intervention, and education, and, if the behavior is severe or pervasive as defined in Education Code 48900, may include suspension or expulsion in accordance with district policies and regulations.”
Ward considers the bullying incidents against her daughter severe and pervasive and demands that appropriate corrective actions be issued.
