Jacksonville woman says bullying led her to pull son from school

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A Jacksonville woman said she pulled her son out of a Jacksonville middle school because of bullying concerns.

A Duval County Public Schools district official said there is no record of formal complaints about bullying at Southside Middle School but Latonya Fordham says several incidences led her to pull her son from the school.

Fordham sent Action News Jax photos that she said were taken after 12-year-old Jeremiah Scott was bullied at school.

“He called me from the dean’s office and told me his clothes are dirty because the kids threw him out in the dirt,” she said. “He’s told me about them throwing pencils at him, paper on him.”

She said Jeremiah’s demeanor also changed after starting middle school.

“He went from this good boy, very quiet, to anger outbursts,” she said.

Fordham said she received an email from the director of her son’s exceptional education and student services program that says:

“I continue to feel a pretty significant disconnect between what he is reporting and what the school is reporting.”

We asked Duval County Public Schools if officials are aware of bullying at Southside Middle. They sent us a statement that reads:

"We have not received any formal District complaints regarding bullying, nor is there a formal record of withdrawing the student at this time. We take reports of bullying very seriously as providing a safe, secure and positive learning environment for our students is of paramount importance. According to the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), the District protects the private information of students and parents, so we do not discuss the situation of a specific student at any DCPS school. However, District protocol dictates if a report of bullying is received, the school conducts an investigation, and corrective action is immediately taken including but not limited to parent notification, parent and student mediation, and the issuing of a "no contact" contract. Additionally, both the school and district have ongoing contact with the parents, and continue to monitor the situation to determine if additional interventions are needed."

Fordham said she hopes moving Jeremiah to a new school will help.

“I just want my kid to flourish the way he’s supposed to. I know he’s a bright kid. I know he has potential,” she said.

Cox Media Group