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Ten-Year-Old Bullied to Death by Teacher and Classmates

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On November 6, 2021, Isabella “Izzy” Tichenor, committed suicide after being bullied by classmates and special education teachers.

Izzy, 10, the only black child in her special ed class, was waiting for testing for autism test results. Izzy explained to her mother, Brittany Tichenor-Cox, that her teacher didn’t like her. Izzy’s teacher wouldn’t say hi or help her with schoolwork. When Izzy asked her teacher to assist her with school work, the special ed teacher told her to sit down.

Within the classroom, students teased Izzy for the way she looked and for her alleged autism. Tichenor-Cox discovered Izzy’s classmates’ remarks were affecting her. She asked her mother to get rid of the beauty mark and shave her unibrow. Izzy even brought a bottle of air freshener to school to wear as perfume, moving her mother to tears.

Davis School District in Farmington, Utah, opened a private investigation after Izzy passed away. The report denies the presence of “direct evidence” pointed to racial or disability bullying toward Izzy. Foxboro Elementary School, where Izzy attended, neglected to investigate Tichenor-Cox bullying complaints before Izzy took her life. In fact, Tichenor-Cox told reporters that she felt ignored.

The Justice Department (DOJ) launched an investigation of the Davis School District in July 2019 and a formal report was released in October 2021. Their probe exposed hundreds of documented uses of the N-word and other racial titles over the last five years. There are details of physical assaults, offensive racial comments, and unfair punishment for students of color within the DOJ investigation. White students, also called Asian peers “yellow” and “squinty” and told them to “go back to China,”.

The Davis School District released a statement and included “We vow to continue our ongoing and extensive efforts to foster a welcoming environment for all students in the Davis School District,” read the statement.

Izzy’s sister was also a target of consistent bullying. Tichenor-Cox made three complaints about bullying in September 2021 pertaining to Izzy’s sibling. Each time, the school dismissed it but suspended the bully. School officials claim the incidents occurred “more likely than not”.

Foxboro Elementary School has yet to make a statement on the career status of special ed teacher. However, the private investigation team suggests the district instructs staff on how to identify and address bullying, provide diversity and equity sessions and “trauma-informed, poverty training.”



4 Comments

  1. Bullying by teachers, who often engage alongside student (and encourage it) is more common than parents would like to realize. I had an entire classroom gang up on me, teacher included.

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