Ashley White thought she would be alone when meeting with College View Middle School’s principal last week, so she was surprised to be joined by other families sharing stories similar to her daughter’s. White recently shared that her daughter felt unsafe at school because of racist bullying by other students. She said she’s hopeful for positive change following the conversation.
White previously told Owensboro Times that last school year, her daughter Addison was called slurs — including the n-word and monkey, among others — but when she started her 7th-grade year, things “went to another level.”
Over time, White said, Addison’s mood changed and she didn’t want to go to school anymore. When her parents asked Addison what had caused the change a month ago, White learned what some students were doing to her daughter.
White said she and her husband called the school and began talking with a school counselor. But, White said students learned that the school was working toward addressing the situation, and that’s when things took a turn for Addison.
CVMS Principal Brandon Brooks said last week the incident was an isolated case, saying “his incident does not speak for the culture of College View.” However, White said she and other parents had talked about other incidents that had happened in the past.
Then earlier this month, White was sent a video of a CVMS student saying, “Get back to work, n—” and using an app to mimic the sound of a whip. Owensboro Times has seen the video and has confirmed those details.
“The video for us was confirmation that exactly what my daughter was telling me is happening at the school,” she said.
Brooks said he was made aware of the video. He said what followed was a meeting amongst all staff to remind them how to handle such situations, including how to best allow students to report any incidents so that a proper investigation can be conducted.
Brooks previously assured OT that the students involved in the video received appropriate consequences for their actions, but said he could not share what that involved due to Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) guidelines.
Then on February 9, Brooks and other administrators met with White along with the parents of three other students of color. White said each of the families had similar stories to her daughter’s.
White shared her reaction to the meeting via a Facebook post on that afternoon.
“We engaged in comprehensive discussions aimed at fostering a safer and more inclusive environment for all students. We recognize that this is not only an issue at CVMS, but also at other schools in the city of Owensboro,” White wrote.
While White said it was hard to hear the other students’ stories, knowing other families were in the same situation gave her a sense of comfort by knowing her daughter wasn’t being targeted.
“It was shocking … but also at the same time, I was glad that this wasn’t our child who was just being singled out,” White told OT in a phone interview on February 16.
She also said Brooks introduced some action steps the school was taking, with White those steps were enlightening and a great start to fixing the problem.
Daviess County Public Schools denied OT’s request to interview Brooks this week following the meeting with parents. Instead, DCPS provided the following statement:
“Ashley White, the parent that Mr. Brooks met with, has made a statement on social media of how that meeting took place and is a great summary of how those meetings went. CVMS School Leadership met with community members and concerned parents, and an informational message was sent out to parents a week ago on Friday afternoon with the goals of listening, learning, and responding appropriately. College View Middle School is continuing to be committed to fostering a culture of respect, empathy, and understanding among our students. We believe in the importance of educating our students about diversity, equity, and inclusion and providing them with the necessary tools to navigate and appreciate differences. We condemn all forms of racial discrimination, harassment, and bias.”
With the attention her daughter’s story has received, White is hopeful to spark change for other families. She said she still gets messages from other parents recounting similar experiences, and many are thankful for her speaking out.
“I wanted to make sure that I’d bring a light to the intent, and hopefully, it will get other people involved and ready to move forward and try to help the situation, especially since it’s not just my kid who is dealing with this,” White said.
White said her daughter Addison still has some anxiety, but they are still making ways for her to decompress at the end of a stressful day.
“I told her the situation might get worse before it gets better,” White said. “But we’re coming to the point where it is brought out in the light, so the students there definitely know right from wrong.”
