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Parent urges board to review Seale Middle student suspension, seeks refund and clearer communication
Summary
At the Leon County School Board meeting, a parent said her son was struck by another student, punished after defending himself, and that district offices did not respond to follow-up communications; she asked the board to review the case and provide a refund for a field trip fee.
A Tallahassee mother, Kimmy Johnson, addressed the Leon County School Board on May 13 seeking a review and a refund after her eighth-grade son was suspended following a physical altercation at Fairview Middle School (referred to in her remarks as the affected campus). Johnson said the district investigation found her son was not the aggressor, but he was suspended for three days and removed from an eighth-grade field trip; she said the family received a partial refund.
Why this matters: Johnson framed her complaint as both a disciplinary fairness issue and a communications failure by district staff. She said she followed district procedures, sent a formal letter on April 22, followed up with the superintendent's office on April 29 and left a message for a board member on May 6 but received no response.
Johnson told the board that the incident began when another student unexpectedly struck her son in a hallway and that her son defended himself. “This isn't just about my son anymore,” Johnson said. “It's about the precedents we're setting when we punish students for responding to physical harm.” She asked the board to review the disciplinary decision, issue a full refund for the field trip (she said $265 was paid and $103 was returned) and to reevaluate district policies that penalize students who defend themselves.
Superintendent Pat Hannah (identified in the meeting as the district superintendent) told Johnson he would visit the school identified by speakers (referred to in the meeting as 'Sale') during a student lunch period the following day to speak with students; he said he would bring pizza and invited students to speak with him then. Two additional speakers — Isabella Orfern Leedy (a student) and Patricia Leedy (a parent) — voiced concerns about safety and communication at the same campus and praised the superintendent's willingness to meet with students.
Ending: The board did not take a formal vote on Johnson's request at the meeting. The superintendent committed to an in-person follow-up with students the next day; Johnson requested a board review and a full refund for the trip.
