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Parent tells Batavia board assaults and threats pushed her son out of school; asks for immediate safety steps
Summary
Sarah Keegan, a Batavia Middle School parent, told the board repeated bullying and two recent assaults left her son afraid to attend; she urged enforcement of the district code of conduct, increased hallway supervision, and use of available safety grants. The board said district leadership would follow up.
A Batavia parent told the Board of Education she has kept her eighth-grade son home because repeated bullying and two recent assaults, including one that required an ambulance, have left him fearful and depressed.
"He's been battling bullying for over a year now and it continues to escalate greatly," Sarah Keegan said during public comment. Keegan said attackers followed and assaulted her son and his relatives, that one attacker waits across the street from the middle school, and that her son was hospitalized after an incident on Sept. 10. She said the local police told her "nothing can be done" because of the students' ages and that school disciplinary protections are needed.
Keegan asked the board to enforce "section 9 part d" of the district code of conduct (which she said covers bullying, cyberbullying and harassment), impose repercussions for students who attack others, increase adult hallway monitoring, and consider safety investments such as secured entrances, hallway cameras and additional SRO coverage. She also referenced available New York State grants that she found through a web search and asked the district to pursue funding options.
"My son already suffers from depression and anxiety and this heightened act of harassment and bullying has deeply impacted his mental health," Keegan said. "I'm afraid to send my son to school now and that's not a feeling any parents should have."
Board members thanked Keegan for speaking. The board indicated the superintendent, Mister Smith, would follow up with Keegan and district staff to review the incidents and any available next steps; the meeting transcript records that a board member said, "Mister Smith will follow-up with you."
The board made no immediate new policy vote during public comment. Keegan's remarks were followed later in the meeting by broader discussion of event and discipline policies after unrelated, recent disturbances at a school football game.
What happens next: The board and district officials indicated the superintendent's office would contact Keegan to discuss the incidents and next steps. The transcript does not record details of any formal investigation outcome or a timeline for any changes to discipline enforcement.
