FARMINGTON, Maine — Parents in Farmington say they are dissatisfied with the way administrators at Mt. Blue High School respond to bullying and conflict after a second fight broke out at the school within one week.
Amy Moshier said her 17-year-old son, who has autism, now has injuries after he was involved in a fight with another student after school on Tuesday.
"He was spat on. Beaten up," Moshier said. "He has severe black eye cuts to his face, and it all stems from him being bullied all year."
Mosher said when her son got home, there was blood gushing from his face. She said although there were no broken bones in his face, he is now taking pain medication prescribed by a doctor.
"My first reaction was, 'Oh my God, we need to go to the ER,' and my second reaction was, 'What the heck happened?'" Moshier said.
Mt. Blue High School's principal sent a letter to parents after the incident encouraging them to come forward and report any issues with bullying that their kids may be experiencing.
Moshier claimed that issues with bullying are a constant trend at the school, explaining that the problems are nothing new.
"He's been called a retard. He's been told that he doesn't speak right," Moshier said.
According to Moshier, when she has reported the problems to teachers in the past, nothing has been done.
"He had issues with a boy previously," Moshier said. "When [we] tried to bring it up to the administrators they basically swept it underneath the rug, 'Oh we talked to the boy.' And that's it. And they're refusing to let me speak to the other student's parents."
This fight comes after another that happened at the school on Wednesday, March 20. The previous incident involved two teenage girls who attend the school, and it resulted in a parent pressing criminal charges against another student.
Christian Elkington, the superintendent of RSU 9 schools, said he can't confirm specific details about the most recent incident or share information about the other student involved.
Elkington said he also cannot share how the student was punished.
"I can just tell you that under state law a suspension can be up to 10 days," Elkington said.
Elkington added every incident is different, and he explained not all fights or incidents of violence that happen at the school are caused by bullying.
He said some issues are a result of conflict, explaining that bullying would be considered as repeated physical or emotional harm that highlights a power piece or reaction to an incident that may not be equal with no effort from one party to solve the problem.
According to Elkington, conflict is more spontaneous where both parties share some form of equal emotional reaction to an issue that sometimes escalates to an incident of violence.
"You see a conflict and people automatically assume it might be bullying, and then we investigate to determine, 'Did it reach the level of bullying?'" Elkington said.
Despite Elkington's explanation of the difference between bullying and conflict, Moshier said her son has told her that several students are experiencing bullying at the school.
"He hates school, and it's not because of the teachers or the curriculum. He hates school because every time he goes he gets bullied," Moshier said.
Many parents commented on NEWS CENTER Maine's Facebook post that included coverage of the last incident that happened at the school. On the post, several people shared that incidents of bullying and violence have not been properly addressed.
Elkington said societal issues like homelessness, poverty, and lack of support at home can affect the way students behave.
"The school systems are being asked to take on more responsibilities of the greater community, and we need to look and see what kind of other things we can do," Elkington said.
Now, Moshier is connecting with other parents like Richard Adams, the parent who felt compelled to press charges on the student who he said allegedly attacked his daughter last week.
The recent concerns that parents have brought to the superintendent's attention make Adams wonder if parents feel intimidated by administrators or uncomfortable about reporting issues they may be experiencing.
He added if parents or students feel like teachers are failing to properly report issues that happen in the classroom with the appropriate school administrators, then they should contact the school themselves or report the issues to the superintendent's office.
"I think we have to look at the issue that people feel like they are not being heard for whatever the reason," Elkington said. "We have to figure out some other ways, so people are comfortable reporting things to us."
Moshier said her son has not returned to school since the fight happened, but she plans to let him start the week fresh on Monday for fear of him getting behind on his classwork.
"It's starting to go down," she said. "He's still going to have a black eye when he goes to school on Monday."
Moshier said she is still unsure if she will press charges on the other student involved.
Elkington said there have now been seven fights at the school this year, and there were nine fights total last year.