Greenwich Public Schools settles bullying lawsuit
Greenwich Public Schools (GPS) in Connecticut has settled a lawsuit that alleged the district failed to act to prevent bullying of a student over a four-year period. The student allegedly was subjected to daily taunting, teasing, and bullying while in elementary school. Patrice Anibal, the student's mother, says she and her husband filed the suit as a last resort. "Ultimately we just weren't getting anywhere and our daughter was just being so traumatized by this," she explains. The lawsuit accused school officials of several counts of negligent and intentional infliction of emotional distress. As part of the settlement, the Anibals and GPS issued a joint statement in which GPS apologized and promised to review and revise its bullying procedures. Mrs. Anibal has declined to discuss the specifics of the settlement, citing the confidentiality agreement. However, she notes that the settlement did not include any monetary damages. "The fact that they apologized is important because they needed to acknowledge that they didn't handle this properly," she says. GPS Deputy Superintendent Mary Capwell says that the revised bullying policy will be sent to parents prior to the start of the school year. She adds, "We've recently added an appeal procedure, so that if a parent is dissatisfied with what happened at the building level, he or she can appeal."
Hartford CourantBy Associated Press
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