Date: 05/18/2018
Dear CESJDS parents,
On May 2, 2018, it became to our attention that our daughter was subjected to a very serious cyberbullying by a number of 7th graders attending CESJDS on multiple social media outlets non-stop for at least two months. The situation was so grave that we got extremely frightened for our daughter's well being. Once we found out who the source was, on Friday May 4, I contacted following CESJDS admins in order to bring this issue to their immediate attention:
Mr. Mitchel Malkus the head of school and, Mrs. Eliana Lipskythe middle school principal.
I requested to meet with them immediately and see what protocol or policy they have in place to report cyberbullying. In reply to my request, I received an email from Mr. Malikus, sympathizing with my situation but request for meeting was ignored. Contacted again on Monday May 7 for a second time, requested to have a meeting. The second request was ignored as well. On May 8 the third and last email was sent and asked for student’s parent contact information. No reply. Two weeks later and still not a single follow up was made by school admins.
I did not receive even one word from either Mrs. Lipsky, the middle school principal.
Please talk to your children and ask them if they are or have been subjected to any kind of cyberbullying, harassment or abuse. We read and hear in the news every day about horrifying outcome of cyberbullying. Head to JDS web site and search for the word ‘cyberbullying’. There is not even one material in the web site that talks about educating, training or prevention. Here is the search:
Cyberbullying Articles on CESGDS Web Site
You cannot find what the school’s policy and protocol is or how to file a report for any kind of bullying.
In contrary, search any public school’s web site:
Cyberbullying Articles on Public Montgomey County Schools Web Site
Here is what school had to do and failed to do:
1) Adopt a zero-tolerance policy for all types of bullying. Make it clear that any intimidation, harassment, or threatening behavior will be dealt with swiftly and seriously
2) School should have had anti-bullying policies in place and everyone (school administrators, teachers, parents and students) should be aware of the policies
3) Incorporate Internet Safety Awareness classes into the curriculum and have links to anti-bullying materials in their web site
4) Engage students, parents, and teachers in discussions about bullying prevention. Have student councils or student panels address the issue to their peers at school-wide assemblies, PTA meetings, and other school-wide events.
Under the legislation named “Grace’s Law", Cyber bullying is a crime with punishment of up to 3 years in prison and a fine of $10,000. Those who deny that it even exists in their school in order to keep their reputations clean or cover up their weakness to address this issue are complicit. There is no other way to say it. It's a shame.
In order to compensate for CESJDS's lack of accountability, I've setup a Facebook page and a couple of web sites to bring awareness and shed some light on cyberbullying and laws that go with it. Please join this page, visit each and every link and educate yourself and your children about laws that goes with it. Encourage your children and all parents from JDS and other schools to do the same. Cyberbullying is serious and is a crime. Hold your school's admins accountable to teach children social behavior and social responsibility alongside other subjects. And do not hesitate to contact the board of directors.
For the sake of your children and others, hold school's administrators accountable and demand answers.
Please join Facebook page here.
And visit the mirror site here.
Resources:
New Laws Aim to Stop Cyberbullying
Maryland Law Against Cyberbullying
Maryland Anti-Bullying Laws & Policies (In Detail)
Anti Cyberbullying Laws & Policies Across United States
Department of Education Bullying Prevention
Can You Sue for Cyberbullying?
Public Schools: Bullying, Harassment, or Intimidation Reporting Form
Talk to your children. Hold school's administrators accountable and demand actions.
And to CESJDS admins: you had a responsibility and you miserably failed. No one is allowed to harm my daughter and no one is allowed to ignore it.
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UPDATES
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9/5/2018:
Met with two board members. Very nice people. Had a very
constructive talk until the last minute that I was told that board
members DID KNOW about this incident since May...the month
that I brought this to JDS's attention. Yet, I did not hear from
anyone of them until I mailed letters? I cannot make any sense
of it as why they waited 4 months before they acknowledged
that they already knew about it. It was very unfortunate and
shocking to say the least to find out about this piece of
information. If you cannot trust the board, then whom are you
going to trust then? Sad day.
To the parents: Your children go to JDS everyday. Character
building starts at home and takes shape at school. Do not rely
on school to help you in that area. You will be greatly
disappointed. No more updates will be posted but the fight
against cyberbullying at school will continue.
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8/6/2018:
Received an email from one of the board members. Meeting scheduled for September 5th, 5:30 PM.
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7/24/2018:
Letter of complaint was mailed to all CESJDS board of directors
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7/20/2018:
The following agencies and officials have been contacted and formal compliant have been filed:
- Maryland Department of Education, Superintendent and their associates
- Association of Independent Maryland & DC Schools (AIMS)
- National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS)
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7/18/2018:
In an attempt to reach directly to board members, sent two direct mail messages to two of the boards members I found in LinkedIn. Never got any reply back.
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7/6/2018:
As I came back from out of town trip, I was greeted with a threatening voice mail from Montgomery County Police Department on behalf of CESJDS. They have now threatening to bring harassment charges on me. It seems CESJDS itself is now fully engaged in bullying. The evidence that I have in hand and the fact that CESJDS refused to even look at them is undeniable. Counter charges against CESJDS are pending.
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5/30/2018:
CESJDS is doing everything in the power to silence this criticism. Instead of addressing cyberbullying which is considered crime under the law, these are the steps they have taken to bury the incident that originated from JDS:
- They have reported this site as 'spam' and against community standards
- You can no longer post anything on their Facebook page
- You can no longer upload any picture
- You can no longer make comments that criticizes JDS
- They have removed their feedback chart
It begs the questions to ask. What are they afraid of?
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Updates up to 5/23/2018:
Instead of acknowledging the problem, JDS deletes my comment and blocks my Facebook account. Please share this information with all parents. Ask your children if they were subjected to cyberbullying. Take action.
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