Middle school parent accuses Norman district of negligence

Tim Willert, The Norman Transcript, Okla.
·2 min read

Nov. 18—Norman Public Schools knowingly placed a boy with a learning disability in a different classroom with older students, one of whom physically and verbally assaulted him, his mother alleges in a civil petition.

The petition, a formal request for a court order, was filed earlier this month in Cleveland County District Court.

Adrianne Johnson is asking a judge to award damages in access of $75,000, claiming her son suffered physical pain and emotional distress as a result of the alleged assault.

In the petition, Johnson alleges negligence on the part of the school district, claiming "NPS knew or should have known that placing [the boy] in a loud, unsupervised room of older students would increase the risk of him being bullied," the petition states.

The boy, 11, attended Alcott Middle School, where he was "the victim of ongoing bullying" leading up to the alleged assault Jan. 11, according to the petition.

The boy, the petition, states is blind in one eye, has heart problems and "has the cognitive ability of a 7-year-old or 8-year-old." Additionally, he has been diagnosed with autism, ADHD and Disruptive Mood Disorder."

The boy is considered a "child with a disability" under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and had an Individualized Education Program (IEP) in place, the petition states.

Johnson alleges district faculty and administration were aware of the boy's disabilities, the terms of his IEP and that he had been a victim of ongoing bullying, yet "inexplicably" placed him in a classroom other than the one where he received "direct instruction for all core classes."

That classroom included students who were between ages 14 and 15, in violation of his IEP, the petition states.

When the boy shouted at students for being too loud and threw a book, one of the older students "repeatedly physically assaulted and battered [him] and called him [a racial slur] in the presence of an Alcott teacher," according to the petition.

Reached Friday, spokesman Wes Moody said the district "can't comment due to the litigation and student privacy laws."