A Virginia family settled with the Nysmith School for Gifted Children on Tuesday after the parents alleged that the school condoned antisemitic bullying of their 11-year-old daughter and then expelled the girl and her two siblings when concerns were brought to administrators.
Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares announced the settlement, ending a saga that started at the Herndon school with a class project depicting Adolf Hitler positively and later saw other students openly calling Jews “baby killers.”
When the family confronted Head of School Ken Nysmith this spring about the antisemitic bullying targeting their daughter, the lawsuit said Mr. Nysmith first suggested that the preteen “toughen up” and then hastily expelled the child, her twin sister and her younger brother days later.
“Combating antisemitism is a top priority for my office. Every child deserves to learn in an environment free from hate, intimidation, or fear,” Mr. Miyares said in a statement. “As attorney general, it is my duty to protect the civil rights of every student and ensure no one faces retaliation when speaking out against discrimination. No child should feel unsafe or unwelcome in a classroom in Virginia, and no parent should fear retaliation for defending their child.”
The Brandeis Center, the law firm that represented parents Bryan Vazquez and Ashok Roy in their lawsuit, said Mr. Nysmith will issue a public apology about the hateful behavior at his school and will reimburse the family $100,000 for expenses they incurred due to the expulsion.
The school will also adopt new nondiscrimination policies, set up a working committee to handle discrimination complaints and provide mandatory antisemitism training to faculty, staff and administrators.
“Justice has been served for our clients’ family, and the resulting actions underway at Nysmith School will help prevent this kind of discrimination from happening to others. These steps are critical as antisemitism in K-12 education continues to rise,” Kenneth L. Marcus, chairman and CEO of the Brandeis Center, said in a statement.
The parents’ lawsuit said they first noticed antisemitic behavior at the school in October 2024 when Hitler was included in a class composite portrait of a “strong historical leader.”
The amalgamated creation had the “leader” wearing a tie, wielding a sword, and donning the distinct face, hairstyle and mustache of the Nazi leader.
Mr. Vazquez and Mr. Roy didn’t learn about the constant bullying their daughter was enduring until February, when another student brought it up to them, according to the lawsuit.
The preteen girl broke down crying after her parents asked her about being harassed by other students.
“In front of her classmates, the bullying children looked at their daughter, and called Jews ‘baby killers,’ and said that they deserve to die because of what is happening in Gaza,” the lawsuit said, listing one of the examples the daughter shared with her parents.
“Pointing at the other children, the bullies told their daughter that everyone at the school is against Jews and Israel, which is why they hate you,” the filing read, listing another example. “The other children also taunted her about the death of her uncle, saying that they were glad he died in the October 7th attack, even though he had died years earlier.”
But the girl said she didn’t want to address the bullying with her parents because she was afraid of becoming a pariah at school.
The parents spoke with Mr. Nysmith about the bullying soon afterward, the filing said, and the headmaster assured them he would “swiftly handle the issue.”
The complaint said the bullying against the girl picked up again after the school hung a Palestinian flag in its gym.
“Classmates cited it as evidence that ‘everyone hates Jews,’ taunting her that ’we won’ and that the flag was proof that ’nobody likes you,’” the filing said.
Mr. Vazquez and Mr. Roy arranged for a meeting with Mr. Nysmith on March 11 and demanded to know why the bullying hadn’t been addressed, according to the complaint. Mr. Nysmith dismissed their concerns and told the family that their daughter had to “toughen up.”
The parents received an email two days later from the headmaster saying the administration was expelling their three children because Mr. Nysmith said the family has a “profound lack of trust in both me and the school.”
The family filed their civil rights complaint with the Office of the Attorney General of Virginia in July. The AG’s office determined discrimination had taken place before the end of the month.
