A Jewish family has filed a civil rights complaint against a private school in Herndon, Virginia, after the parents said months of antisemitic bullying directed at their daughter ended when the school expelled the family’s three children.
Parents Bryan Vazquez and Ashok Roy took legal action Monday against the Nysmith School for the Gifted after they accused the administration of condoning harassment against their 11-year-old daughter and creating a hostile environment for the family’s religious beliefs.
The complaint said that when the parents confronted Head of School Ken Nysmith in March for a second time about squashing the vile behavior, he told the family to have their daughter “toughen up” before abruptly expelling the girl, her twin sister and her younger brother days later.
Examples of the bullying cited in the complaint included students saying they hated the girl because she is Jewish, calling Jews “baby killers” and saying Jews deserved to die because of Israel’s war in Gaza.
“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 complaint said. “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.”
Mr. Nysmith told The Washington Times in a statement that he is not aware of any legal action being taken against the school and said, “I can unequivocally assure you that the facts as they are being presented publicly are not accurate.”
“At Nysmith, we do not tolerate violence, hate, or harassment of any kind,” Mr. Nysmith said. “Children are still learning how to communicate and navigate their feelings, and while unkind comments may occur, our approach is to address them as teachable moments, opportunities to help students learn empathy, compassion, and how to disagree respectfully.”
The parents’ legal filing also alleges that the school staff and administration made the campus an unfriendly environment for Jews.
It said one class project in October 2024 instructed students to draw a composite portrait of a “strong historical leader.” The patchwork creation showed the “leader” wearing a tie, wielding a sword and embodying other elements of famous figures throughout history — but the leader’s face had the signature moustache and hairstyle of Adolf Hitler.
A picture of the portrait was shared in a regular email sent out to the school community, according to the complaint. Mr. Vazquez and Mr. Roy spoke with other parents about the portrait, but chalked it up to one teacher’s poor judgment and decided not to raise the issue with the school.
Mr. Nysmith said the class project was based on Machiavelli’s “The Prince,” in which students were asked to identify the positive and negative traits of a leader. For instance, he said the symbolic portrait included representations of former President Obama.
The headmaster also told The Times that a school parent, whose elderly mother is a Holocaust survivor, sent a message of support for the school’s curriculum. “It was not an antisemitic project,” Mr. Nysmith said.
The complaint said the parents learned of the relentless bullying their daughter was facing in February after another student brought it up to Mr. Vazquez.
When he asked the daughter if she was being harassed by other students, she started sobbing and said she had hid the bullying to avoid becoming an outcast at school.
Both parents met with Mr. Nysmith about the bullying days later, and the headmaster assured them he would “swiftly handle the issue,” according to the complaint. Mr. Nysmith told the parents he would have administrators talk with the children about their behavior, and contact the students’ parents if their attitudes didn’t change.
The filing also noted a strange sequence where the school canceled an event on antisemitism with a Holocaust survivor because of Mr. Nysmith’s “concern that the event might inflame emotions … in light of the Israel-Gaza conflict,” but then decided to hang up a Palestinian flag in its gym alongside other international flags.
The new flag encouraged more intense bullying toward the family’s daughter, the complaint said.
“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.
The parents said they again arranged for a meeting with Mr. Nysmith on March 11 and demanded to know why the bullying hadn’t been addressed. The filing said Mr. Nysmith dismissed their concerns and told the family that their daughter had to “toughen up.”
Mr. Vazquez and Mr. Roy received an email two days later from the headmaster promptly expelling the three children because Mr. Nysmith said the family has a “profound lack of trust in both me and the school.”
In his statement to The Times, Mr. Nysmith said “When a family is unwilling to engage in that partnership, despite our efforts, it may no longer be possible to maintain a healthy and productive environment for their children or others.”
“In such rare and difficult cases, a decision to part ways is only made after extensive deliberation and, in this case, with the guidance and approval of our corporate attorney who is familiar with all of the facts,” he said.
Mr. Vazquez and Mr. Roy filed their complaint with Virginia’s Office of Civil Rights.
State prosecutors have final say on whether they will launch a formal investigation into the school.
