Opinion ID: 2091949
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: High School

Text: On entering High School South, the epithets resurfaced. To avoid the derision he encountered on the school bus, L.W. decided to walk home after school. However, while walking home from school in early September and off school grounds, a car approached L.W. and three students, L.B., J.F., and M.F., exited. M.F. said, I heard you have a crush on L.B., and that [his] family doesn't like faggots, [he doesn't] like faggots. J.F. pressed L.W., Well, are you a faggot? M.F. chimed in, We don't like faggots, our whole family doesn't like faggots. L.W. yelled, It's none of your damn business. M.F. then punched L.W. in the face, knocking him down. L.W. ran away, crying hysterically, but M.F. chased after him threatening, If I hear that you said anything about this I'm going to knife you. L.W. subsequently missed a day or two of school. In the wake of the attack, L.W.'s mother informed high school officials of the mistreatment her son endured in middle school. According to L.W.'s mother, the educators seemed unaware of L.W.'s past. The District suspended M.F. for ten days, and he later pled guilty to a charge of assault. School officials advised L.W. to take the bus home in the future. The final incident occurred in mid-September when L.W. went to downtown Toms River for lunch, as many students did. L.T. approached L.W., who was sitting on a curb outside a 7-Eleven convenience store. Unprovoked, L.T. pushed L.W. to the ground and grabbed L.W.'s shirt. L.T. warned L.W. that if he ever heard that L.W. had a crush on him or his friends again that he'd kick [L.W.'s] a . The aggressor then completely covered L.W. with dirt. The District suspended L.T. for ten days. L.W. never returned to High School South, but instead withdrew from the District to attend school elsewhere. During the following month, his mother attempted to find alternative placement for L.W., without assistance from the District. After his mother expressed an interest in Red Bank Regional High School, the District agreed to subsidize L.W.'s attendance and transportation expenses. Enrolled in Red Bank Regional's performing arts program, L.W. completed his freshman year without encountering one single problem. The next year, because of the transportation burden on his family, L.W. transferred to Ocean County Vocational Technical School, Career and Technical Institute. L.W. described his time as a student in the District as very upsetting. Indeed, L.W. stated that he felt as if he missed his teenage years. Prior to the harassment, family members described L.W. as a very happy child. After the maltreatment, his family described him as depressed, fearful, and withdrawn. According to his mother, he was not . . . the same kid that he was years before. L.W. had difficulty paying attention in class, a problem that negatively impacted his academic performance. In fact, in seventh grade, a teacher called L.W.'s mother to express her concerns. The teacher reported that L.W. was not the same boy who walked into my classroom in September. He's disruptive[, and] his grades are falling. His mother cited the harassment as the cause, a revelation that shocked the teacher, who was unaware of any problems.