‘At their wit’s end:’ Community outraged at school after ‘relentless’ bullying drives student to suicide

AMELIA COUNTY, Va. (WWBT/Gray News) - A school district in Virginia is under fire after a high school student died from suicide.

The family of 17-year-old John Tyrcha endured relentless bullying and claims school officials at Amelia County High School did nothing to help.

Dr. Lori Harper, the superintendent of Amelia County Public Schools, released a statement assuring the community that the school system is “committed to addressing instances where student conduct falls short.”

That post, however, was met with a slew of negative comments. Many parents said the school should have taken more action.

“It’s heartbreaking to see these kids and these parents that are at their wits’ end and don’t know what to do anymore,” Tammy Maiden, the grandparent of a former Amelia County Public Schools student, said.

WWBT tried to reach out to Harper for further comment but was told she was unavailable.

In the superintendent’s letter, she said school leadership is actively investigating the concerns brought to its attention.

She also wrote that, due to laws surrounding student privacy, some of the actions taken cannot be made public.

She itted that this may lead to the perception that no action is being taken.

Maiden said she has seen the division’s inaction firsthand. She said her grandson was bullied at Amelia County Middle School, but when asked for help, barely any was given by the school.

“My daughter was at the school almost as much as her son was, trying to get help,” she said. “And we had one who tried to help, but he didn’t get anywhere, he really didn’t. So we ended up having to pull him, and he was homeschooled for a few years, and now he’s at a different school in a different county, and he’s thriving.”

Maiden is not the only one who believes the division could do more.

Another parent, Alexis Coddington, said the school officials never spoke to the parents of the child bullying her step-daughter.

“The parent had no idea, was never informed by the school about what had been going on, and once I spoke with the parent, she addressed it immediately. The next day, the child apologized to my child,” Coddington said.

With a special school board meeting scheduled for Monday, officials will review their code of conduct, anti-bullying programs and more.

Maiden is hoping their calls for action don’t go unanswered.

“We’re hoping that something will change for them. And just, again, adhering to the policies you have would be a huge step forward,” she said.

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