GAINESVILLE – Gainesville City School Board Vice Chairman Willie Mitchell listened carefully as Kimberly Ruffin tearfully told her story, passing a suicide note her 11-year-old grandson had written just days before to Newtown Florist Club Executive Director Rose Johnson.
Ruffin was in Gainesville to help her daughter, Cirea Dizrea Oliver, who was in the Hall County Jail following her arrest on Wednesday for making terroristic threats in a video posted on Facebook where she complained about her son being bullied at Gainesville Middle School.
Mitchell introduced himself to the room, “I am a school board member. I represent this area, this ward; I represent every child, but I represent every child that needs us the most.”
"Understand this," Mitchell said looking around the crowded room, "I do feel as a school board member that the school system dropped the ball on this."
Mitchell was one of two dozen attendees at a meeting Thursday evening organized by members of the community activist group, the Newtown Florist Club. The club wanted to show support for Oliver’s situation and shine light on the growing crisis of bullying in the schools.
Mitchell said in his many visits to the middle school he had become aware of the growing problem of bullying. “When I go into the middle school, what I hear is that we have these problems, what I hear is that they would wish that they would go away rather than dealing with them.”
“But they are not going to go away,” he added. “We’re going to have to deal with them.”
Part of that remedy is an effort called “Rebuilding the Village”, a movement arising in response to the arrest of Oliver. Kelly Williams opened the meeting describing the purposes of the new parental push to protect their children.
“We are a new organization established for three primary reasons,” Williams said. “One, we want to make sure our children receive a quality public school education. Two, we have grave concerns about the issue of bullying as a system-wide problem in our school district. And, three, we are committed to helping to rebuild this village and doing our part as parents.”
Williams said “Rebuilding the Village” stood in support of Oliver and her son and wants to ensure they receive the support and resources they need, but she then added this caution to anyone in Oliver’s circumstances: “We begin with this warning to parents – no matter how distressed you are, you cannot and must not make threats intended to harm another person on Facebook or any other social media outlet. It is a criminal offense and you will be arrested.”
While acknowledging that Oliver’s actions were wrong, Williams said, “We are also aware that but for Cirea we would not be able to have this conversation because no one would have heard our voices, and no one would have known that so many parents and children are in distress.”
Chris Randolph, mother of three children in the school system, shared her feelings about Oliver’s actions. “Our community failed a young mother who cried out for our help and we ignored her cries. A young mother who did everything she was told to do, following the steps that you’re supposed to take in a situation like bullying, and what was the outcome? Nothing.”
Randolph continued, “This whole situation could have been prevented. When the system fails us, as a community we have to come together. The policies and procedures that were put in place failed a mother and it is our duty to stand up and demand that those policies and procedures are adhered to.”
The community is invited to attend a meeting on Monday, December 30, at the Fair Street Neighborhood Center, starting at 6 p.m. to discuss the issues of bullying and discipline. Gainesville School Superintendent Dr. Jeremy Williams and a panel of other school leaders will be in attendance at that meeting.
Mitchell told the audience, “It’s our responsibility as a school system to not only educate your child, but that they be safe as they are being educated.”
