System of Negligence

Personal Note:

I love my city and every single teacher, para, and building staff member who has taught and supported my children at Cabot School District. I report on these issues not as someone looking to tear down our schools but as a mother who believes in their potential to be better. When I speak about violations of laws and policies, it’s NEVER an attack on these educators, it’s a call to action for those in leadership to recognize that when laws and procedures are violated, it’s not just a breach of policy—it’s a breach of trust with the families who entrust their children to our schools.

My youngest child will soon be attending Cabot schools so he can graduate with his friends, yet I worry daily about retaliation against him because of what I have exposed over the past years. Why? Because I have also seen teachers punished for being kind to me and talking with me about my children. I have stories of children being ostracized because their parents stood up to the administration. I even faced it myself, being targeted, having my words taken out of context, and even having the FBI called on me by the administration.  To those who fear retaliation for speaking out and standing up for wrongs they see happening in our schools, I understand your fears—I’ve faced it myself and still do, but staying quiet isn’t an option any longer—our children need your courage. Your voice matters now more than ever.

I worry daily about retaliation.

I truly believe we can do better as a community, a state, and a nation. It’s about ensuring that every child is given a safe environment to learn and a chance to not be the next statistic.  Together, let’s hold our schools to the highest standard, where actions do have consequences and where every child and parent feels safe and respected. The District’s motto is “It’s About Kids” but the stories you’re about to read reveal how far we’ve strayed from that promise.

Heidi Stanislawski‘s special needs son Mason endured a year of escalating torment at Cabot School District. Heidi shared photos of her son and stated the worst was when he was pushed off the bleachers and needed medical attention.  She said he was continuously bullied after that and even had his head kicked by students. Instead of protecting Mason, the school blamed him for “horseplaying too much” and suspended him, while his attackers faced no consequences. Throughout the year, Heidi desperately emailed administrators requesting video evidence of these incidents but was repeatedly denied access.

When she began investigating the school’s failure to protect her son, Heidi states she became a target herself when Superintendent Dr. Tony Thurman allegedly had local police follow her whenever she came on school property. After posting photos and information online about the school’s refusal to handle the bullies, Heidi faced even more pushback when requesting to see the “horseplay” videos that resulted in Mason getting suspended. When Heidi announced she was coming to view this supposed footage, Dr. Thurman emailed her and claimed all surveillance videos on the main server had been deleted during “district-wide maintenance.”  She claimed she was also confused as to why he said she had viewed previous video footage, which she had not seen. Desperate for answers, she filed a FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) request for her son’s records and reports.

What she discovered was shocking: falsified documents, even signed off by Assistant Superintendent Michael Byrd, claiming she had met with administration and viewed surveillance footage—meetings she claims never happened, documents clearly not signed off by her, and footage Heidi claims she never saw. With legal fees estimated at $10,000—money the family didn’t have—Heidi had one choice: to protect Mason and move from Cabot.

Drew and Honey Lynch first experienced Cabot’s pattern of failing to protect students in 2019. Mrs. Lynch stated that Superintendent Thurman allowed their daughter Kaylee’s perpetrator back into school after the investigator told her that he had been charged with 43 counts of sexual aggression. So, in 2024, when their youngest daughter received death threats via text messages, they feared history would repeat itself. After keeping their daughter home for two days, Dr. Thurman called, claiming they’d found the offender but “couldn’t reveal who.”  Their daughter learned from classmates not only the bully’s identity but that she was bragging about only getting “a few weeks in ALE” (Alternative Learning Environment).

When Drew and Honey demanded to know why the student wasn’t expelled, they said that Thurman dismissed them with, “We are handling it.” The Lynches then published a social media post, desperate for answers, and then later shared the texts. They stated that Dr. Thurman immediately called, demanding that they remove the posts. When they refused, he was forced to bring the case before the school board, and only then was the bully finally expelled.

Concerned that no outside law enforcement had investigated the threats, the parents filed a FOIA request for all documents and videos to support a police report regarding their daughter. The school’s counsel, Leila Seigrist, denied their request, citing three exemptions: 25-19-105 (b)(2) which states the following will not be made open to the public, “Medical records, adoption records, and education records as defined in the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) of 1974, 20 U.S.C. § 1232g, unless their disclosure is consistent with the provisions of that act”.  That means the education records have to be disclosed to parents according to FERPA; 25-19-105 (b)(6) which records will not become public if, “Undisclosed investigations by law enforcement agencies of suspected criminal activity”; and 9-27-309, which defines what documents the court can make confidential. According to each law, all three exemptions were misapplied.

The first isn’t valid because the FERPA requires schools to provide parents with their child’s records but denies everyone else from obtaining their records. 25-19-105 (b)(6) only applies to law enforcement during active investigations, which Dr. Thurman stated below that Cabot School police do not do. The third, 9-27-309, refers to courts closing juvenile records, which is irrelevant to Cabot School District.

The contradiction to the second exemption happened when Dr. Thurman stated on January 20, 2025, that Cabot School District’s police department does not handle investigations. Only the law enforcement agency performing the investigation can deny the FOIA based on that exemption. If the school was investigating, contrary to Dr. Thurman’s statement, how could the investigation still be ongoing after they had already expelled the student, which is the final disciplinary action a school can take?

Arkansas Code 6-18-514 on anti-bullying procedures and Federal Title IX are clear: Schools must investigate and release all reports to all parties involved. My question is this. Does the District’s counsel not understand the laws, or did she think she could just quote random exemptions so the parents would stop asking?

Jennifer Turner watched helplessly as her biracial daughter transformed from a vibrant, eager student at Northside Elementary into a shadow of herself. Classmates targeted her relentlessly, mocking her braided hair and deliberately isolating her on the playground’s “buddy bench” while the school stayed silent. When the bullying turned physical on a school bus, her daughter begged her not to return to school.

Despite the principal’s promise to remove the aggressor, nothing changed. Left with no choice, Jennifer decided to homeschool her daughter. Instead of support, she received a condescending email from the Northside principal questioning her parenting choice and claiming only public schools could meet her daughter’s needs.

The situation escalated when Jennifer sought help from advocate Jimmie Cavin, who filed a FOIA request for correspondence between Jennifer and the principal—emails the school mysteriously had no record of. What followed was a relentless pressure campaign.

Jennifer stated that Dr. Thurman called her with promises of different elementary school tours, support, and even bribes of new backpacks and clothes. She said he even told her to ask her daughter to see if she wanted to be in public school. When Jennifer explained her daughter had spent the summer crying, begging not to return, seh stated his response was chilling: “Children don’t always know what’s best for them.”

Jennifer aslo claims that the harassment didn’t stop there because Westside Elementary’s principal showed up uninvited at her home, claiming her school was “bully-free” and her daughter would be safe. Even after demanding that they leave her alone, the Eastside Elementary principal made an early morning call to Jennifer in a final attempt to get her to re-enroll her daughter.

Jennifer demanded again to be left alone, making it clear her daughter would never return to Cabot Schools. Jennifer stated that it was obvious Cabot would move mountains to keep their enrollment numbers up but couldn’t be bothered to protect her child while she was there.

Another Cabot father, whom I will refer to as M.H., retells how bullying was handled by Cabot Schools on two different occasions. During the first occurrence, M.H. claims his daughter was slammed to the ground by her throat by a boy at recess and quickly told the recess aid. The parents waited 3 days for a call from the school, and when they never heard a thing, the parents contacted Mr. Byrd directly. M.H. stated that when he demanded to know why the school didn’t reach out to them the day it happened, Mr. Byrd replied, “It is still under investigation.” M.H. claims that when Mr. Byrd called back, he stated the video showed, “It was a fair fight and both students were equally responsible for the escalation of the incident”, then proceeded to give his daughter in-school suspension, along with her attacker.

Another incident happened to his daughter a few years later while attending Freshman Academy. M.H. recounts how a student threatened to beat up and then kill his daughter. Dr. Thurman and Mr. Byrd assured the family they would “handle the situation.” Yet the student wasn’t suspended and continued riding the same bus as their daughter. Desperate for help, Mitchell went to the Cabot Police Department, only to be turned away—they were told that the Cabot School District handles all matters “on school grounds.”  When they demanded to file a police report with the school resource officer, he repeatedly discouraged them from filing a report, even asking, “Are you sure you want to do this?” At that time, Cabot resource officers worked for the Lonoke County Sheriff’s office, which the family provided me with the report. The parents never received any investigation report from the District. Their daughter’s would-be attacker was eventually sent to  ALE, but still rode the same bus as their daughter.

These stories are only a handful of what I have received. The safety of our children has become a negotiable commodity in our school system. You are your child’s advocate—sometimes the only one. No one will fight for your child with the same passion and commitment that you will. These bullying situations directly impact your child’s mental, emotional, and physical well-being in ways that administrators and staff cannot fully comprehend. Is discipline a problem in schools? Yes. D0 parents need to hold their children to a higher standard? Yes. But schools have to work with parents to make that happen

When the Cabot School District, along with districts across our state, add “pattern of behavior” to their policy on bullying, it does not protect children because even when a clear pattern emerges, they still fail to uphold their own policies. They’ve gone rogue, operating as if they’re above the law.

You have more power than you realize. Attend a school board meeting. Ask questions. Request reports. Your voice doesn’t have to be loud to be powerful—it just has to be present. Whether you speak up at a meeting, send an email, or connect with other parents, you’re making a difference. Resources are available to ensure schools protect your children from advocacy groups to filing ethics and law violations with the Arkansas Department of Education.

Knowledge truly is power, so arm yourself with information, connect with others who can guide you, and never stop fighting for your child’s safety. Schools will continue to dictate the narrative of our children’s education and safety until parents rise up and reclaim their rightful place as primary advocates. Our silence is their permission.

Missy Bosch

Missy is the author of “Crushed, but Not Broken”, a story detailing her daughter’s diagnosis and her family’s fight with CNS HLH. She has a passion to improve education and help children with disabilities receive the education and respect they deserve. Missy and her husband are AF veterans and have 4 children.