Bayville students stage walkout to bring attention to bullying after teen's suicide

Dozens of Central Regional High School students walked out of class to protest on the sidewalk, calling for change.

News 12 Staff

Feb 8, 2023, 6:10 PM

Updated 655 days ago

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Warning: Some of the images in the video above may be difficult to watch.
Students at an Ocean County high school protested Wednesday to call for changes to the school's bullying policy. The protest comes a week after a 14-year-old girl died by suicide.
A video taken on Feb. 1 shows a group of girls attack 14-year-old Adriana Kuch inside Central Regional High School in Bayville. The next day, Kuch died by suicide. Family and friends of Kuch say she was a victim of bullying prior to the fight.
Dozens of students walked out of class to call for change.
“It's horrible, it's absolutely disgusting, and I wish people, I wish teenagers were better than this because bullying is just not OK,” said student Maria Laycock.
“I think the fact that these kids are exercising their right to say what they feel, show their anger is great. They're trying to make a difference, trying to change something,” said Jo Siclari, a parent of a student protesting.
Police were not called following the attack. School Superintendent Dr. Triantafillos Parlapanides says that this is the policy at the school.
"I don't believe a police report was done. We normally just suspend. If a parent wants to press charges they can with the police. But we're not going to double-whammy a kid where they are suspended and then police charges as well," Parlapanides says.
News 12 has confirmed that three of the four girls seen in the video were charged with third-degree felony assault - a fourth was charged with disorderly conduct.
Public services for Kuch will be held Friday evening in Bayville.