Published by Washington Jewish Week on 7/1/2025 Three Jewish children were expelled from a private school in Herndon in March after their parents complained about the unaddressed antisemitic bullying their 11-year-old daughter experienced at school, according to a complaint filed today by The Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law and Dillon PLLC. The parents of the 11-year-old said their daughter had endured months of “severe and relentless” antisemitic harassment that had gone unresolved by school officials at The Nysmith School for the Gifted, according to the complaint. The school also canceled its annual tradition of hosting a Holocaust survivor to speak about antisemitism, citing concerns about escalating tensions related to the Israel-Hamas war, according to a press release. According to the complaint, some students at Nysmith School taunted the 11-year-old for being “Israeli” and referred to Jewish people as “baby killers,” adding that they deserved to die because of the events of the Israel-Hamas war. The bullies told the 11-year-old that “everyone at the school is against Jews and Israel, which is why they hate you.” They also made fun of her for the death of her uncle, saying they were glad he “died in the October 7th attack,” despite the fact that he had died years prior. When her parents notified Kenneth Nysmith, the headmaster of the school, of this anti-Jewish harassment and bullying, the headmaster allegedly promised to take action, including calling the bullies’ parents and having an administrator speak with the bullies. Nothing happened, according to the complaint. A few weeks later, Nysmith displayed a Palestinian flag in the school gym alongside other country’s flags including Israel’s, and the harassment of the 11-year-old student worsened, according to the complaint. The girl’s parents told Nysmith that they had no objection to the raising of the Palestinian flag, but the bullying had become “much worse,” to which the headmaster allegedly said to tell their daughter to “toughen up” and quickly ended the meeting. Two days later, on March 13, Nysmith emailed the parents that all three of their children — a son in second grade and two daughters in sixth grade — were expelled, effective immediately, according to the complaint. Nysmith’s email to the parents read, “In our meeting, I felt very clearly that you do not think Nysmith is the right school for your family, and the longer we try to ignore that reality, the more pain it will cause your children,” according to the complaint. The headmaster allegedly did not allow the 11-year-old to participate in a school event on March 14, the day she was scheduled to receive a medal for her science fair project, nor did he allow other families at the school to collect the award for her. “At the time of the expulsion, all three children were high-achieving students, and none had any disciplinary issues,” the press release read. The expulsion of the three children violates the Virginia Human Rights Act’s definition of a “private accommodation,” which requires private schools to provide a safe learning environment for all students, according to Jeffrey Lang, the senior litigation counsel at the Brandeis Center. The Nysmith School did not respond to a request for comment at the time of publication. “The actions of Nysmith School against these three young children are disgraceful,” Kenneth L. Marcus, the chairman of the Brandeis Center, said in a press release. “As explained in the complaint, the administration not only dismissed this family’s pain and humiliation, but allowed an atmosphere that fostered anti-Semitism. Through its actions, the administration sent a clear message: bullying is acceptable, as long as it’s against Jewish families.” “Mr. Nysmith’s expulsion of the children from the only school they had ever known has devastated them,” the complaint read. The three children were expelled suddenly in the middle of the spring semester. The application period for most other private schools had long passed, so their parents could not enroll them in a similar nearby school. Because the children were expelled days before the end of the first spring marking period, they did not have transcripts updated beyond December 2024. The parents enrolled them in online classes “isolated and alone in their home,” according to the complaint. Lang is overseeing the case, which was brought to his attention in the spring. “This case shows how antisemitism has become normalized,” Lang told Washington Jewish Week. “We’ve seen it on college and university campuses and in protests on the streets, but this case shows how antisemitism has become normalized even in elementary schools. What’s shocking is just how normalized this is, that a school can make these decisions without even being embarrassed by them.” Nysmith School facilitated “an environment hostile to Jewish students” well before this case, the complaint alleged. The complaint recounted a history assignment in October 2024 in which students were asked to collaborate on a large drawing of attributes of “strong historical leaders.” The students drew a picture of Adolf Hitler. Lang said he hopes that Nysmith will apologize to the 11-year-old and her family, adopt a “meaningful definition of antisemitism” into the school’s antidiscrimination policies, provide antisemitism training for school administrators and staff and follow up to ensure appropriate change. “The parents have decided to take a stand for their children and the community and I couldn’t be prouder to be associated with them,” Lang said.