Boulder Valley School District apologizes for antisemitic harassment failures

Boulder Valley School District (BVSD) Superintendent Rob Anderson has issued a public apology for the district’s failure to protect a Jewish student from nearly two years of antisemitic harassment at Southern Hills Middle School. The apology follows a federal complaint filed by the Anti-Defamation League with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights.

The complaint alleges a hostile environment involving slurs, physical assaults, and bias-motivated bullying. One specific incident involved a student using a charging cable as a lasso to pull the victim from a chair while using an antisemitic slur. Anderson stated that the district’s previous responses were insufficient and proposed reforms to bullying and discrimination policies to explicitly recognize antisemitism.

During a recent board meeting, the discussion expanded beyond the specific harassment case. While Anderson addressed the need for systemic change and mediation with Jewish community leaders, several speakers used the forum to criticize the Anti-Defamation League and the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism, arguing that anti-Zionism should be distinguished from antisemitism.