Rockford Public Schools: Girl’s tragic death is a ‘wake-up call’

An investigation is underway to determine what led to an 11-year-old student’s death by suicide and what could have been done to prevent it.

The family of Jalyah Noel Thompson has said on social media that bullying at Eisenhower Middle School was a major factor in her Feb. 21 death.

Rockford Public Schools Superintendent Ehren Jarrett said during a news conference Wednesday that bullying of Jaylah has not been confirmed. He said school district personnel are interviewing students, residents and staff to get to the bottom of what happened. He said police also are investigating.

“We do not have any evidence that I would be able to share that that is what occurred,” Jarrett said. “I know that there are allegations … but we have a very detailed and thorough investigation process.”

Family members say the Eisenhower Middle School student was bullied at school and died by suicide Friday, Feb. 21. Some family members have blamed school officials for not doing more to protect the girl.

Jarrett said school district invests $30 million into support personnel beyond the basic package of teachers and counselors that are required.

He said it wasn’t enough to save Jalyah.

Jarrett called for renewed partnership between the school system, students, parents and social service providers. He encouraged anyone who is suffering to tell someone they trust. Even with highly trained personnel ready to help, schools can’t help if they don’t know a child is struggling, he said.

There is information posted in every school on where to seek help for a variety of issues including bullying, eating disorders, drugs, anxiety, self harm, depression and suicide. Students can scan a QR to report concerns anonymously.

Jarrett said additional staff have been assigned to Eisenhower to assist the distraught school community.

“This is a wake-up call,” Jarrett said. “We want to make sure that students are saying something if they’re struggling, and if they feel uncomfortable saying something that family and friends are stepping up.”

Jarrett said the community is rightfully angry and understandably looking to assign blame.

“I’m sad, and I’m angry that this happened to such a young child,” he said. “I also want to see that we take that frustration and that sadness we feel and make sure that we are doing everything we can to come together and improve as a community, because we will be very limited in what we can accomplish with finger pointing. We will be much more successful if we come together and see what we can do to prevent future tragedy.”

If you suspect someone is in crisis, contact the National Suicide Prevention Hotline by dialing 988. You can also text “HOME,” to the crisis text line at 741741 to communicate with a crisis counselor.

Jeff Kolkey writes about government, economic development and other issues for the Rockford Register Star. He can be reached via email at jkolkey@rrstar.com and on X @jeffkolkey.

This article originally appeared on Rockford Register Star: Rockford schools are investigating what led to 11-year-old’s death

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