Officers responded to reports of an injured female in the area of Challenger Road, local police said in a statement shared Wednesday, May 20. On Tuesday, Superintendent Dr. Joseph P. Vespignani informed families that a student at the junior-senior high school (which is for students in seventh to 12th grades) had died. School counselors were made available throughout the day for students and staff members needing support, according to Vespignani.
The sophomore girl’s death is believed to have been a suicide after having been relentlessly bullied, multiple sources with direct knowledge of the incident told Daily Voice. Daily Voice has reached out to district administrators for comment. Police said only that the girl’s death was not criminal in nature.
Sources described the student as exceptionally bright, saying she was academically ahead of her grade level. They also said she was a talented artist whose drawings filled her online class pages.
Classmates said the girl, whose name Daily Voice is withholding, was known for her kindness.
“She was in my Spanish class last year and she always was telling stories about her family and how much she loved them,” one student wrote in an online tribute. “I always saw her going above and beyond for everyone around her. Her kindness and beautiful soul will always be remembered.”
The word classmates repeated most often was “sweet.” One student said he met her in what he called her “safe space” — art class.
“She was always telling stories, laughing, and gifting little things that would brighten your day,” he wrote. “She was also always helping out others, even when she didn´t have to. For example, one day me and some other people were doing a banner for school, and [she] came in and helped us without us even asking. She just helped us out of the kindness of her heart.
“[She] made an impact on so many people´s lives, and I´m so, so glad to have met her. She will NOT be forgotten.”
If you or someone you know is struggling with thoughts of suicide, help is available by calling or texting 988.
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