PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — Inside a home in a small Largo neighborhood, the Davis family has been fighting a big battle.
“It started when she was in kindergarten,” said Anthony Davis.
“She would either have like a bloody knee or, she’d get hit in the face or whatever. So it would get a little alarming,” he added.
Anthony and his wife, Christina, told ABC Action News that their daughter, Emily-Brooke, was bullied.
“It was heartbreaking to see her coming home everyday you know, beat up, torn up, rips in her clothes, and just not wanting to go to school anymore,” said Christina.
They said it started when Emily-Brooke was in kindergarten until second grade.
“It was really hard. It was actually very difficult to make friends too," said Emily-Brooke.
Ultimately, her parents said it got so bad that they had to unenroll her from her school.
“By God’s grace, my sister was able to find a K-12 online which led us to Digital Academy of Florida. Which ultimately has changed Emily-Brooke’s life,” said Anthony.
Emotions still run high for the Davis family when talking about Emily-Brooke’s bullying. But now as a fourth grader, she tells us things have improved since starting virtual school.
“It’s been better. I like it,” said Emily-Brooke.
“It’s given her a way to blossom and grow into who she is. It allows her to explore different hobbies and things that she likes and hang out with friends and talk and not have to worry or fear what’s going to happen at school,” said Christina.
“She’s been able to excel further now and rightfully catching up to where she is because of the teachers that she’s had. She’s happier and safer and she’s making friends through the school,” said Anthony.
Since this week is National School Choice Week, a time dedicated to encouraging families to consider different education options for students, the Davis family hopes their story can help someone else.
They want parents to know that school choice isn’t just for students looking for a specialty program, but can allow them to consider more non-traditional learning if a brick and mortar school is no longer serving their child.
“I would say that there’s hope. There are other options and you don’t have to suffer and fight through these things. You know, if school isn’t working out there are other options,” said Christina.
Now in the safety of their home with the Digital Academy of Florida, Emily-Brooke is able to just focus on being a kid.
“I actually have a couple of favorite parts. Art, music, reading, PE, pretty much everything,” said Emily-Brooke.
“It just warms my heart so much to know that Emily-Brooke is doing such an amazing job here in our school. We hear success stories like this all the time," said Emily Dewey, Elementary Principal for Digital Academy of Florida. "I think the biggest misconception that we really hear about virtual learning is that students feel isolated and students don’t have that connection that they can in a brick and mortar environment. It’s the exact opposite. This situation with Emily-Brooke shows you just how important it is for parents to be so engaged in their learning and for students to be able to have a good time and have a great relationship with their teachers as well."
