Recently, Niagara Action began publishing a series of stories illustrating a culture of bullying, assaults, and harassment at North Tonawanda City Schools.
Click Headlines to Read Prior Stories
North Tonawanda Schools Face Backlash Over Failure to Protect Students from Bullying
A Culture of Unreported Violence: North Tonawanda Schools Part 1 (videos of physical altercations included)
Former Assistant Principal Rachel Ross Protects Bullies: North Tonawanda Schools Part 2 (audio recording of Ross yelling at student included)
Student Beaten after Principal Rowles Fails to Act: North Tonawanda Schools Part 3 (video of physical altercation included)
Special Education Student Locked in Bathroom and Beaten: North Tonawanda Schools Part 4
Assault Victim Punished Instead of Bully: North Tonawanda Schools Part 5
Victim of Explicit Photo Dissemination Suspended: North Tonawanda Schools Part 6
Special Education Student Bullied by Teachers: North Tonawanda Schools Part 7
Gym Teacher Ryan Mountain Watching Girls Change: North Tonawanda Schools Part 8
Assistant Principal Rachel Wagner Witnesses Assault and Does Nothing: North Tonawanda Schools Part 9
Weaponizing Child Protective Services: North Tonawanda Schools Part 10
Former Principal Fisher Blamed My Son's Sexual Orientation for Death Threat: North Tonawanda Schools Part 11
Bullied, Beaten and Betrayed by Administration: North Tonawanda Schools Part 12
After the articles circulated throughout the community, several parents, current and former students submitted their experiences via email to us. Their stories amounted to a simple conclusion: there is a refusal to protect students in North Tonawanda.
This series is based on a combination of first-hand narratives and investigative reporting. Narratives/allegations from those who experienced it will be posted without any redaction and/or modifications. That is their truth, and we are not here to take that away from them. We do not post them as fact, but rather as what these individuals experienced.
If you would like to share your own experience with North Tonawanda Schools and any of the issues raised throughout this article, please email us at niagaraaction@gmail.com.
Email female graduate of the class of 2017 describes the system of cruelty allowed to fester in the district for years.
As a 2017 graduate of North Tonawanda High School, I have witnessed some of the most unhinged and inexcusable behavior from students, teachers, and administrators. I’ve seen firsthand how bullying, violence, and reckless behavior have been allowed to run rampant, often dismissed as “kids being kids” or buried under the rug to protect the school’s reputation.
No matter who has been in charge, the system has always seemed more concerned with maintaining appearances than actually protecting its students. The reality? North Tonawanda High School has been a breeding ground for unchecked cruelty, physical fights, and social toxicity for years. Based on the articles I have been reading, nothing has changed.
This isn’t just about a few isolated incidents. It’s a deeply embedded issue within the school culture and even the community itself. I’ve watched my classmates grow up, yet some of them still act as though they never left high school; holding onto grudges from years ago, still bullying, still seeking drama, even as they build families of their own.
Some of those affected by bullying throughout high school have turned to addiction, some have taken their own lives, and some have hurt others in irreversible ways. And while I can’t begin to understand their individual struggles, I do know that the lack of emotional support, conflict resolution, and real discipline in NT schools played a part in shaping who they became.
Bullying in NT wasn’t just verbal; it was physical. It was mental. It was emotional and constant. It wasn’t limited to any one type of student. It spread like a disease, infecting even the “good kids,” warping their sense of right and wrong just so they could fit in.
One of the clearest examples I can remember was a straight-A student, someone who I was close to and that had a bright future, succumbed to the pressure put on by others of being a bully. He was an athlete, a leader, and even had dreams of becoming an NFL coach. But in the hallways? He was spitting on people. Why? Because he thought it made him look cool.
His mother worked as a bus driver for the school and she was one of the kindest, most caring women I had ever met. She would talk about him like he was an angel, completely unaware of the person he was becoming. That was NT for you, students who led double lives, pretending to be one person in front of adults while terrorizing their peers the moment authority turned its back.
Although that last part is not completely true, sometimes it was even done in front of teachers or administrators and nothing was done.
I can’t count how many fights broke out in the cafeteria, hallways, or outside near Ted’s Hot Dogs. These weren’t just petty shoving matches, they were violent, full-on brawls where kids were throwing punches, slamming each other into tables, and getting bloody just to prove who was stronger. They fought for status, revenge, or sometimes just because they were bored. If you weren’t fighting, you were expected to watch, record it, and spread it around.
Then there was the girl-on-girl bullying which was just as brutal in its own way. I remember a specific incident where a group of girls dumped an entire carton of milk over another girl’s head in the cafeteria. Why? She had stood up for herself and refused to engage in their drama. All it took was refusing to be their victim, and then they made her one anyone.
And what did the school do? Nothing.
No one faced consequences. No teacher stepped in. No suspensions, no interventions, not even a public acknowledgment that it had happened. That girl was left to wipe the milk off herself, humiliated in front of everyone.
Just another day at NT.
Even after I graduated, I continued to see the ripple effects of NT’s unchecked violence. I remember turning on the news and seeing that a group of middle schoolers had assaulted an elderly couple at McDonald’s near the high school. The worst part? I wasn’t even surprised.
Drugs weren’t uncommon either. I recall rumors about students bringing stolen medication from their parents’ cabinets, passing it around like candy. Weed, pills, and alcohol, it was all there. Every once in a while the school would bring in police dogs to do a “search,” but it never changed anything.
The reality is that NT schools never truly address these issues unless they are forced to. If something gets bad enough to make the news, they’ll make a show of “cracking down,” but it’s always just for appearances. A slap on the wrist, then it’s back to business as usual.
I have no doubt that if you spoke to any NT graduate from 2010 to 2020, they would have even more stories, possibly worse ones.
If you would like to share your own experience with North Tonawanda Schools and any of the issues raised throughout this article, please email us at niagaraaction@gmail.com.
Unchecked Bullying and Violence: North Tonawanda Schools Part 13