Rhode Island reached an agreement with Smithfield Public Schools on Friday after investigating the district, which operates five schools with a combined 2,400 students, for its response to a 2025 incident in which a Jewish student said that he was hazed.
“School is where our kids spend their formative years. It should be a place of growth and exploration, not fear and intimidation,” stated Peter Neronha, the state attorney general. “I want to thank the victim for his bravery in coming forward and telling his story and the district for their commitment to do better when it comes to protecting our children.”
Under the five-part agreement approved by the school committee, the district must review and revise its policies on harassment and discrimination, train staff, introduce student programming that addresses Jew-hatred, develop a protocol for supporting victims who allege discrimination and survey students and parents about whether the district created a “hostile environment” for Jewish students in its response to the incident.
Several high school football players allegedly trapped a Jewish freshman in a locker-room bathroom, sprayed cleaning and shouted anti-Jewish slurs
Disciplinary action against the students was reversed. A probe by the attorney general’s office concluded that the district failed to properly investigate the incident, failed to follow established procedures and did not adequately protect the victim’s rights.
