A school superintendent has resigned following the death of a 14-year-old girl who took her own life after pupils shared a video of her being bullied and attacked.
Adriana Kuch died just two days after the sickening attack on February 1, where students filmed her being hit in the face with a water bottle, dragged, and kicked in a school hallway.
While her devastated family announced they were pursuing legal action against those involved and those filming the incident, hundreds of students walked out of classes at her school in protest after claiming that not enough is being done to prevent bullying in the school district.
Triantafillos Parlapanides, the head of the Central Regional School District, had also come under fire for his response to the tragedy, especially after he appeared to 'victim-blame' Kuch and her family and claim other personal issues led to her taking her own life.
Warning: video below contains footage which may be distressing to someThe superintendent had told the Daily Mail in an email: "Her father was having an affair at the end of her 6th grade. Her father married the woman he had an affair with and moved her into the house.
"Her grades and choices declined in 7th and 8th grade. We offered her drug rehab and mental services on five occasions but the father refused every time."
He added: "We tried helping her several times but mother’s suicide was a major reason she started making poor choices."
The teen's father, Michael Kuch, had denied that she had been offered drug treatment and said she had been experimenting with a weed vape as other teenagers had been.
Parlapanides's reference to Kuch's mother taking her own life seven years prior and her father's new relationship with her stepmother led to anger from the family and others following the case, who called for him to resign.
He cause further outrage by responding to a Facebook comment from an irate parent who said he'd never send his children to the school after seeing Kuch be bullied, allegedly writing: "There are two sides to every story and when was the last time you were at Central," per the New York Post.
Following Parlapanides's shocking claims, Mr Kuch told the New York Post: "I want that entire administration gone. The superintendent slandering people, bashing people. Calling Adriana a drug addict. What is wrong with this guy? He is incompetent."
It has now been revealed that Parlapanides submitted his resignation following an emergency school board meeting on Saturday, according to reports from NBC.
A notice posted to the district website read: "The Central Regional School District Board of Education has accepted the resignation of Dr. Triantafillos Parlapanides," adding that the district is "evaluating all current and past allegations of bullying" and would undergo "an independent assessment" of its anti-bullying policies.
Addressing Parlapanides's resignation, Kuch's sister-in-law Jennifer Ferro said that the family viewed it as "first step complete," adding: "We just want the school to start changing and taking accountability."
Four students have been charged following the incident - one with aggravated assault, another with harassment, and two others with conspiracy to commit aggravated assault, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer told NBC News.
Billhimer added: "Each juvenile and their guardian was served with a copy of their complaint and are released pending future court appearances."
If you or someone you know is in crisis, please reach out for help and contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255, text HOME to 741741, or visit SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources.
