The Bellevue School District has canceled its planned Dec. 11 “listening session” with Jewish and Israeli parents on antisemitism, an event that had drawn mounting controversy and backlash over the district’s decision to include Dr. William Jackson, recently hired by Bellevue and a central figure in a lawsuit alleging failures to respond to antisemitic harassment at Seattle’s Nathan Hale High School.
The cancellation was shared in an email update sent Monday by Rabbi Jason Levine, Associate Director of the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) at the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle. Levine wrote that BSD canceled the session “due to a scheduling conflict” and would send an “updated invitation following Winter Break.”
The Dec. 11 session was expected to focus on antisemitism that parents say has persisted in Bellevue schools since Oct. 7, 2023. Parents described the meeting as part of a series of listening sessions that “have gotten a bit heated at times,” with families expressing deep frustration that the district has not responded effectively to antisemitic incidents and what some called anti-Israel propaganda in schools. One parent said that the district “has failed pretty terribly” in responding to antisemitism, particularly since Oct. 7, including allegedly problematic conduct from some teachers and staff.
In the days leading up to the event, Bellevue faced backlash after parents learned that one of the participants would be Dr. Jackson, whom BSD had hired a few months earlier. Many parents said the decision was especially inflammatory because Jackson is named in a lawsuit filed by a Jewish family against Seattle Public Schools and Jackson personally, centering on allegations that a Jewish student at Nathan Hale endured a year of escalating antisemitic harassment while administrators failed to intervene.
🧵NEW: A family has sued Seattle Public Schools & administrators at Nathan Hale High School after their daughter was subjected to months of antisemitic harassment that school officials ignored—culminating in a mob forcing the teen to hide inside a locked classroom.
— Ari Hoffman 🎗 (@thehoffather) June 25, 2025
According to that complaint, the student, identified as M.K.L., a 15-year-old freshman who wore a Star of David necklace and was active in the Jewish Student Union, was subjected to repeated antisemitic slurs in classrooms and hallways after Oct. 7. The lawsuit alleges the hostility escalated into threats of violence and repeated incidents involving swastikas and harassment tied to the Israel-Gaza conflict. The complaint describes an incident in which a group of students allegedly surrounded the teen and yelled at her after she removed a single flyer related to a planned pro-Palestinian walkout; one student allegedly shouted close to her face while spitting and telling her she “deserved it” for being Jewish, while other threats included warnings she would be “jumped.”
Antisemitic symbols & messages appeared throughout the school including graffiti combining swastikas with “Free Palestine” slogans. In one instance, a swastika was drawn on a bench in the girls' home softball dugout, where the victim kept her belongings during games. pic.twitter.com/Gcdwl35ZKP
— Ari Hoffman 🎗 (@thehoffather) June 25, 2025
The suit further alleges that swastikas paired with “Free Palestine” messages appeared around campus and were not promptly removed, and that antisemitism spilled into academic settings during classroom Holocaust instruction, where students allegedly laughed during readings of Night by Elie Wiesel and one student drew a swastika on the teen’s folder. The complaint also claims harassment followed her online, including social media attacks and allegations that she was Islamophobic, which the family says the school failed to address.
When the victim reported this to an assistant coach, she was told the symbol “didn’t look like a swastika.” The head coach reportedly said he would report it, but the complaint states that no action was ever taken by school officials, including Principal Jackson. pic.twitter.com/Gd5QIMAvco
— Ari Hoffman 🎗 (@thehoffather) June 25, 2025
The complaint says the situation culminated on May 22, 2024, when students repeatedly attempted to lure the teen into the hallway before a group of roughly 20 students gathered outside her classroom near the end of the day. The lawsuit alleges they banged on the locked door and shouted threats and antisemitic slurs while classmates texted the teen warnings that she would be assaulted if she left the room. Her teacher kept her inside as security was called, and the teen texted her mother a frantic message: “Mom. I rlly rlly rlly need you.” According to the complaint, the family was later told the school lacked resources to continue escorting her in the halls, and the student did not return to Nathan Hale for the remainder of the school year.
The Nathan Hale Muslim Student Association's Instagram account posted offensive messages targeting the victim and a TikTok video falsely accused her of using a racial slur—allegations the family says were intended to label her a racist based solely on her Jewish identity.
— Ari Hoffman 🎗 (@thehoffather) June 25, 2025
Parents in Bellevue reacted angrily to Jackson’s inclusion in the listening session, arguing that asking Jewish and Israeli families to engage on antisemitism with an administrator tied to those allegations undermined trust in the district’s process. Bellevue officials have not publicly connected the cancellation to the controversy, and the email shared Monday cited only a scheduling conflict.
🧵NEW: The Muslim Student Association at Nathan Hale High School was named in a lawsuit by a Jewish student against @SeaPubSchools for targeting the 14 year old girl because of her religion
The club has called for the genocide of Jews & raised money for terrorist groups https://t.co/InPexJ13mG pic.twitter.com/F4qv1CsOhu
— Ari Hoffman 🎗 (@thehoffather) June 27, 2025
In previous comments provided to KVI’s The Ari Hoffman Show, Janine Thorn, Bellevue School District’s Chief of Communications, said Dr. Jackson and other administrators would participate in the listening sessions, describing them as an opportunity to “learn from one another,” broaden understanding, and engage in “thoughtful dialogues.” Thorn added that the district “cannot comment on ongoing litigation,” but said BSD remains focused on creating spaces for “open and constructive engagement.”
The district has not yet announced a rescheduled date, beyond saying a new invitation will be sent after Winter Break.
