An 11-year-old boy in Delaware will reportedly be addressed by a different last name in school moving forward after he was allegedly teased because of it. (Google Street View)
An 11-year-old Delaware boy with the last name Trump will be addressed by a different name in school going forward after his name led to constant teasing, according to a report.
Joshua Trump has no family ties to the sitting U.S. president but their shared surname has caused trouble for the boy, his parents told WPVI.
“He was getting ridiculed and bullied for the fact that his last name was Trump,” his father, Bobby Berto, told the outlet.
His mother, Megan Trump, claimed her son was being verbally harassed.
"They curse at him, they call him an idiot, they call him stupid," she told WPVI.
The situation reportedly arose after Donald Trump launched his bid for the White House. Afterwards, "I pulled him out of school and homeschooled him for a year," Berto told the outlet.
Joshua later was enrolled at Talley Middle School at the start of the current school year and his parents spoke to administration officials, WPVI reported.
Talley Middle School Principal Mark Mayer told Fox News he’d met with Joshua’s parents at an open-house night and they shared that the 6th grader had experienced some challenges at his previous school due to his last name.
That information was communicated to the school’s 6th-grade team as something to be mindful of, Mayer said, adding that they decided to refer to the boy as Joshua T., instead of Joshua Trump, during daily roll call.
"I do know the teachers were aware of the last name, and I know in speaking with the student that the teachers do their very best to try not to say his last name," Mayer told WPVI.
On Dec. 5, Joshua’s parents told school officials about two separate incidents that had occurred – one in class and another on the bus – involving different groups of kids, Mayer told Fox News. Neither event pertained to the boy’s last name, he said.
Officials opened an investigation into the incidents, during which they determined the identities of the students involved, according to Mayer. Their families were notified and they subsequently apologized, he said.
That same day, in response to the bus incident, Joshua’s mother asked the school district’s transportation company to change the bus her son takes, Mayer said.
When he boarded the bus on Thursday, the driver requested the 11-year-old’s first and last name for confirmation, which is something the drivers are supposed to do, the principal added. After Joshua complied, the kids allegedly laughed and teased him, Mayer said.
Joshua’s mom brought the incident to the school’s attention, via a post on its Facebook page, according to Mayer. A meeting was set up that included Joshua’s parents, the 6th-grade counselor, a behavioral health specialist and himself, the principal said.
During the meeting, it was decided that Joshua’s last name would be changed in the school system, a message which was relayed to the teachers, Mayer said. The boy will be adopting his father’s surname of Berto, WPVI reported.
The “whole thing” was “unfortunate,” Mayer said.
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