Michigan school counselor referred to student as "terrorist," officials say

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (CBS DETROIT) - Federal investigators have found that a school counselor at Tappan Middle School referred to a Muslim student as a "terrorist" in November 2023.

It happened when the counselor told a Palestinian student in her office she does "not negotiate with terrorists" after he asked to leave to get a drink of water.

Amy V. Doukoure, the lawyer representing the family, told CBS News Detroit the student's family complained to the school and the board of education, but were told it was an employment issue and the case was closed.

"They were devastated, quite honestly," said Doukoure, a staff attorney at the Council on American-Islamic Relations Michigan Chapter. "The student didn't feel comfortable going to school anymore. And then when things progressed throughout the school year, there were instances where the child felt like he had been kind of retaliated against or kind of singled out because they knew that he had made this complaint."

That complaint was filed in December by CAIR-MI with the US Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights.

After an investigation, the OCR said it found the district was not in compliance with Title VI regulations on handling civil rights complaints by students.

"It is substantial," said Doukoure. "They're required now to do what they should have done from the beginning, which is make sure the child has resources at school through counseling."

As part of a resolution agreement, the OCR has also ordered AAPS to conduct a climate assessment to identify any racially hostile environments in its schools.

AAPS released this statement, which reads in part:

"We stand against all forms of racism, hate, discrimination and bias. When harm is done in our school community, we always take these matters seriously. We do not ignore them. We do not deny them. And we do not neglect to hold people accountable.

"When incidents occur, and they do because our schools are a microcosm of the world and community around us, there are some details that we cannot comment on."

"It's my understanding that the family is pleased with the outcome," added Doukoure. "This is kind of what they wanted from the beginning. They wanted an acknowledgment that something wasn't quite right, that something wasn't quite handled properly, and they wanted to ensure that their student felt safe in the school district."

CBS News Detroit reached out to AAPS to inquire if that same school counselor is still working at Tappan Middle School. An official said they do not comment on the employment status of individuals within the district.