A parent advocate is going to take the Ministry of Education to court over what he sees as the mishandling of a 15-year-old's future.

Myron Piper of the Bermuda Educational Parents Association has been fighting for months for the rights of a mother and her 15-year-old son who have been struggling with the education system.

The 15-year-old was turned away from CedarBridge on the first day of orientation this year because of an attack in June where he was jumped by an older boy.

Though the mother attempted to contact education officials for solutions, the offers she received included a suggestion that her son do three days of Career Exploration at Southside and two days at the Student Resource Centre at CedarBridge.

When that was rejected and her 15-year-old son was turned away from CedarBridge on the first day she approached the Ministry again.

The Acting Permanent Secretary Radell Tankard e-mailed her saying he would be offered a landscaping position with Youth and Sport with tutoring on the side. Now he is shadowing someone in the IT Department of Government for two hours a day rather than go to school.

Mr. Piper said he is done with the foot-dragging in the Ministry and though they were working together on a solution this fall nothing has changed so he will be pursuing the matter in the courts. He said: "What I am going to do is seek a judicial review. Who is responsible and who is culpable. I am not wasting time passing him around like a ball.

"We have tried everything we could with the system even given them the chance to step up to the plate. They cannot say they have been overstepped or that we haven't bent over backwards to find a resolution.

"They talk about saving our young black males this is a kid whose grades were, at one point, (at the level where) he had some options."

Now the 15-year-old is not receiving any schooling and speaking to The Royal Gazette on Monday, his mother said she felt he was being punished for something that was not his fault.

She has said the bullying started while her son was still in Sandys Middle School and escalated to the point where the 15-year-old ended up with a eight inch gash that required nine stitches while he was at CedarBridge in January.

Then in June he was jumped by an older boy while he was leaving school.

The Ministry of Education was contacted for two days about this issue and last night their communication liaison officer, Scott Simmons said there was no comment.

He added that: "The parent has been contacted and she is scheduled to come into the office at 1 p.m. tomorrow."

Mr. Piper, however, sees a much bigger problem then the 15-year-old in this situation and would like to see a point where the Ministry holds itself as accountable as the teachers.

He added: "The courts are the only wholly impartial body in this country and actually has the power to effect change. I am not going to have (the boy) be a victim anymore.

"Right now in education they are spending so much money making teachers accountable and not being accountable themselves.

"They are not painting themselves with the same brush as everyone else. They think they are above reform."