A Florida Teacher Allegedly Called A Student A 'Mutt' & Now There's A Petition To Fire Him

A petition is circulating online requesting the termination of a Florida teacher after years of reported complaints of bullying against students. The jump-start for the appeal was when he allegedly called a biracial student a "mutt."

The Tampa educator in question, Todd Harvey, reportedly teaches at Wharton High School as part of the Hillsborough County School System and has since the '90s.

The Tampa Bay Times reported the educator was "curious" about what his biracial student, Melanie Copeland, put down for her race on government documents. He allegedly told her she should have put "mutt."

Now, a Change.org petition is going around in hopes to push for Harvey's termination and a thorough investigation.

"The whole Wharton administration and the superintendent in the Hillsborough County Public Schools are just as guilty as Mr. Harvey," Copeland told Narcity.*

The Times found this is among 23 unique accusations over a 17-year period, including calling students "slutty," using a transgender slur towards another and even using the Nazi salute in class.

Copeland even added an Instagram Highlight of more incidents that haven't been formally reported, such as sending her "threatening notes that were hand delivered by other students."

Melanie Copeland's Instagram highlights.@melanie.copeland | Instagram

While the last filing seemed to be in 2017, 13 teens already came forward to the Times revealing the alleged issues haven't stopped since.

"Todd Harvey is a serial abuser with more than 20 documented offenses toward minors in the classroom. He is a homophobic, racist, misogynistic, person who should not be a teacher at all. His immediate termination is demanded on behalf of parents and students in Hillsborough County," the petition reads.

At the time of this article's publication, 644 out of 1,000 people have signed it electronically.

Harvey has been coined as a "homophobic, racist, misogynistic," teacher, as per the petition's description.

Narcity reached out to Hillsborough County Schools, but a Spring Break automated response was received, saying staff would return on March 20.

Todd Harvey has since deleted his LinkedIn account. He also does not appear on the "Teachers" tab under "Faculty and Staff" on the school's website anymore.

*This article has been updated.

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