VIDEO: Westside High student has bruised ribs after teacher ‘slammed’ her to the ground playing musical chairs, mom says

The school employee was reassigned to duties without student contact while the district investigates the incident

A Westside High School student was injured after a teacher slammed her to the ground while playing musical chairs during a pep rally on Friday, her mother told News4JAX. (Copyright 2025 by WJXT News4JAX - All rights reserved.)

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A Westside High School student was injured after a teacher slammed her to the ground while playing musical chairs during a crowded pep rally on Friday, her mother told News4JAX.

Nyla Millikin, 16, said she suffered a concussion and bruised ribs after a male teacher turned “a little bit too competitive” while playing musical chairs and slammed her to the ground during the last round of the game.

“He was a little too close to me from the beginning, from behind. So when the music stopped, you know how somebody pulls the chair and runs? I did that, sat down, then he ran after me, picked me up, and then slammed me,” Millikin said.

Nyla’s mother, Joanna Millikin, posted a video on TikTok showing the moment when her daughter was thrown to the ground by the man, who News4JAX is not identifying because he has not been charged with a crime. After that, two people can be seen helping the student stand up while the man celebrated that he had won the game.

Watch the video below

The mother is now demanding accountability.

“To see her cry, it made me feel, I want to cry inside, because my daughter, she’s real tough, she’s competitive, like a sports player, and she never cries like that. But I know she was hurt when she came in that car and started crying to me,” Joanna said.

The mother said she had a productive conversation with the school’s principal on Monday morning.

“He was a very nice, very nice principal. He sat down and talked to me, and he said that measures are being taken, but he did say he watched a video himself, and he said he did not expect that out of that young man. He said he didn’t know what he was thinking,” Joanna said.

News4JAX also obtained a longer version of the video that shows the man pushing another student earlier in the game and celebrating before Nyla Millikin was tackled to the ground.

“I want justice to be done, because ain’t no teacher should be that close to a student they didn’t know,” Joanna Millikin said. “Nobody should even have to come or even have to deal with their kid going to the emergency room just for a teacher tackling their student over on the ground over musical chairs.”

News4JAX reached out to Duval County Public Schools and Westside High School to ask about the video and if any action was taken.

The district responded with a statement, saying in part that the employee “has been reassigned to duties without student contact while the district’s Office of Professional Standards investigates.”

District officials said they couldn’t provide any additional details due to the ongoing investigation.

Nyla Millikin said she just wants to feel better and go back to class.

“Some people don’t like school. I do,” Nyla said. “I really don’t want to miss no things at school. Like, it’s just so crazy to me. I have to because of the situation.”


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