Boy who was beaten by bullies speaking out to help others

Nadin Khoury, the teenager who was bullied by a "wolf pack" in Upper Darby, then catapulted to fame after video of the attack went viral, has found a safe landing at a Montgomery County private school.

Khoury became a freshman in March at Wyncote Academy, south of Jenkintown. He's gained confidence and will speak out Friday during the launch of a nonprofit's anti-bullying campaign in Washington.

By creating his own bully pulpit against bullying, Khoury, 14, hopes to instill in victims the courage to speak out early against the abuse.

"I want to spread the word that it's not fair, not fun, and not right," says Khoury.

To those who are targeted by bullies, he says: "You have to stand up for yourself," even if adults won't help.

"Don't be proud that you're being bullied, but be proud for not taking it," he says.

Khoury was kicked, beaten, and terrorized by a gang of boys ages 13 to 17 on the way home from Upper Darby High School. The 20-minute attack ended with Khoury hanging by his coat from a fence outside his Upper Darby apartment complex, crying for help.

Michael Chitwood, Upper Darby police superintendent, had six suspects in the case arrested and marched out of school in handcuffs. They served a month at a juvenile facility after pleading guilty to misdemeanor assault.

Captured on a cellphone by one of the bullies and posted on the Internet, the incident drew the attention of the talk shows and celebrities such as the Eagles' DeSean Jackson.

Khoury now wishes he had acted more swiftly to report previous bullying by the boys before they turned violent.

"When I was being bullied, I didn't really stand up for myself too much because I was a loner," Khoury says. In hindsight, he knows he should not have let the bullies "shut me down."

"Don't listen to them, 'cause they're going to beat you up anyway," he says. "You might as well tell."

Khoury has been supported in the healing process by his mother, Rebecca Wright, and father, Rafael, and has found encouragement in his texting relationship with Jackson.

But critical support has also come from Kirk Hittinger, Wyncote's head of school. The director knows about bullying because he, too, experienced it as a boy.

"Guess what word rhymes with Kirk - jerk," Hittinger says.

When the school's board of directors learned of Khoury's traumatic experience, they offered him a full $25,000 scholarship until he graduates. The day school has 100 pupils in grades six through 12 and caters to students who have "been picked on."

"After he enrolled here, we wanted him to relax, adjust, and get over it," says Hittinger. "He's doing really well."

That process includes lots of individual attention from teachers, counseling from a school psychologist, and working with small groups of students who share stories of being bullied.

"You establish a dialogue, and the kids have to learn to trust you," Hittinger says. "It's like peeling an onion, layer by layer. When you see a chink in the armor, then you start rebuilding confidence."

When Joelle Goode, director of JMG Productions Inc., which supports children's causes, invited Khoury to speak on bullying Friday, he jumped at the chance. Hittinger will speak also.

"I can be happy to go there," Khoury says. "Not that I am over it, but it gets to a point where I'm going to stay on it, and not let it happen to anyone else."