A mother from Iowa is speaking out about her 12-year-old daughter's suicide, saying that officials from the school she attended did not do enough to prevent bullying, adding that her daughter was targeted because she identified as bisexual.

In an interview with local Des Moines, Iowa news station KCCI News, Nicole Morgan said her daughter Alyssa Morgan felt like she was worthless due to the constant bullying she suffered because she identified as bisexual.

"I got to the point where you know, she wasn't happy anymore and she was self-harming herself," Nicole Morgan told KCCI. "When you have other people telling you that you're not worthy of anything or that being bisexual is wrong or somehow disgusting, you know, they're going to take that into thought, you know, that maybe I wasn't right for this world."

When speaking to the Des Moines Register, Nicole Morgan, who resides in Pleasant Hill, Iowa, said that her daughter came out to her family as bisexual after she turned 12. Her mother, father, siblings and grandparents accepted her and Nicole Morgan told her, "We love you no matter what."

Despite her family support, her classmates at Southeast Polk Junior High allegedly bullied Alyssa Morgan and school officials did not do enough to help, Nicole Morgan claims.

Nicole Morgan believes her daughter's suicide on April 3 was a result of the alleged harassment. In a handwritten note, the student wrote, "I'm sorry ... for everything ... I just can't anymore ... I love you ALL Goodbye."

The young girl's mother said the administration's attitudes towards bullied children are to "toughen up."

"She would say people were calling her names," Morgan told the Des Moines Register. "All of us told her we don't care; that it doesn't bother us and we love her no matter what. But I think she was bullied for that because some people think it is wrong; because they don't understand it."

Soon after Alyssa Morgan's death, Southeast Polk Superintendent Craig Menozzi released a statement notifying the public that a student had died.

"Our deepest sympathy and support go out to the family, as we continue to respond appropriately and thoughtfully to their needs, the needs of our students who have lost a classmate, and the needs of our staff members... The district understands and is respectful of the family's continued need for privacy," Menozzi wrote.

When the Des Moines Register asked Menozzi about Alyssa Morgan's suicide, he said he could not comment on the student's case.

"Things which are outside of the district's control which cause critical care for young people are referred to the DHS (Iowa Department of Human Services), as we are required to do," he said.

In a statement to KCCI, Southeast Polk Community School District Associate Principal Nathan Ballagh said, "over the last four years our students and staff have stepped up our bullying prevention efforts. A lot of our efforts are led by our students who provide us (school officials) insight to what bullying looks like in our school and community and what we can do to help prevent bullying. Our students have really been the driving force and have taken ownership in preventing bullying in our schools."

Nicole Morgan told the Des Moines Register that she did not tell the school to discuss her daughter's suicide, only that her family did not want the graphic details of her death made public. She said that the school district is trying to avoid the seriousness of her daughter's bullying. Nicole Morgan later added that she did not report the bullying to the district because her daughter refused to identify her attackers. She also said she is unsure Alyssa Morgan notified staff but believes school administrators knew about the bullying, or should have known about it.

"They don't seem to want to deal with the situation," Nicole Morgan told the newspaper. "To me, it seems like they want to cover it up."

Nicole Morgan said that her daughter was out of school for three weeks before her death. Her family attempted to help her with medication and by brining her to weekly counseling session. She was admitted to Iowa Lutheran Hospital six days before she died.

"Things just got to the point where she said, 'I don't feel safe; I think I might hurt myself,'" Nicole Morgan said.

According to an official police report, an officer noted: "They did tell me that the victim may have experienced some bullying at school." The report also said that there were no ongoing arguments that might have provoked Alyssa Morgan's suicide.

The death of Alyssa Morgan comes two years after A.J. Bettes, who took his own life after he was allegedly bullied a Southeast Polk high school. According to the Des Moines Register, the Southeast Polk school district received 40 reported incidents of bullying in 2012-2013.

From our media partner EDGE