Bullying Prevention Month In San Diego County

SAN DIEGO COUNTY, CA — We hope you’ve noticed over the past year that we’ve been focusing on bullying and cyberbullying, a confounding national crisis that turns youths’ lives upside down with unimaginable angst and dread, sometimes with deadly consequences. With each story, we’ve heard poignant stories from Patch readers in California and others who were bullied and overcame it, but also many who continue to struggle with the damage done by bullies to their self-esteem.

Many common threads emerged in emails from our readers: Teachers and other educators have suggested everything from first-period decompression time to classroom contracts with students on how they’re expected to treat one another. But for all the readers who said schools need to do more to foster an anti-bullying culture, as many said parents should talk more with their kids about bullying and keep closer track on their social media habits.

And in a loud chorus, they said Americans need to stop wringing their hands and work at all levels to create a world safe from bullying.

That’s one of the purposes of National Bullying Prevention Month, observed annually during October to bring attention to the problem and involve people in San Diego County and nationwide in a conversation on how to create a world safe from bullying.

SAN DIEGO COUNTY SCHOOLS

In San Diego County, preventing bullying is not just a priority in October, it is an ongoing commitment for schools throughout the region.

Carlsbad Unified School District

These are some of the ways Carlsbad Unified School District has worked to prevent bullying:

• The district has partnered with Sandy Hook Promise, a national organization focused on violence prevention, and has implemented the Start with Hello! program. The program enables students to make a difference with their peers by encouraging them to take small but powerful actions to promote connectedness and inclusion, and to identify and help others who are showing signs of social isolation.
• Carlsbad Unified School District is the founding district for the Great Kindness Challenge. The district also partners with Kids for Peace on a variety of activities throughout the year. Three of the district's elementary schools – Kelly, Jefferson and Hope – have Kids for Peace chapters on their campuses.
• All three of the district's middle schools have the WEB ("Where Everybody Belongs") program. This is a middle school orientation and transition program that welcomes sixth graders and makes them feel comfortable throughout the first year of their middle school experience. Built on the belief that students can help students succeed, the program trains mentors from the eighth grade class to be WEB Leaders.
• The district's high schools have the Link Crew program, which is a high school transition program that welcomes freshmen and makes them feel comfortable throughout the first year of their high school experience.
• The district is implementing the Sanford Harmony Social Emotional Learning Curriculum in its elementary schools. This is a social-emotional teaching program that cultivates strong classroom relationships between all students, encouraging students to communicate, cooperate, connect, embrace diversity, and resolve conflict.
• On Oct. 10, North County Lifeline will present an anti-bullying session to students.
• Throughout October, the district's middle school counselors will conduct anti-bullying lessons to middle school students.

"The mission of Carlsbad Unified School District is to provide every student an extraordinary education in an inspiring environment, and our top priority is to make sure that students are safe and healthy," said Carlsbad Unified Superintendent Benjamin Churchill. "I'm proud that our district has implemented a number of anti-bullying and bullying prevention activities as part of our overall focus on social-emotional learning.

Poway Unified School District

Poway Unified School District's elementary schools focus on Character Counts lessons, and use a Second Step curriculum to focus on the issue of bullying. These lessons are delivered by counselors in each classroom. A few of the middle schools continue with the Second Step curriculum, while also including the No Place for Hate program run by the Anti-Defamation League, as well as adding in Start with Hello! activities offered through Sandy Hook Promise.

"Starting at the youngest grades, we teach our students that it takes considerable strength and character to be a good person, stand up to bullies, and choose kindness," said Poway Unified Superintendent Marian Kim Phelps. "This work is ongoing as our students enter into the secondary levels, with more student-led efforts, as they take ownership of their campuses and school culture."

Several school sites have Kindness Campaigns and Clubs leading this type of work, according to the district. The high schools offer No Place for Hate and Start with Hello programs and activities, along with campus-specific programs, such as Unity Week, that are led by students to create a more inclusive and respectful campus community. Additionally, schools participate in digital citizenship curriculum, which addresses cyberbullying.

As for this month, several school and district representatives will attend the No Place for Hate Leadership Conference on Oct. 4 at the Lawrence Family Jewish Community Center in La Jolla. Topics include creating inclusive communities and addressing discrimination and bullying.

Ramona Unified School District

"Our district has a multi-faceted approach to promote a safe and caring school environment for all students," said Ramona Unified Superintendent Anne Staffieri. "This includes heightened awareness of behavior expectations through training, establishing new programs to promote cultures of kindness and acceptance, as well as continuing with a well-established character education program across the district."

Prior to the start of the school year, Ramona Unified School District provided training for its employees on the appropriate use of technology and social media.

Ramona Unified has also embraced Rachel's Challenge K-12 program and is now in its second year of implementation. The program consists of a comprehensive set of age-appropriate programs at each school site and works directly through student-led clubs on campus.

"The objective of Rachel's Challenge is to grow positive climate and culture in our schools and start a chain reaction of kindness and compassion," Staffieri said. "This program has been positively received across all school campuses."

A parent information night on Rachel's Challenge for parents of students in seventh through 12th grade is scheduled at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 9 in the Performing Arts Wing on the Ramona High School campus.

San Dieguito Union High School District

San Dieguito Union High School District is participating in the California Department of Education's Digital Citizenship Week Oct. 15-19. The week will focus on anti-bullying, online privacy, media and online literacy, and positive online communities and digital leadership. Each school site will promote cyber safety during the week, with a focus on being a responsible online citizen, according to the district.

Additionally, San Dieguito Union is implementing the Sandy Hook Promise program this year, rolling out the Start with Hello! initiative, according to the district. This program is designed to bring individuals and communities together by encouraging students to take a simple action at lunch: making sure that no one eats alone. This simple action, when taught and put into practice, instills the power and reward of social inclusion.

A PUBLIC HEALTH ISSUE

Once viewed as a childhood “rite of passage” that toughened kids to handle the pressures of adulthood, bullying and its more insidious digital twin, cyberbullying, is seen by many experts as a major public health issue — on par with heart disease, cancer and diabetes — with devastating and often long-term effects like the loss of self-esteem, heightened anxiety and depression.

We want to hear from you. Do you have a story to tell about bullying or cyberbullying, a suggestion about how to stem it or an event to publicize? Comment at the end of the story, or email kristina.houck@patch.com and copy bullies@patch.com. You can post Bullying Prevention Month and many other events right on Patch.

Statistics vary, but an aggregate of 80 different studies on bullying suggests one in five American students between 12 and 18 is bullied at some point during their middle or high school years. Traditional bullying — name calling, public humiliation, isolation, physical violence and that sort of thing — occurs most often, with 35 percent of kids reporting they’ve been targeted in one of those ways. The studies cited by the PACER Center, which established National Bullying Prevention Month, show that 15 percent of kids surveyed report being cyberbullied.

And though it occurs less often, cyberbullying — which has resulted in a disturbing string of suicides by adolescents and teenagers — is especially hard to stop. While experts say most cyberbullied kids don’t kill themselves, the long-tailed internet makes a taunt live longer than one flung on the schoolyard. Kids can escape traditional bullying in the safety of their homes, but because social media is so intertwined with how kids communicate, they never really escape it.

READ: Bullied To Death: When Kids Kill With Words

And because cyberbullies have the stealth of anonymity, “empathy tends to fade to zero,” NoBully.org founder Nicholas Carlisle told Patch.

He was knocked around 40 or so years ago as an awkward 12-year-old. The torment persisted through high school, but as tough as it was, his experience was markedly different from the torture kids endure today, he says — and it’s not just that he was attacked in a physical as opposed to online space.

“Online, you can’t see the whites of their eyes,” Carlisle said. “If you can see someone, that’s often a break upon people’s aggression — not always, but it does seem to have some break upon crossing the line.”

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The full consequences of bullying on the brain aren’t fully understood, but kids who are targeted by bullies in childhood and adolescence are at increased risk for psychological problems that can stretch into adulthood, according to experts. In the moment, bullied kids may be unable to sleep or suffer a range of stomach issues and headaches. Later on, they’re at risk for depression, anxiety, and alcohol and drug use.

OCT. 24 UNITY DAY

Among the marquee National Bullying Prevention Month activities is Unity Day, observed on Wednesday, Oct. 24, when everyone is encouraged to wear and show orange to send a message that no child should ever experience bullying.

“Orange provides a powerful, visually compelling expression of solidarity,” Paula Goldberg, the executive director of the PACER Center, said in a statement. “Whether it’s hundreds of individuals at a school wearing orange, store owners offering orange products or a community changing a landmark to orange, the vibrant statement becomes a conversation starter, sending the supportive, universal message that bullying is never acceptable behavior.”

Here’s more about Unity Day:

THE BULLY MENACE: WHAT’S AHEAD

During October and beyond, several experts have agreed to answer readers’ questions about bullying, ranging from how to keep their kids from becoming targets to what to do if their kids are the bullies. We’ll also delve into some of the issues surrounding bullying —

Take a look back at some of the stories in our series:

• America’s Shameful Truth About School Shooters And Bullying
• They All Failed Changed Child: Malden Bullying Detailed
• Bullies, Their Targets The Same In A Surprising Number Of Cases
• ‘Everyday, I Wear Your Words,’ Teen Tells Bullies In Video
• Teen’s ‘I Wear Your Words’ Video Inspires Nashville Songwriters
• Bullying Of Mallory Grossman, 12, Spelled Out In Wrongful Death Lawsuit
• Poetry Teacher Helps Bullied Kids Open Their Tortured Minds
• Why These Kindergartners Start Each Day With A Simple Handshake

If you have a question or want to share your story, please email bullies@patch.com.

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