October is National Bullying Prevention Month

Nation-wide, one third of girls ages 12-18 say that they have been bullied at school.

Bullying is not a new phenomenon, but technology has made the issue increasingly prevalent, particularly among girls. While boys tend to engage in physically aggressive behavior, bullying among girls manifests as gossip, exclusion, teasing, and cyberbullying.

In fact, 85 percent of middle school students say they’ve been cyberbullied at least once, according to Girl Scouts of the USA. This harassment via text messaging and social media starts early, and becomes worse for girls during the middle school years.

So what can we do in this fight against bullying?

Developing girls’ social and emotional skills reduces aggression, and leads to higher academic achievement. When girls feel safe and secure, they can better focus on their academic success. We also know that peer intervention works: more than half of the time, when peers intervene, the bullying stops within ten seconds.Bullying prevention programs needs to start in our schools and communities, but it has to work at the individual level too. That’s where Girl Scouts comes in.

Girl Scouts Nation’s Capital will offer the BFF (Be a Friend First) Bully Prevention Program in schools through the Young Leaders Program, which connects college students and young professionals with Girl Scout troops in Washington DC, Prince George’s County, Montgomery County and Frederick County, MD. When combined with Girl Scout programing for girls in grades 6-8, the Amaze Journey, girls learn how to identify true friendships, develop self-confidence, and gain the tools they need to safely resolve conflicts.

The solution starts with you. We owe it to our girls to do everything in our power to provide a safe and supportive environment for them to learn, thrive and become the leaders they can be.

Lidia Soto-Harmon is the CEO of the Girl Scout Council of the Nation’s Capital. To learn more visit the Girl Scouts website.