October has been proclaimed National Bullying Prevention Month by the Parent Advocacy Coalition for Educational Rights (PACER) National Bullying Prevention Center.
A 2017 Bullying Prevention Month Proclamation has been issued by Gov. Rick Scott and has been shared with all Florida schools, along with suggested resources and bullying prevention lesson plans, said Citrus County Schools (CCS) Director of Student Services Regina Allegretta.
Standing in unity with PACER, the school district has several activities scheduled to ensure students and staff are informed about just what constitutes bullying, how and where to report instances of suspected bullying, and what consequences can be expected for those who bully others.
“The Citrus County School Board takes school safety very seriously and bullying is not tolerated,” said board member Doug Dodd. “We have an extensive policy on bullying and cyberbullying that explains in detail the procedure which takes place when an act of bullying occurs or is reported.”
Allegretta said CCS policy defines bullying in general as: “systematically and chronically inflicting physical hurt or psychological distress on one or more students or employees.”
This includes: “unwanted and repeated written, verbal, or physical behavior, including any threatening, insulting or dehumanizing gesture, by a student or adult, that is severe or pervasive enough to create an intimidating, hostile or offensive educational environment; cause discomfort or humiliation; or unreasonably interfere with the individual’s school performance or participation.”
The policy’s definition of bullying may involve, but is not limited to, physical, verbal, emotional or sexual abuse, Allegretta said.
While October has placed a national focus on bullying, Allegretta said CCS strives year-round to educate students on how to be respectful, build good character and become good citizens with the help of school counselors.
Parents and/or students are instructed to bring any suspected incidences of bullying or harassment to the attention of the school administration and/or their school resource officer, Allegretta said. Each school’s principal, or the principal’s designee, is responsible for receiving complaints alleging bullying or harassment, Allegretta said.
“Each school prominently publicizes how a report of bullying or harassment may be filed, Allegretta said. “The Bullying Policy and a complaint form can be accessed on our district website (at www.citrus.k12.fl.us/) under the ‘Schools’ tab.”
Allegretta said, “When bullying or harassment is suspected or an incident is reported, school counseling services are available to the victim and perpetrator.”
Apparently, the extra attention given to bullying in recent years is paying off as, Allegretta said, “The number of bullying and harassment incidents has decreased over the last four years.”
CCS records show that during the four previous school years there were 30 substantiated incidences of bullying districtwide. Of those, 10 were in elementary schools, 18 were in middle schools and two were in high schools.
During the 2013-14 school year there were 10 substantiated bullying incidents in CCS, but by the 2016-17 school year, figures show that number had been cut by half to five.
CCS Superintendent Sandra “Sam” Himmel is pleased with the progress made at CCS through programming provided by PACER for Bullying Prevention Month.
“This is a great initiative that strives to unite people and to raise awareness of bullying and its prevention,” Himmel said. “I am proud to say that our school district embraces and promotes this effort through bullying prevention, recognition, reporting and investigating of bullying-related incidents.”
The prevalence of social media sites in the 21st Century has created the opportunity for cyberbullying.
“Students and parents must realize that in today’s world, social media posts with threatening comments, intimidating statements, or humiliating photos which impact the school environment will be addressed and could result in school discipline or in some cases criminal arrest,” Dodd said. “Whether it’s Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook or any other social media venue, students should be careful and considerate about what they post.”
Himmel said, “Everyone must remain mindful that the biggest impact we can have on the prevention of bullying within our community and schools is by everyone modeling socially acceptable behavior in all situations.”