Bullying Prevention Initiative in Broward County Schools

November 21st, 2008 By: Diane Trim in Articles, School Climate, Teachers' Corner

In an attempt to prevent bullying, Florida’s Broward County Schools have adopted a new district-wide anti-bullying policy that will attempt to protect both student and adult victims.

According to the Broward County Schools Website (www.browardcounty.com), the district was forming the policy before the state legislature voted on the new anti—bullying state law. Broward’s policy takes into account not only the traditional name-calling but also the bullying that occurs outside school walls. Any abusive behavior that affects students or adult employees is subject to the policy.

Consultant Meline Kevorkian, Ed.D., professor at Nova Southeastern University and author of Preventing Bullying, explains the impact and pervasiveness of bullying on a video at the Broward County Schools site. She said that half of all students are bullied and one in ten is bullied on a regular basis. Victims of bullying experience loneliness, depression, and suicide.

Cyberbullying has become a problem, Kevorkian said. Cyberbullies use text messages, e-mails, and social networking sites like MySpace or Facebook to spread rumors or send hateful, cruel, or annoying messages or edited pictures. Cyberbullies sometimes create Websites that criticize their victims, too.

When a student, teacher, or parent realizes bullying is happening, they report it using the forms at the Broward County Schools Website and a process of investigation, intervention, and consequences occurs.

The program’s main focus is on prevention, said Shelly Heller, Co-chair of the district’s anti-bullying task force. Both abuser and victim will receive counseling and help to stop the cycle of abuse.

The school district will be tracking the bullying complaints by computer as well and look for patterns of abuse. These patterns will help administrators direct intervention strategies.

Broward County Schools are located around Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on Florida’s middle Atlantic Coast. Broward County has 260 schools and a student population of 231,208 students, making it the sixth largest school district in the country.

Tags: bullying