I can name five instances of VUSD teachers stepping in to stop bullying and five instances of teachers being reprimanded by five different administrators for stepping in. Our administrative friends were far more concerns with the rights of the bully even in very extreme cases of bullying, then with the victims. The message to the five pro-active teachers and other teachers at those schools was that it is far safer for the teacher's career to ignore problems and not get involved. Not seeing "problems" during class changes and in the relatively unsupervised times before and after school meant no long meetings with administration, no long written reports, no questioning of the reaction of the teacher.
Very few teachers are willing to intervene in the first place, even less after admin treats the stopping of violence against students as a problem for admin that means more paper work.
The instances of bullying that I know about consisted of teachers stopping a very large bully from conducting widespread financial extortion against a dozen or more students with threats and actual violence to obtain money, sexual humiliation of a 6th grader by an 8th grader, and violence against a "gay" acting student.
One would expect admin to be grateful that the school was made safer, yet that appropriate reaction is rare among admin.
As the economy gets worse, gangs in Vista become more powerful. Gang problems like all community based problems enter our schools. Much gang activity consists of intimidation and bullying. I hope that admin at middle and high schools is encouraged to aggressively look for and extinguish it. Bales should know that there is more to running a good school than test scores.
I would like to give more details but I am afraid our ANTI friends would mis-use the details to club our schools again. These five instances that I am aware of were isolated and happened over a span of more than twenty years. For the most part our schools are safe and our children are safe. But it does take active surveillance to keep them that way.
I hope middle and high school teachers currently employed at VUSD show courage in the face of administrative pressure and intervene when they become aware of bullying. More importantly I hope counselors, assistant principals and teacher survey their student bodies about bullying on a regular basis. Bullying can happen without any adult being aware of it. It is imperative that someone in authority constantly monitors for it.
Here is an article about the problem in Missouri:
ttp://www.semissourian.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090219/NEWS01/702199926&template=printart
Published Feb 19, 2009
Scott City parents, students complain about bullying in schools
EDITOR'S NOTE: The ability to post comments on this story was turned off due to the controversial nature of the subject and the inability of seMissourian.com staff to monitor commentary overnight. (blog editor note: This note was added by the editor of the newspaper in Missouri)
Emotions boiled over as parents and students confronted the Scott City School Board about bullying during a meeting Wednesday night.
Three parents sparked a heated discussion about threats to and assaults on their children during school, at times making verbal exchanges with Superintendent Diann Bradshaw-Ulmer.
Two sophomores, Myriah Miller and Katessa Simmons, cried as they shared their struggles.
"I'm a straight-A student and in all honors classes," Myriah Miller said. "I don't deserve to come to school and be bullied."
"I'd rather drop out than come to school everyday and deal with this," Katessa Simmons said.
Myriah Miller's mother, Sonya Miller, said the situation began more than a year ago when Simmons was hit several times in the head in a school locker room. In November, her daughter's car was rear-ended after she was chased after school, she said.
She said the verbal threats have continued, but the most recent incident occurred Tuesday when a piece of Myriah's hair was cut off during math class.
Simmons and Myriah Miller said they have filed police reports to document the incidents.
Sonya Miller said she hired an attorney and will hold the school accountable for any physical assaults.
"You can only turn your back for so long," she said.
Other parents said the bullying problem extends beyond high school.
"My daughter's getting called a slut, a whore, a lesbian, a bisexual," said Michelle Callihan, the mother of a fifth-grader. She said her daughter, Jazmyne, has also been hit and tripped during school.
"I send my child here and pay my taxes for them to teach my child and protect my child," Callihan said.
When Bradshaw-Ulmer assured her the incidents were being looked into, Callihan cut her off.
"The way you're saying that is not nice to me," Callihan said.
Other parents later said they did not believe the administration would take serious action against the assaults.
Tina McCulley said her daughter, who is in the eighth grade, will attend Saxony Lutheran School next year.
"The teachers are aware of [the bullying], and the teachers are doing nothing," she said. "It's getting out of control."
Board members expressed concern about the incidents and said they would discuss the individual disciplinary issues in a closed session.
"This all comes as a surprise to me, but we are going to look into it," said board member Gary Miller. "There's a certain protocol that we have to follow."
Bradshaw-Ulmer said she does not believe there is a hostile school environment, but the board will take a serious look at the complaints.
Parents "want students to feel safe when they come here, as do the administrators," she said.
© Copyright 2009, Southeast Missourian
Story URL: http://semissourian.com/article/20090219/NEWS01/702199926
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