Students form anti-bullying task force
FRONT PAGE STORY
by Debbie Bosak
MICHIGAN CITY - Bullies are nothing new.
For ages, schools have been testing grounds for those who feel a
need to assert their misperceived strength or superiority by
choosing one or two unfortunate souls as targets of their unfounded
aggression. There was a time gone by when teachers and parents might
have shaken their heads, saying, 'kids will be kids.'Â Those days are
As the current culture becomes increasingly numb to brutality in
many forms and school violence continues to escalate, parents and
administrators alike struggle to find a solution to the problem.
"The taunts are more personal and involve sexual identity and
physical appearance, topics the culture exaggerates," said Dr. Susan
Bryant, principal at St. Stanislaus Kosta. "In the past, no one
asked about a person's sexual preference. Now it's all over the news."
At St. Stanislaus Kosta, 17 sixth-grade students have taken a
leadership role in an effort to create awareness and stop the
practice of bullying cold in its tracks. As part of the Unique
Gifted Lovable You, or Hey UGLY, program, this middle school task
force launched a school-wide initiative on May 13 geared toward
empowering students to step up and take control.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, more than 864,000
teens miss at least one day of school each month because they fear
for their safety. A study by the National Youth Violence Prevention
Resource Center States that 5.7 million children have bullied or
been bullied. Bullying can take many forms, from verbal to
emotional, as well as physical. In light of developing technology,
bullies now employ modern tools, such as the Internet, email, camera
phones, online social networking sites and text messaging, which can
provide an insidious veil of anonymity.
Bryant was attracted to UGLY because of its dedication to helping
students of all ages overcome issues of self-esteem and the bullying
that can happen as a result. Bullies hide their behavior well,
ensuring that the teacher cannot always observe the behavior, said
Bryant. Parents of students accused of bullying often do not believe
that their child is even capable of this mean behavior.
"We originally contacted Hey UGLY to help us create an anti-bullying
environment, and it became apparent that their approach to
developing self-esteem directly attacks the bullying syndrome," said
Bryant. "Boys and girls who feel empowered to be genuine and
accepting of others don't bully others and don't usually become the
victims of bullies."
Gathering in the school gymnasium, members of the student task force
addressed the assembly. "Bullies feel scared so they feel the need
to hurt others with their words or actions," said Darria Burt.
"If you fear for your safety, tell someone right away," added Alex
Miramontes. "Tell a teacher, a counselor, a friend or your parents."
Following the presentation, each of the school's 170 students stood
before a task force member to take a pledge: "I promise to stop
bullying and respect other's feelings." Students then created a
large banner with cutouts of their hands as a continued reminder of
"Some bully because they think it will make them feel good, but it
doesn't. It makes them feel worse,"commented Madeleine Wojasinski,
a task force member. And so it continues. "The bully makes someone
else feel bad and then that person bullies someone else," she said.
"It's like a chain. One bully creates another bully."
According to Carrie Miller, a St. Stanislaus middle school teacher
and project facilitator, the task force will reinforce its message
with classroom visits, which will include various self-esteem and
diversity awareness activities. They are also sponsoring a
school-wide essay and art contest on the effects of bullying.
"I've taught in both Catholic and public schools and I've seen
bullying everywhere," Miller noted. "The best place to start is with
the kids and the Golden Rule, do unto others as you would have them
do unto you."
"That's what Jesus teaches us and what we want to teach the children," Bryant added.
"We need to take care of ourselves and be
good to one another."
Hey U.G.L.Y., a not-for-profit organization, was designed to give
children and teens struggling with the effects of low self-esteem
the tools needed to counter bullying, eating disorders, other forms
of violence, substance abuse and suicide. Betty Hoeffner, president
and co-founder, was present at St. Stanislaus to watch students take
Inspired by a teen who came to Hoeffner after failed suicide
attempts, the advocate for youth embarked on developing a program
that would enable children and teens to learn to feel good about
themselves. And when it came to bullying, Hoeffner was able to draw
on personal experience.
"I remember it like it was yesterday - what it felt like in grade
school and high school," Hoeffner recalled. "I was bullied and I was
The Hey U.G.L.Y. program has now reached out to more than 650,000 youth
through in-school presentations and activity plans.
"I hope our program stops bullying because it hurts people, even the
bully," said Martin Lomay, a team member.
Despite the fact that victims of bullies often are made to feel
isolated and marginalized, according to the bullying task force, one
of the strongest deterrents to this behavior is the old adage -
strength lies in numbers.
"Surround anyone being bullied to show unity and protection and then
take them to the principal to tell what you saw," advised student
Skyler Lagneau. "Bullying is just mean, and no one should be mean to
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