Bullying Prevention Resources

 
What is Bullying?

Bullying, harassment and discrimination can take many forms. They can include any persistent action intended to intimidate, threaten, injure or cause mental harm to another person or group. These would be actions that are severe and happen continually.

These actions could be face-to-face, written, posted on a website or sent through instant messaging or text messaging. You may have heard some forms referred to as cyberbullying. They can also be physical and meant to intimidate, or they can be social or emotional and intended to hurt someone’s self-esteem.

Bullying actions could be related to race, religion, gender, socioeconomic status, academic status, physical appearance, sexual orientation, disability or association with someone who is or is perceived to have one of these characteristics.

What Should I Do About Bullying?

If you are a student who is the victim of bullying or you see an act of bullying happening to someone else, you should let a teacher, counselor or the principal know immediately.

If you are a staff member who witnesses bullying or if an incident is reported to you, you are required by GCS to report it to the principal.

When someone reports potential bullying, they will be asked to fill out a form about the incident so it can be investigated. Then, an administrator will the people involved and provide any support or counseling that is needed. At some middle and high schools, students may participate in mediation to discuss what happened.

GCS Expectations

GCS expects all students and staff members to treat each other with respect and recognize the dignity and worth of all members of our school communities. Reports that are found to be bullying, harassment or discrimination will be taken seriously. Students may face in-school disciplinary action or suspension for repeated or serious violations.

Anyone who experiences or witnesses an act of bullying, harassment or discrimination has the duty to report it. All GCS staff members are required to report it to an administrator. Parents are also encouraged to report incidents. It takes a whole community working together to put an end to bullying. All reports will be handled confidentially.

Cyberbullying

Cyberbullying is the act of using technology (such as the Internet or cell phones) to send mean, vulgar or threatening messages or images. Sometimes it can take the form of pretending to be someone else in order to make a person look bad. Cyberbullying is particularly dangerous because it can occur any time of the day, it can be distributed quickly and it can be done anonymously.

GCS Programs and Partnerships

The following programs support our ability to promote a bullying-free environment in our schools. Please visit their websites for more information.

Southern Middle School uses Character Education to help prevent bullying.  Click here to view video.

Additional Resources