Stop Bullying program a step toward resolving problem

In April 2015, the Cape Girardeau School District applied a proactive approach to bullying, something with which students are all too familiar. With an anonymous, online program created by Central Junior High School counselors Ed Draper and Julie Janzow, the mask was taken off bullying, as students were given tools to expose such mistreatment. Now, for more than a year, students have been using the Stop Bullying program, and in excess of 300 bullying cases were reported during the school year that just ended.

Though the numbers were just “local numbers,” and “will not necessarily be reported as a disciplinary action,” according to Cape’s superintendent of schools, Jim Welker, it is a first step toward the safest possible space for students. Right now, there is no way to crunch the numbers and to know how many of these cases merited discipline. The program, therefore, needs refining. But students are using it, which is a good sign.

“Whether students report incidents in person or without identifying themselves, Welker said the key is to ensure they can learn without feeling afraid,” the Southeast Missourian’s Lindsay Jones wrote. It’s nearly impossible to give 100 percent to anything when gripped by harassment-induced fear, so the program, which allows students to either speak to a counselor or report anonymously via the 1:1 computer every student was given, is a commendable start and will only improve.

Three hundred reports of bullying is a large number, especially when we’re talking about that many in a school year. If these numbers stand up to scrutiny, there’s a lot of bullying going on — and silence is certainly not the answer. The best result is conflict resolution, so Stop Bullying is not just a report for the record; it is the gateway to resolution.