All Families Need to Take a Stand Against Bullying

Bullying in schools is a long-standing, widespread problem, yet parents often overlook the harassment occurring in their own communities. Many adults imagine bullying to be the obvious intimidation of a child by a physically more powerful peer. While such harassment certainly occurs, the overwhelming majority of bullying involves a variety of behaviors that are not physical in nature, such as gossiping, spreading rumors, and name-calling. These antisocial behaviors are often dismissed as a normal part of growing up by many adults, but they have highly detrimental effects on students’ well-being and academic performance.

Children in all grade levels use difference as a reason to discriminate, exclude, and make fun of their peers. When some acts of bullying (for example, physical confrontation) are punished, but others (such as racist slurs) are not, students learn that harassment is acceptable as long as it is not obvious. Therefore, prejudice and bias are more entrenched in school cultures than most adults realize.

According to findings of the Safe School Initiative conducted by the U.S. Secret Service in 2002, three-quarters of all school shootings have resulted from repeated bullying and harassment. Creating safe and welcoming classrooms must be the responsibility of lawmakers, school personnel, and the entire community.

The lessons children learn outside of the classroom—especially from their parents—about how to treat others are perhaps the greatest influence on their behavior. All parents and guardians can monitor and guide their own children’s behavior, encouraging them to be more respectful toward their peers.

This article is adapted from Creating Safe Schools Is Everyone’s Business by Ryan Schwartz and Debra Chasnoff. This article appeared in the August-September 2007 issue of Our Children magazine, the national PTA organization’s flagship publication for families and PTA leaders. To subscribe to this fact- and idea-filled magazine especially designed to help families who want to help their children succeed in school and life, click here.

Get Involved to End Youth Violence Recognizing that there is no one simple program to cure the epidemic of violence involving children and adolescents, we must begin promoting the power of many of the locally-based initiatives and programs to meet the varied needs of young people at risk. A growing corps of community leaders and individuals have come together to discuss priorities and recommendations for resolving some of the violence. Forming small committees to address critical areas such as special events, job development, youth advocacy, community service, listening sessions, mentoring and counseling is a way to get started. It might help to also establish a strategic planning committee to coordinate and assist each sub-committee. Young people want and need an opportunity to work with adults in resolving the issue of violence. Many young people are already assisting community leaders in dealing with youth violence. Teens are organizing community festivals inaugurating a year of peace, listening sessions, support groups and meetings, tutoring and mentoring, and violence prevention workshops. Find out how you can get involved in your state. For more information on bullying prevention, visit http://www.stopbullyingnow.hrsa.gov/index.asp.

PTA Celebrates Mendez v. Westminster
Life Achievement Award Presented to Silvia Mendez

From left to right, Betsy Landers, PTA national secretary-treasurer; Chuck Saylors, PTA national president-elect; Sylvia Mendez, PTA National Life Achievement Award Winner; Jan Harp Domene, PTA national president; and Sandra Robbie, Founder of the Mendez America Project

The U.S. Postal Service marked the 60th anniversary Mendez v. Westminster with a commemorative stamp.  Mendez v. Westminster was the groundbreaking World War II-era legal case in which a group of civic-minded Hispanic parents in California successfully sued to end segregation in their schools. Lawmakers, community leaders, education officials, and child advocates joined the U.S. Postal Service in the presentation of this new stamp while they gathered in tribute at the U.S. Capitol Building, Thursday, September 20.  

PTA and the Hispanic Heritage Foundation (HHF) hosted the tribute to the 60^th Anniversary of Mendez v. Westminster, a landmark case that is virtually unknown even though it preceded Brown v. Board of Education and prohibited segregation in California’s schools.  During the event, the PTA presented its most prestigious award, the Life Achievement Award, to Silvia Mendez, who was involved in the case as a young girl.

“For decades PTA has fought for quality education for all children.  Equal education continues to be a top priority and is at the core of the mission of our millions of members across the country,” said Jan Harp Domene, PTA national president. “As we continue to take action for every child, we’re honored to … call attention to such a significant desegregation case, first fought by the Latino community that affects every child nationwide.”

“The lack of visibility given to this significant case has been unfortunate,” said Jose Antonio Tijerino, president and CEO of HHF and member of the PTA National Board of Directors. “I applaud the PTA for recognizing this important piece of history as an inspiration for parental activism.  The Mendez case continues to make an impact 60 years later as Latinos reach the second-largest majority in America.”

Celebrate the 4th R — Rescuing Recess

Help Cartoon Network Raise 1 Million Volunteer Hours

Participate for a Chance to Win Playground Equipment and Cash Grants for Your Local Elementary School in the Rescuing Recess Volunteer Challenge!

Experts say fresh air and play give kids an edge in their school work. Yet, only eight state school boards of education have a policy that ensures daily recess. Further, 55% of PTA leaders feel their school’s recess is in jeopardy. So Cartoon Network has created a successful, award-winning national movement called “Rescuing Recess” and National Recess Week (9/24/07-9/28/07) to safeguard and promote daily recess!

Now through June 2008, Rescuing Recess is recruiting volunteers all over the country to serve as recess monitors at their local elementary school. So help make a difference in your community—it just takes four easy steps.

1. Choose a Recess Volunteer Representative who will act as the recess coordinator to spearhead the effort at your school and register at www.RescuingRecess.com.
2. Download and use the official Volunteer Challenge Tracking Sheet and track all qualifying physical activity-related volunteer efforts.
3. Count your school’s volunteer hours using the official Volunteer Hours Tracking Log during the 2007-2008 school year.
4. Submit the number of completed hours and total volunteer participation at www.RescuingRecess.com during the official submission periods in February and May 2008!

One school in every state and DC that completes the most volunteer hours has a chance to win up to $2500 in cash grants and to compete for one national grant of $25,000!* Visit RescuingRecess.com to Get Started Today!

* See Official Rules at www.rescuingrecess.com Complete Program Details Prior to Registering Your School

PTA Briefs More Bullying Prevention Resources! Looking for additional tools to help educate your kids about bullying? PACER Center’s National Center for Bullying Prevention has a website just for elementary school kids: www.PACERKidsAgainstBullying.org. The site uses animated characters, games, videos, real life stories, and more to teach kids what bullying is and how to respond. If your kids are in middle or high school, they can share their own experiences and talents to help build PACER Center’s new Students Against Bullying website and help educate their peers. Find out how! Educate yourself about bullying prevention with PACER Center’s resources for parents. National Bullying Prevention Awareness Week is October 21-27. Join in the nationwide effort to increase awareness and reduce the prevalence of bullying. The week is sponsored by PACER Center’s National Center for Bullying Prevention, and cosponsored by PTA. Creating Empathy: Uniting Communities to Make Schools Safer While it is shocking that an estimated 160,000 students miss school everyday for fear of being harassed by their peers (National Education Association, 1995), it is often difficult to unite youth, parents, teachers, and community leaders to decrease this number. The Respect For All Project is working as a partner with the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services to provide parents and guardians across the country with the necessary tools for making schools more welcoming for all students. Their award-winning documentary film, Let’s Get Real, helps both youth and adults better understand bullying and initiate change. As a first step, you can organize a screening of the film for your community to promote a discussion about creating safe schools. You can also work with The Respect For All Project to organize a family and community forum to provide a structured environment for exploring strategies that build respect for all children and their families. By using the existing resources identified by the PTA, you can join the thousands of families across the country that are actively ensuring healthy, safe, and hate-free learning environments for all children in their community. For more information, visit www.respectforall.org. Visit http://www.pta.org/pr_magazine_article_details_1187297022546.html to read an online article about creating safe schools. Let’s Keep the Lights On After School After-school programs keep kids safe, improve learning, increase school attendance, and give parents peace of mind. But in America today, one in four children—a total of 14.3 million children—are on their own after school, according to a study by the Afterschool Alliance. On October 18, you can join families and communities around the nation in recognizing the importance of quality after-school programs by celebrating Lights On Afterschool, a project of the Afterschool Alliance. Talk to your PTA or visit the Afterschool Alliance website to find a Lights On Afterschool event in your community. Learn more about the benefits of after-school programs here. As a proponent of affordable, high-quality out-of-school programs, PTA is proud to support Lights On Afterschool. Celebrate the Arts with PTA! Whether it’s finger painting or pointillism, a student recital or a concerto, a school dance show or the Joffrey Ballet, arts experiences are to be valued for their contributions to our children’s intellectual, personal, and social development. Celebrate the arts with PTA and your school during PTA Start the Art Week, October 8-12. Find out what arts activities your school community is hosting for the week—and plan to participate! Use the week as an excuse to plan family arts activities as well. Admire others’ artistic talents and explore your own. Visit a museum, put on a play, write or recite poems, attend a concert, organize a photo shoot, or pull out some paints or pastels. Whatever you do, enjoy doing it together as a family. Look for more about the arts in our next issue. GE Foundation to Receive Commitment to America’s Children Award from PTA On October 2, at the third annual Commitment to America’s ChildrenGala Award Dinner, PTA will honor the GE Foundation for its outstanding dedication and service to children. The GE Foundation, the philanthropic organization of the General Electric Company, works to strengthen educational opportunities for disadvantaged children and youth around the world. At the gala award dinner, education and business leaders will come together with PTA officers and executives to honor the GE Foundation, support PTA, and show their own commitment to children and education. The gala will be held in Washington DC and hosted by the 2006 award recipient, Sprint. For more information about the gala and the GE Foundation’s philanthropic efforts, visit www.pta.org/gala. 100 Ways to Help Your Child and School Succeed There are many ways that you can help your child succeed! Here a few that you can do this week: Understand and reinforce school rules and expectations at home. (Comprenda y refuerce las reglas y las expectativas de la escuela en su casa.) Ask teachers or school counselors about how to talk with your child about tough topics. (Pregunte a los docentes o asesores escolares cómo hablar con su hijo acerca de temas difíciles.)

In the News

• Overweight kids show heart risks as teens
• A Tamer of Schools Has Plan in New Orleans
• Club expands formula getting girls in science 
   

All Families Need to Take a Stand Against Bullying

Bullying in schools is a long-standing, widespread problem, yet parents often overlook the harassment occurring in their own communities. Many adults imagine bullying to be the obvious intimidation of a child by a physically more powerful peer. While such harassment certainly occurs, the overwhelming majority of bullying involves a variety of behaviors that are not physical in nature, such as gossiping, spreading rumors, and name-calling. These antisocial behaviors are often dismissed as a normal part of growing up by many adults, but they have highly detrimental effects on students’ well-being and academic performance.

Children in all grade levels use difference as a reason to discriminate, exclude, and make fun of their peers. When some acts of bullying (for example, physical confrontation) are punished, but others (such as racist slurs) are not, students learn that harassment is acceptable as long as it is not obvious. Therefore, prejudice and bias are more entrenched in school cultures than most adults realize.

According to findings of the Safe School Initiative conducted by the U.S. Secret Service in 2002, three-quarters of all school shootings have resulted from repeated bullying and harassment. Creating safe and welcoming classrooms must be the responsibility of lawmakers, school personnel, and the entire community.

The lessons children learn outside of the classroom—especially from their parents—about how to treat others are perhaps the greatest influence on their behavior. All parents and guardians can monitor and guide their own children’s behavior, encouraging them to be more respectful toward their peers.

This article is adapted from Creating Safe Schools Is Everyone’s Business by Ryan Schwartz and Debra Chasnoff. This article appeared in the August-September 2007 issue of Our Children magazine, the national PTA organization’s flagship publication for families and PTA leaders. To subscribe to this fact- and idea-filled magazine especially designed to help families who want to help their children succeed in school and life, click here.

Get Involved to End Youth Violence Recognizing that there is no one simple program to cure the epidemic of violence involving children and adolescents, we must begin promoting the power of many of the locally-based initiatives and programs to meet the varied needs of young people at risk. A growing corps of community leaders and individuals have come together to discuss priorities and recommendations for resolving some of the violence. Forming small committees to address critical areas such as special events, job development, youth advocacy, community service, listening sessions, mentoring and counseling is a way to get started. It might help to also establish a strategic planning committee to coordinate and assist each sub-committee. Young people want and need an opportunity to work with adults in resolving the issue of violence. Many young people are already assisting community leaders in dealing with youth violence. Teens are organizing community festivals inaugurating a year of peace, listening sessions, support groups and meetings, tutoring and mentoring, and violence prevention workshops. Find out how you can get involved in your state. For more information on bullying prevention, visit http://www.stopbullyingnow.hrsa.gov/index.asp.

PTA Celebrates Mendez v. Westminster
Life Achievement Award Presented to Silvia Mendez

From left to right, Betsy Landers, PTA national secretary-treasurer; Chuck Saylors, PTA national president-elect; Sylvia Mendez, PTA National Life Achievement Award Winner; Jan Harp Domene, PTA national president; and Sandra Robbie, Founder of the Mendez America Project

The U.S. Postal Service marked the 60th anniversary Mendez v. Westminster with a commemorative stamp.  Mendez v. Westminster was the groundbreaking World War II-era legal case in which a group of civic-minded Hispanic parents in California successfully sued to end segregation in their schools. Lawmakers, community leaders, education officials, and child advocates joined the U.S. Postal Service in the presentation of this new stamp while they gathered in tribute at the U.S. Capitol Building, Thursday, September 20.  

PTA and the Hispanic Heritage Foundation (HHF) hosted the tribute to the 60^th Anniversary of Mendez v. Westminster, a landmark case that is virtually unknown even though it preceded Brown v. Board of Education and prohibited segregation in California’s schools.  During the event, the PTA presented its most prestigious award, the Life Achievement Award, to Silvia Mendez, who was involved in the case as a young girl.

“For decades PTA has fought for quality education for all children.  Equal education continues to be a top priority and is at the core of the mission of our millions of members across the country,” said Jan Harp Domene, PTA national president. “As we continue to take action for every child, we’re honored to … call attention to such a significant desegregation case, first fought by the Latino community that affects every child nationwide.”

“The lack of visibility given to this significant case has been unfortunate,” said Jose Antonio Tijerino, president and CEO of HHF and member of the PTA National Board of Directors. “I applaud the PTA for recognizing this important piece of history as an inspiration for parental activism.  The Mendez case continues to make an impact 60 years later as Latinos reach the second-largest majority in America.”

Celebrate the 4th R — Rescuing Recess

Help Cartoon Network Raise 1 Million Volunteer Hours

Participate for a Chance to Win Playground Equipment and Cash Grants for Your Local Elementary School in the Rescuing Recess Volunteer Challenge!

Experts say fresh air and play give kids an edge in their school work. Yet, only eight state school boards of education have a policy that ensures daily recess. Further, 55% of PTA leaders feel their school’s recess is in jeopardy. So Cartoon Network has created a successful, award-winning national movement called “Rescuing Recess” and National Recess Week (9/24/07-9/28/07) to safeguard and promote daily recess!

Now through June 2008, Rescuing Recess is recruiting volunteers all over the country to serve as recess monitors at their local elementary school. So help make a difference in your community—it just takes four easy steps.

1. Choose a Recess Volunteer Representative who will act as the recess coordinator to spearhead the effort at your school and register at www.RescuingRecess.com.
2. Download and use the official Volunteer Challenge Tracking Sheet and track all qualifying physical activity-related volunteer efforts.
3. Count your school’s volunteer hours using the official Volunteer Hours Tracking Log during the 2007-2008 school year.
4. Submit the number of completed hours and total volunteer participation at www.RescuingRecess.com during the official submission periods in February and May 2008!

One school in every state and DC that completes the most volunteer hours has a chance to win up to $2500 in cash grants and to compete for one national grant of $25,000!* Visit RescuingRecess.com to Get Started Today!

* See Official Rules at www.rescuingrecess.com Complete Program Details Prior to Registering Your School

PTA Briefs More Bullying Prevention Resources! Looking for additional tools to help educate your kids about bullying? PACER Center’s National Center for Bullying Prevention has a website just for elementary school kids: www.PACERKidsAgainstBullying.org. The site uses animated characters, games, videos, real life stories, and more to teach kids what bullying is and how to respond. If your kids are in middle or high school, they can share their own experiences and talents to help build PACER Center’s new Students Against Bullying website and help educate their peers. Find out how! Educate yourself about bullying prevention with PACER Center’s resources for parents. National Bullying Prevention Awareness Week is October 21-27. Join in the nationwide effort to increase awareness and reduce the prevalence of bullying. The week is sponsored by PACER Center’s National Center for Bullying Prevention, and cosponsored by PTA. Creating Empathy: Uniting Communities to Make Schools Safer While it is shocking that an estimated 160,000 students miss school everyday for fear of being harassed by their peers (National Education Association, 1995), it is often difficult to unite youth, parents, teachers, and community leaders to decrease this number. The Respect For All Project is working as a partner with the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services to provide parents and guardians across the country with the necessary tools for making schools more welcoming for all students. Their award-winning documentary film, Let’s Get Real, helps both youth and adults better understand bullying and initiate change. As a first step, you can organize a screening of the film for your community to promote a discussion about creating safe schools. You can also work with The Respect For All Project to organize a family and community forum to provide a structured environment for exploring strategies that build respect for all children and their families. By using the existing resources identified by the PTA, you can join the thousands of families across the country that are actively ensuring healthy, safe, and hate-free learning environments for all children in their community. For more information, visit www.respectforall.org. Visit http://www.pta.org/pr_magazine_article_details_1187297022546.html to read an online article about creating safe schools. Let’s Keep the Lights On After School After-school programs keep kids safe, improve learning, increase school attendance, and give parents peace of mind. But in America today, one in four children—a total of 14.3 million children—are on their own after school, according to a study by the Afterschool Alliance. On October 18, you can join families and communities around the nation in recognizing the importance of quality after-school programs by celebrating Lights On Afterschool, a project of the Afterschool Alliance. Talk to your PTA or visit the Afterschool Alliance website to find a Lights On Afterschool event in your community. Learn more about the benefits of after-school programs here. As a proponent of affordable, high-quality out-of-school programs, PTA is proud to support Lights On Afterschool. Celebrate the Arts with PTA! Whether it’s finger painting or pointillism, a student recital or a concerto, a school dance show or the Joffrey Ballet, arts experiences are to be valued for their contributions to our children’s intellectual, personal, and social development. Celebrate the arts with PTA and your school during PTA Start the Art Week, October 8-12. Find out what arts activities your school community is hosting for the week—and plan to participate! Use the week as an excuse to plan family arts activities as well. Admire others’ artistic talents and explore your own. Visit a museum, put on a play, write or recite poems, attend a concert, organize a photo shoot, or pull out some paints or pastels. Whatever you do, enjoy doing it together as a family. Look for more about the arts in our next issue. GE Foundation to Receive Commitment to America’s Children Award from PTA On October 2, at the third annual Commitment to America’s ChildrenGala Award Dinner, PTA will honor the GE Foundation for its outstanding dedication and service to children. The GE Foundation, the philanthropic organization of the General Electric Company, works to strengthen educational opportunities for disadvantaged children and youth around the world. At the gala award dinner, education and business leaders will come together with PTA officers and executives to honor the GE Foundation, support PTA, and show their own commitment to children and education. The gala will be held in Washington DC and hosted by the 2006 award recipient, Sprint. For more information about the gala and the GE Foundation’s philanthropic efforts, visit www.pta.org/gala. 100 Ways to Help Your Child and School Succeed There are many ways that you can help your child succeed! Here a few that you can do this week: Understand and reinforce school rules and expectations at home. (Comprenda y refuerce las reglas y las expectativas de la escuela en su casa.) Ask teachers or school counselors about how to talk with your child about tough topics. (Pregunte a los docentes o asesores escolares cómo hablar con su hijo acerca de temas difíciles.)

In the News

• Overweight kids show heart risks as teens
• A Tamer of Schools Has Plan in New Orleans
• Club expands formula getting girls in science