By Victoria Dolan

Last week, students and parents said they felt that bullying is not adequately dealt with at the Memorial Middle School. But what should the school do about it, and what does this mean for next year, when sixth- and seventh-graders will be at the elementary school and eighth-graders move up to the high school?

Both students and parents at the middle school think that school administration should reexamine its approach to preventing and handling bullying incidents.

“The current tools that they have in place aren’t truly working, and they need to rethink what course of action they should be taking,” said the parent of an eighth-grader who asked to remain anonymous.

The middle school currently employs numerous initiatives to proactively educate students about bullying, including presentations by the School Resource Officer and monthly assemblies with a focus on the school’s core values. However, students say the lessons aren’t really sticking.

Aerial Flores, a student who noted that “nobody really pays attention” to school presentations and assemblies, thinks the school needs more awareness of the real impacts of bullying. She hopes the middle school will spread “awareness of how it makes people feel… talk about how online things hurt people, too.”

“I think they definitely need to do more, have speakers come in,” said another parent. She thinks even “having people closer to their own age come in, like high schoolers” could help prevent bullying as students may take the issue more seriously if hearing about it from their peers.

In a statement, Superintendent Judith Kuehn noted that the middle school plans to conduct a student survey on bullying. This will “enable us to compare current student data on bullying with historical data, empowering staff to make informed decisions for school-wide interventions.”

Kuehn added that during advisory sessions, “students will receive a refresher on bullying and the importance of reporting incidents to a trusted adult.”

When asked to comment on the specifics mentioned in this column, Kuehn declined.

The district’s policies on bullying and cyber-bullying are contained in the student handbook, which is posted on hullpublicschools.org.

Students and parents are hoping these interventions may include more than just assemblies and presentations, however. Many parents supported long-term changes focusing on bullying education.

“If they’re so intense about teaching Shakespeare, and Spanish, and geometry, why aren’t they having a class to teach human beings how to be nice to other human beings?” asked one parent.

At the core of this issue, many say, are the underlying problems that cause students to bully in the first place.

“I would love to see a real comprehensive program where they help kids develop their self-esteem and self-confidence,” said parent Kerry Hnath. “I think when you do that, you would see a drop in bullying.”

Hnath is also one of many who thinks that current disciplinary methods for substantiated claims of bullying aren’t enough. Superintendent Kuehn stated that “the response will be individually tailored to all of the circumstances, including the nature of the conduct and the age of the students involved.” Measures taken often involve after school or lunch detentions, or exclusion from school-sponsored activities.

Often, said Hnath, these methods are ineffective. “[They] see it as a ‘get out of jail free card,’” she noted, “because it’s better than sitting in class.”

Other parents agreed.

“They just call the parents and tell the parents to talk to their kids,” said one mother. “That doesn’t do anything. I think the school has to do something.”

Students seem to think the best action in lieu of current approaches would be for the school to help aggressors of bullying understand the full consequences of their actions, and decide on their own steps to remediate the issues.

A seventh grader, who requested anonymity, thinks that when the victim of bullying explains “how this affects their life, and asks [the aggressor] how it benefits them, and why they like to do it, they’ll think about it” and be more likely to not repeat the behavior again.

Flores agreed. She thinks the school should help aggressors “figure out why they’re doing it, and have them come up with their own solutions to stop.”

An eighth-grader added that “people need to be upstanders, they need to confront the aggressor.” At the middle school, she says, “everyone is quiet, if it doesn’t affect them, then they won’t speak out about it.” This student wasn’t aware that a concrete bullying policy even existed, and thinks more awareness about the specifics of the policy might help students feel supported in coming forward.

But the environment to address bullying will look drastically different next year. Sixth- and seventh-graders will remain at the Jacobs Elementary School, while eighth-graders will move up to the high school. The effects this may have on bullying are unknown.

One parent thinks “it will minimize some of the bullying,” because “you’re mixed in more” with other students. Having larger class sizes may help students feel less alienated.

However, others are worried, and think the issue may worsen. Once you’re at the high school, one parent noted, “they’re supposed to be mature,” but if bullying isn’t properly stopped, it may never be fully handled.

That’s why there is no better time for the middle school to take decisive action to put a stop to bullying with its students. By setting a firm precedent now, that there are clear consequences for bullying behavior, administrators can prevent the issue from carrying over into the new school arrangement.

To access last week’s column on the bullying problem at Memorial Middle School, as well as resources on bullying prevention and advocacy, click here.

Victoria Dolan is The Hull Times school correspondent. This column reflects her student viewpoint.

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